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Career development tips for 2025
| You’ve done your objective setting for the year, you’ve met direct reports and your line manager to discuss your corporate objectives. But did you include a personal development plan in your discussions? If not, now is a good time to be thinking about what you want to achieve professionally over the next 12 or so months – beyond those objectives you have to hit for work.
There is growing demand for project management skills, and staying current is more important than ever, especially if you’ve been around projects and delivery for a while. For example, I used to go to networking events and conferences a lot, and that was a great way to meet people, share ideas and learn new topics. Then I had kids and moved out of London and now it’s not so easy to get into the city for networking breakfasts or evening seminars. I went to a conference last year and it was really interesting, and good to find time to do things for myself. It was a learning opportunity but also a way to re-energise myself about the profession and make a renewed commitment to professional development. So, if you’re in the same position and want to look at what you could do to build your career and develop professionally, here are some ideas. Take a certificateEven if you don’t technically need one, it’s always good to expose yourself to different teaching methods and different tips. I took a RAID certificate this year and I got a couple of comments like, “what did you need to do a course on that for?” but I did learn new things and it was interesting to see how other people use their RAID logs. Take a courseYou don’t need to commit to a certificate (i.e. an exam) if you don’t want to. Even a short course would be a good start. PMI has a range of free training courses covering AI in project management and it’s worth seeing what is out there. Get a mentorI mentor project managers and I know from what they’ve said to me that it’s a great way to learn new skills and have a safe space to try out ideas. If you are an early career professional, look into what mentoring schemes are on offer from your company, or find an independent mentor, or use the mentoring programmes from your local PMI Chapter. There really are plenty of people out there who will be prepared to help you. Go to a networking eventDon’t feel like committing to learning or an ongoing professional mentoring relationship? Then how about just taking the small step of going to a networking event in your local area? Show up, listen to the talk, say hello and make small talk to the people next to you and leave it at that. You’ll feel more confident for having tried something new and you might learn something at the same time! There are so many choices. Whether you are extrovert or introvert, prefer webinars or meeting in person, want to commit to a 6-month programme or get your training done in a lunch time, there is the option for you. Block half an hour in your diary now to identify some development opportunities that would work for you and help you get closer to your overall career goals. And then go for it! |
Posted on: February 06, 2025 05:07 PM
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