Career Planning ----- Meaning Features

MEANING AND DEFINITION

A career can be defined as a sequence of separate but related work activities that provides continuity, order and meaning in a ^person's life.'

Career planning and development is a deliberate process through which a person becomes aware of personal career-related attributes and lifelong series of stages that contribute to his or her career fulfillment. Career planning and development is not a one-shot training programme. It has longer time frame and wider focus. It is an ongoing organised and formalized effort that recognizes people as a viral organisational resource.4

Features of Career Planning

Based on the interpretation of the definitions in Box 9.1, the following features of career planning have been developed:

· Career planning normally follows a bottom-up approach in which the process begins

with the individuals, works upwards, and ends with organizational intervention

· It is not a one-time affair but an ongoing process by which an employee identifies the needs and also the methods to fulfill those needs on a regular basis.

· It aims at matching the individual's career goals with the opportunities available.

· It is a means of achieving employee progression and organizational efficiency and not an end in itself.

· It is the collective responsibility of both the individual employee and the organization.

· It is normally made in a dynamic environment where the changes in the demand for and supply of labour, the characteristics of labour, technology, competitive conditions and market strategies are rapid and often radical.