Direct Supervisor’s Role

Role of Employee

1. Owning the responsibility for one’s own development.
2. Initiating the competency assessment process on a regular basis (once or twice a year).
3. Initiating development planning meetings with the supervisor.
4. Creating a development plan.
5. Following through with the development plan.
6. Seeking and accepting opportunities that will enhance employee development.
7. Recording in a development planning journal each week progress, ideas, feedback, issues, and concerns related to development activities.
8. Being prepared to discuss progress on the development plan at the year-end review and quarterly reviews with the manager.

Role of Manager

1. Meeting with employees to review their development planning activities as part of the year-end and quarterly review meetings.
2. Providing specific, constructive feedback about how employees perform, based on their own observations and on feedback received from others.
3. Reviewing employees’ development plans and providing helpful suggestions.
4. Providing coaching and suggestions about how employees can be more effective.
5. Leading the discussion of the progress employees have made on their development plan at the year-end and quarterly review sessions with employees and providing resources (money, equipment, people) to help them to accomplish their goals.
6. Helping employees develop relationships with a network of people within the organization.
7. Running interference for employees with upper management and other groups within the organization.
8. Providing encouragement, support, and reinforcement for employees’ efforts at professional development.

Role of Co-Workers

1. Reviewing the development plan and suggesting ways to improve it.
2. Providing useful feedback and suggestions, if asked, about the attempts to use the competencies.
3. Telling how they have handled the kinds of situations and problems that arise in the job.
4. Working with the employee to provide on-the-job coaching and training
5. Observing behaviour in public situations (e.g., presentations, sales, calls) and later providing constructive feedback and suggestions.
6. Providing resources and opportunities.
7. Offering support when an employee is feeling frustrated.