Friday, October 24, 2003


www.zigonperf.com/

Check into this site. Jack Zigon has done a tremendous job of pulling together a very comprehensive set of information - there really is something for everyone on this site. You can use it for your own development or the development of people who report to you at work. It really helps you pick out core competencies and will be a good building block to performance development. Let me know what you think.

Wednesday, October 22, 2003

Initially it seemed to me that ongoing learning in a career was a relatively singular activity-something that those with ambition would undertake to ensure they could attain the increasingly responsible positions that we think of (or used to) as career progression or success. Globalization, acquisitions and mergers and technology have changed the way business operates and will continue to do so, the world keeps moving forward and we need to go with it or get left behind. I will leave the philosophies of being left behind for those that are better able to comment-after all the choice to not move forward in your career development is a real life choice in many cases.
The idea that careers can be lateral growth oriented really serves two approaches - lateral growth provides you with a strong foundation to attain vertical growth or it allows you to do interesting work and have better choices about where and when you will do that work without having to take on management responsibilities. I have observed some very powerful leaders that under our old 'success' models would appear to have a stalled career - yet the reality is they have a lot of power and influence over what goes on in the workplace. When this is focussed it can provide great mentoring opportunities - if you are looking for a mentor consider someone like this - you will learn a lot from them.
My interest in development in the workplace has been around for a long time. I am going to use this blog initially to posts some thoughts and experiences I have had myself and that I have observed in my work. I have been in Human Resources for 15 years with a business administration background prior to this. Something that I spend more and more time on is looking at how to encourage and facilitate ongoing learning in the workplace. Although my posts initially might consist of past experiences and observations I plan to post new information or thoughts as they come to me.