Six Steps to Your Successful Career Path - Essay Example

A report of Andelsen’s Article En d “Six Steps to Your Successful Career Path” Details: al Affiliation: Date of Submission A report of Andelsen’s Article Entitled “Six Steps to Your Successful Career Path” Introduction Scholars are in agreement that an individual’s Career success contributes hugely to organizational growth prospects (Barrack, Higgins, Judge & Thoresen, 1999). Consequently, scholarly researches on successful career paths continue to flourish with facilitative factors top on the agenda. Career success can be summed up as the cumulative positive outcomes resulting from one’s work experiences (Seibert & Kraimer, 2001). The sequential, evolutionary aspect of experiences over time attaches the notion of a "moving perspective" on careers. Thus, it not only transcends organizational dynamics in the new economic, technological and social realms, but goes beyond systemic boundaries. As it is, therefore, a person’s career is a key life constituency evolving around work and time. Apart from the provision of income, work offers a sense of purpose, challenge and self-fulfillment. It is a source of interactive life challenges via social networking that often powers on creativity with a sense of identity as an end result. Quite simply, career is a life journey with either the choice of a beaten path or another to navigate (Baruch, 2004). Andolsen’s article entitled “Six Steps to Your Successful Career Path” is an informative, career guide that engenders navigation principles of self-assessment, decision making and life planning towards a successful career path for RIM professionals. Notably, the multifaceted approach of the modern career training is pushing the employer to the periphery out of the mainstream control of employee-skills (Baruch, 2003). The circumstantial phenomenon leaves “expertise” as the most treasured and sought-after strategic resource by the employer (Bartlett and Ghoshal, 2002; Andolsen, 2008). With a background of “a dusty filing system”, the scarcity of the prized resource has informed a structured career path for RIM practitioners aimed at attaining relevance in an era of a digitized managerial control. In a bid to start off RIM practitioners towards the foregoing painstaking journey, Andolsen provides a useful six-step career planning framework fully fitted with self-evaluative mechanisms for a dynamic career prospects (Andolsen, 2008). Six Steps to a Successful Career Path Self-Assessment Career is essentially a “vehicle” for the realization of the self. More accurately, it is a vehicle through which the individual begins a constructive conception of the self in the sense of the world (Adamson, 1997). It is no wonder, therefore, that the interrogation of the self begins the Andolsen’s six-step career planning framework for the actualization of a successful career in the field of Records and Information Management (RIM) (Andolsen, 2008). Accordingly, understanding oneself entails a through dissection of the inner strengths and weaknesses, which includes but not limited to personality and attitudes, skills and achievements, knowledge and learning style, values, interests and entrepreneurism. Essentially, this crucial step lays bare the physical, emotional, intellectual, motivational characteristics that define the individual and personality. Occupational Research The above mentioned traits have a direct relationship with an individual’s work competencies. It is, therefore, imperative for personal, career interests and skills profile to have a matching relationship with positions available in the job market (Andolsen, 2008). Notably, such positions surface and disappear with the trending economic and technological shifts. Thus, to prevent false starts, career seekers should remain realistic in their career pursuits by updating their jobs skills through a fast, first hand-on approach on valuable information. From simple web search to Job Shadowing, aggressiveness may prove a valuable resource in investigating options available in line with the personal traits. Decision Making After a personal appraisal in terms of self-defined standards, stage of career development, aspirations, opinion-feedback from significant others and occupational options available, a decisive choice has to be made towards a narrower, valid options supportive of the long term aspirations (Andolsen, 2008). Indeed, with varied options, the possibility of competing directions of development remains much alive and can be a challenge in itself (Baruch, 2004). However, there remains a common denominator; career and personal objective as well as commitments to community service and lifelong learning, must strike a reconciliatory mix to help shapes an ideal path identified for a desired end. Evidently, career success incorporates not only objective measures such as associated payment benefits and promotions, but also integrates individual perceptions such as motivational values, which might not necessarily parallel objective measures (Poon, 2004). Thus, the pursuit of career success is in itself a realignment of valued effects mapped out to achieve specific results desired by an individual (Okurame, 2005). Employment Contacts A successful review of the above three steps sets in motion a bold move to flex muscles in the job market, which includes identification of the relevant occupation vacancies. Though the search engines such as google.com are useful in this process, Andolsen, however, advises on the integration other strategies such as networking with friends to uncover job opportunities. Also useful in maintaining for fruitful contacts is the preparation of the application package (updated Resumes and organized cover Letters) capable of communicating/marketing a positive image to the prospective employers for a chance to secure an interview. Preparation for an interview is another elusive but vital element included in the article for RIM auctioneers seriously seeking career progress. In addition to understanding the expected mode of the interview process, conducting prior research on the organization is essential to acquire information helpful in advancing real interest in the vacant position. It is expected that job offers would follow soon after an interview accompanied with terms of service. Albeit the discretion lies with individual, Andelsen recommends job acceptance only if it matches pre-assessed long-term objectives. As mention above, career success is a life long journey. As such, on-job experiences are opportunities for growth that should inform further research for a more broad-based career options (Andolsen, 2008). Life Planning The final step in the Andolsen’s six-step career planning framework is the linking of career efforts to one’s choices in life, which call for another reevaluation (Andolsen, 2008). Apparently, job acceptance is the beginning of a continuous career development process that runs through ones entire work life. In this regard, therefore, RIM practitioners must constantly stay abreast to the changing work environments and modify their skills appropriately to retain the relevance aspect of their careers. Conclusion Judging from the six-step career planning framework developed by Andelsen, it is indeed a fact that career planning is not only a challenge to RIM professionals but also to practitioners in other areas of specialization. Noteworthy, leadership is not an accidental occurrence but a nurtured creation through a conscientious process that few are willing follow. With rapid changes powered on by advanced technology having a tremendous shifting effect from the old organizational management principles, it is only prudent for RIM practitioners to invite the challenge by integrating Andelsen’s structured career planning framework to reap the benefits of a dynamic career. References Adamson, S. J. (1997). Career as vehicle for the realization of self. Career Development International, 2 (5), 245-253. Andolsen, A. A. (2008). Six steps to your successful career path. Information Management Journal, 42 (4), 56-60. Barrack, M. R., Higgins, C., Judge, T. A. & Thoresen, C. J. (1999). The Big Five personality traits, general mental ability, and career success across the life span. Personnel Psychology, 52, 621-652 Bartlett, C. & Ghoshal, S. (2002). Building competitive advantage through people. MIT Sloan Management Review, 43 (2), 34-41. Baruch, Y. (2004). Transforming careers: from linear to multidirectional career paths. Organizational and individual perspectives. Career Development International, 9 (1), 58-73. Baruch, Y. (2003). Career systems in transition. Personnel Review, 32, 231-251. Okurame, D. & Balogun, S. (2005). Role of informal mentoring in the career success of first – line bank managers. Career Development International, 10 (67), 512 – 521. Poon, J. (2004). Career commitment and career success: moderating role of emotion perception. Career Development International, 9 (4), 374 – 390. Read More