Human resources personal development plan templates
A personal development plan provides direction for employee objectives.
Jupiterimages/liquidlibrary/Getty Images
In many small businesses, just one person handles the human resources function, and sometimes it is the owner of the company. Empowering employees to take responsibility for their own professional development is therefore a priority. A personal development plan is a document an employee creates to outline the objectives, activities, resources and targets that relate to his overall development as a professional and as an individual.
Set Objectives
The first step in developing a PDP is setting development objectives - goals the employee, in tandem with business leadership, identifies to help meet her personal and professional needs. For example, an employee might require skills related to operating a cash machine and doing basic accounting. The objective for this skill need might be formulated as "Jane will attend a one-day seminar at the local technical college on basic accountancy. She also will be trained on the use of the cash register by our head clerk." The objectives outlined in the plan need be SMART, meaning specific, measurable, action-based, realistic and time-bound. The more detailed your goals are, the more likely they are to be implemented, as the employee and HR can put plans into place to make sure the goals are reached and can follow though if they aren't.
Prioritize the Objectives
Not all objectives carry equal weight. It might be very important for Jane to learn how to use the cash register, as her job entails using it everyday, whereas her need to learn accounting basics might be able to wait a few weeks until the community college class begins. Therefore, it's important to prioritize goals. The priority should be identified as part of the PDP. For each objective, the document should note if it is critical to the employee's current role, beneficial to the current role but not critical, critical for progressing or growing into a new or future role, or beneficial but not critical for a new or future role.
