Developing Individuals Career Management Skills Professional Development Seminar May 2009

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Developing Individuals Career Management
SkillsProfessional Development SeminarMay 2009
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Self-Help in Career Planning and Decision-Making
Research

• Research aims
• to identify the critical organisational factors
  and individual pre-conditions which encourage
  individuals up to the age of 19 to self-help in
  career planning
• To examine whether the use of self-help tools has
  an impact on the acquisition of career
  self-management skills

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What does the research tell us?

• Impact
• Relatively limited up-take of CS self-help
  services (44 had used school careers library and
  36 had used website at point of first
  questionnaire) in the 3 schools surveyed
• Aspects of CMS measured in questionnaires -
  awareness of strengths, weaknesses and values
  opportunity awareness career planning readiness
  support and advice awareness application skills
  and knowledge
• Use of self-help resources led to modest increase
  on all aspects of CMS measured except awareness
  of strengths, weaknesses, values

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What does the research tell us?

• Impact
• Careers Adviser interview had positive impact on
  opportunity awareness and was valued and desired
  by young people and teaching staff
• Most common sources of support for career
  planning were the internet, family and
  leaflets/books formal badged sources were
  viewed as least useful
• Usefulness of Careers Scotland website rated
  highly by website user survey respondents who
  tended to use tools which were more exploratory
  rather than information based

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What does the research tell us?

• Individual Pre-conditions
• Young people talk about and demonstrate a
  significant apathy to career planning - they
  dont appear to take a formal, proactive approach
• YP need to be pushed by external influencers
  (CAs/GTs) to plan for their future and planning
  is only seen as relevant if a decision was
  imminent a short term focus on the next step
  rather than longer term planning is common
• Influence of parents / carers is highlighted
• Most young people report that they were confident
  of their awareness and ability to access IAG but
  very few have high readiness for using
  self-help resources

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What does the research tell us?

• Individual Pre-conditions
• Young people report too much duplication, lack of
  depth, and inaccuracy of information sourced on
  the internet, making self-help more complex
• Young people value self-help services
  (particularly websites) but wish personal contact
  and advice
• Majority of YP using career websites need or seek
  support in doing so and use them most comfortably
  when their use is mediated - need for mediation
  was reported by young people, teachers, and
  Careers Advisers
• Self-help is not an appropriate response for
  young people with additional support needs or who
  a are part of the More Choices, More Chances
  group

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What does the research tell us?

• Organisational Factors
• We need to make career planning more appealing to
  young people (less formal, more interactive, and
  stimulating to use)
• The development of self-help resources needs to
  be conducted with young people
• There needs to be more hot information provided
• Young people want provision of more learning
  opportunities rather than information - provide
  more access to self-help tools that help develop
  self-awareness and decision-making skills

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What does the research tell us?

• Organisational Factors
• Need one point of access to the range of relevant
  and appropriate resources (not just SDS/CS) on
  offer
• We need to develop increased regard for self-help
  resources amongst staff and encourage them to
  find ways to provide a more integrated offer
• Reluctance by school or Careers Scotland to take
  the chance of young people not self-helping
  supports an ethos of pro-activity by staff and
  reactivity by pupils

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Research Findings Reflective Questions

• What do I do to raise awareness of self-help
  resources in my school for pupils, parents, and
  teachers?
• What self-help resources do I encourage pupils to
  use? How do I monitor the effectiveness of this?
• Am I aware of self-help resources that pupils can
  use to facilitate development of different CMS?
• Does the service level agreement with the
  school/s I work in refer to and help us integrate
  the use of self-help resources as part of school
  development plans?
• Do my working practices encourage an ethos of
  reactivity in pupils? If yes, what can I do to
  change this?

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Approach to Guidance

• The ATG model is designed to enable Careers
  Advisers and their clients to identify and
  resolve actual career planning needs.
• Allows Careers Advisers to get agreement on the
  focus and purpose of a career planning
  intervention.
• Careers Advisers should use the ATG as a means of
  focussing the interview into development of
  career management skills.
• Clients are clear on how they are making career
  related decisions and provided with actions to
  resolve on-going needs.

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Approach to Guidance

• Make the career management skills clients acquire
  through the process more transparent to foster
  confidence and future career agility
• Reflective Questions
• Why is it important to agree the purpose of the
  intervention during the pre-conditions stage of
  the ATG interview?
• What techniques can be used to help the client
  describe their career planning process and
  identify their Career Management Skills?
• What methods can be employed to determine how
  effective a clients career planning strategy is?
• Suggest ways of ensuring that the action / advice
  you offer is relevant to the client
• Discuss ways of ensuring the client agrees and
  owns the targets and actions related to their
  needs

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Career Plan of Action

• The CPOA records well-informed and realistic
  career decisions and the actions required to meet
  career goals as a result of a 11 intervention
  with a Careers Adviser.
• Where an individual has had a diagnostic /
  checking interview and it is agreed with the
  Careers Adviser no further career planning
  intervention is required.
• Where an individual has had a guidance interview
  with a Careers Adviser.
• Identifies the appropriate stage of the Career
  Planning Journey which best describes where the
  individual is with their career planning.
• Summarises the clients awareness of how work and
  learning opportunities fit in with their life
  style and what they hope to gain from pursuing
  these ideas.
• Details the action points agreed and key areas to
  consider in taking forward their career planning.
• Careers Advisers can supplement the completed
  CPOA with information leaflets on GRFW, Staying
  at School, Job Search, Applying for College
  University
• To be completed at the end of an ATG intervention

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Career Plan of Action

• Greater personalisation of the action points to
  help develop Career Management Skills and career
  agility
• Clients to write their own CPOAs Using new web
  technology on My Learning Space
• How do you currently identify and record actions
  do you discuss this with the client? Do you
  offer options?
• How do you ensure the client agrees and owns the
  targets and actions related to their CMS needs?

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Career Planning Journey

• The CPJ is Skills Development Scotlands
  conceptual and methodological explanation of what
  career planning involves.
• Provides insights into the different stages of
  career planning and what clients need to do to
  become successful career planners
• Career Advisers identify what stage of the career
  planning journey the client is on and seek to
  resolve career planning needs.
• Provides a clear focus on career planning and
  ensures both parties are in agreement.
• Career Advisers use the CPJ to clarify links
  between self-awareness and opportunity awareness.
• The CPJ can be introduced in ATG 11
  interventions and career planning workshops with
  Young People and Adults

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Career Planning Journey

• Make the career management skills clients acquire
  through the process more transparent to foster
  confidence and future career agility
• Different versions of the CPJ to use with client
  groups according to their need
• Consider how and when you would introduce the CPJ
  to a client in a 11 intervention?
• How does the CPJ support clients in identifying
  the skills they have acquired in formal and
  informal settings?
• Discuss the usefulness or otherwise of group work
  to explore career planning using the CPJ?

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Planning Your Career Booklet

• The PYC booklet has been designed for use with
  individuals during a 11 guidance or group
  intervention to engage them in the career
  planning process.
• Careers Advisers use the booklet to explain the
  CS decision making approach and how to use the
  decision making tool (six questions)
• Career Advisers use the PYC booklets during the
  diagnosis stage of the career planning interview
  as a way of exploring self awareness and
  opportunity awareness
• To be used at stage 1 2 of the Career Planning
  Journey

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Planning Your Career Booklet

• Make the skills and qualities identified through
  self awareness more transparent
• Make the learning gained about the economic
  environment, businesses and occupations more
  transparent
• Link these to career decision making now and in
  the future
• Produce personalised on line version with
  guidelines for use in My Learning Space
• The language in the PYC booklet is not always
  appropriate to the client what other methods
  could you employ to teach the formula?
• What methods do you currently use to introduce
  the six formula questions what difficulties have
  you come across and how did you overcome them?
• How can the formula questions be used in
  exploring confidence to take forward
  well-informed career decisions and raise
  aspirations?
• How can the formula questions be used to explore
  career agility and take advantage of
  opportunities to maximise potential?

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The Buzz

• Uses personality type theory to enable young
  people to better understand themselves and other
  people. Helps young people make better decisions
  about their future and improves the quality of
  their relationships and communication skills
• Make personality traits (self awareness) and
  their relationship to work (opportunity
  awareness) more explicit to help young people
  identify their transferable skills
• Help young people to have a clearer idea of what
  is important to them
• Used at Stage 1and 2 of the Career Planning
  Journey

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The Buzz

• Make personality traits (Self awareness) and
  their relationship to work (opportunity
  awareness) more explicit
• Use it more in school, groups and with clients in
  the centre
• Develop self help material on the web site in My
  Learning Space
• How can Buzz generate discussion around
  self-awareness?
• How can Buzz be used to promote discussion around
  career agility?
• How can Buzz be used to engage clients in
  developing their career management skills?

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SING Tools

• A toolkit for staff to assist individuals to make
  well informed realistic career decisions
• Career Thinking
• Employability Skills
• Career Management Skills Quiz (Young People)
• Career Support Network
• Career Line
• Explore decision making which can then be
  discussed and challenged
• Help clients develop a sense of self awareness
• Enable clients to assess their level of skills in
  relation to what employers demand
• Used at Stages 1 4 of the Career Planning
  Journey

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SING Tools

• Give clients a clearer understanding of their
  transferable skills
• Raise confidence in their career management
  capability through reflection on skills and
  experience identified
• Update and develop online version on My Learning
  Space
• How can the SING tools be used to develop
  clients sense of self-awareness?
• How can the SING tools be used to challenge
  clients decision making process?
• How can the SING tools be used to explore
  clients skills and qualities?
• How can SING be used in raising career
  aspirations?
• Where can SING be introduced into the ATG model?
• How does SING support clients in identifying the
  skills they have acquired in formal and informal
  settings

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My Employability Journey Logbook

• A logbook used with students on the Flexible
  Support Project (FSP) to promote employability
  skills
• The logbook belongs to the client and it is a
  record, written by them in their own words, of
  the evidence of their
• Personal Qualities
• Skills
• Experience
• Career Plans
• Motivation
• Achievements
• Qualifications and Education
• Areas for Development
• For use at and through transition
• To evaluate themselves, know their strengths and
  areas for development and help them to articulate
  their competencies.
• Used at Stages 5 9 of the Career Planning
  Journey

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My Employability Journey Logbook

• Integrated into ATG interventions to support
  clients personal development planning
• Benchmark skills and confidence levels at outset
  of project to make the distance travelled more
  explicit and create greater levels of confidence
• How does My Employability Toolkit support
  clients in identifying the skills they have
  acquired in formal and informal settings?

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Job Flash Cards

• Job Flash cards are used by Careers /
  Employability Advisers as a starting point for
  clients who do not have any career ideas but are
  ready and willing to career plan.
• Job Flash Cards can be used in 11 intervention
  and career planning workshops with young people
  and adults.
• Encourages clients to think about what they want
  from work and increases self awareness.
• Provides a better understanding of how to make
  decisions and what is involved in making
  well-informed and realistic career decisions
• Generating ideas and motivating clients to think
  about how they make decisions.
• To be be used at stage 1 2 of the Career
  Planning Journey

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Job Flash Cards

• How can Job Flash Cards help clients learn about
  economic environment, business and occupations?
• How can Job Flash Cards help explore the
  advantages to continued learning, training and
  qualifications?
• How can Job Flash Cards be used to explore what a
  client wants from work?

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Career Box

• Career Box is a flexible teaching and learning
  career education
• resource delivered by both teachers and Careers
  Scotland
• advisers.  It is the first national resource that
  offers a suite of lessons
• and activities ensuring a consistent, coherent
  approach to career
• education for young people
• S1/2, S4 and S5 activities which ensure young
  people are-
• Knowledgeable, ready and willing to engage with
  career guidance
• Able to raise their career aspirations
• Make connections between learning experiences
  during school and the future workplace
• Supports all stages of the Career planning Journey

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Career Box career education

• What place does confidence and well-being have in
  Career Box and how would you deliver this
  further?
• How does Career Box support clients in
  identifying the skills they have acquired in
  formal and informal settings?

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Windmills Programme

• Windmills offers career and life management
  programmes and resources to clients. It helps
  people take a fresh, positive and proactive look
  at their lives to ensure they are equipped with
  the skills they need to realise their potential.
• HIE to provide us with practical applications