Career Conversations

Career Conversations

by Greg Smith
Released July 2019
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9780730371991

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Book description

Retain your talent with a proactive approach to employee development, one conversation at a time

When employees are happy at work, the energy and creativity they possess is virtually limitless. But many leaders are ill-equipped to discuss and gauge the career satisfaction of their employees, and risk losing their talent to their competitors. Career Conversations is your guide to developing the skills needed for effective career discussions with your staff, providing step-by-step instructions on how to incorporate this capability into your leadership routine.

It has never been easier for employees to seek other job opportunities. Search firms and online platforms such as LinkedIn make the danger of the competition poaching your best employees all too real. To take active, dynamic and genuine interest in their employee’s career satisfaction and development, leaders require the skills and knowledge to have ongoing career conversations.

Packed full of case studies, practical exercises and key insights, career development expert Greg Smith explains how leaders can guide their employees to achieve career satisfaction by taking an active, dynamic and ongoing interest in their development.

  • engage with employees on career aspirations
  • listen critically and build trust
  • help employees reinvent themselves for the future of work
  • gain self-insight and become a more effective leader
  • empathise and respond to your staff’s needs.

Career Conversations is a must-read for current and aspiring organisational leaders, Human Resource directors, HR practitioners, senior executives, supervisors, managers and business owners. This book will help you guide your employees through their careers and, in turn, help your company thrive.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. About the author
  3. Preface
  4. Introduction
  5. Chapter 1 The case for proactive career development
    1. Moving from the old to the new career model
    2. The new career reality
    3. Employee experience — the new frontier of leadership
    4. Career coaching
    5. A career development model
    6. Career satisfaction and competence
    7. Career leadership levers model
  6. Chapter 2 Reimagining careers
    1. The changing world of work
    2. Implications for careers
    3. The art of reinvention
    4. Alan's career story
  7. Chapter 3 Fit your own mask first
    1. Where and how emotional intelligence fits
    2. Intellectual, emotional and practical intelligence
    3. Career coaching attributes, skills and knowledge
    4. Evaluation of coaching competencies
    5. Marion's career story
  8. Chapter 4 Building career self-insight
    1. Your attributes — your innate make-up
    2. What we value really matters
    3. Career drivers survey
    4. Personal SWOT analysis
    5. Letter from the future
    6. Daniel's career story
  9. Chapter 5 What's your personal brand?
    1. Networking — a powerful tool
    2. Mentors can help
    3. George's career story
  10. Chapter 6 The goal of goal setting
    1. Motivation and determination
    2. SMART goal setting
    3. Staying on track
    4. Jenny's career story
  11. Chapter 7 Who motivates the motivator?
    1. Models of human motivation — what works best
    2. Maslow's hierarchy of needs
    3. Intrinsic motivation theory
    4. The skill/will matrix — useful ways to lead and coach
    5. Sonia's career story
  12. Chapter 8 The skilled listener
    1. Persuade with your ears
    2. Four levels of listening
    3. Zoe's career story
  13. Chapter 9 Facilitating communication techniques
    1. A growth mindset
    2. Mindfulness
    3. A solutions focus
    4. Additional useful communication techniques
    5. Peter's career story
  14. Chapter 10 Structuring unstructured conversations
    1. The narrative approach
    2. Planned happenstance
    3. Change and transition in careers
    4. Failing is great for success!
    5. The GROW model — a useful tool for structuring effective career conversations
    6. Ben's career story
  15. Chapter 11 Leading a career conversation
    1. Patricia's career story
  16. Chapter 12 Ethics and protocols for career development
    1. Confidentiality is critical
    2. A cautionary word on therapy
    3. Logistics
    4. Laura and Lisa's career story
  17. Chapter 13 Now you're ready to hold career conversations!
    1. A review of learnings
    2. The written career plan
    3. Wrapping up
  18. References and further reading
  19. Index
  20. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: Career Conversations
  • Author(s): Greg Smith
  • Release date: July 2019
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9780730371991