Modern Stages of Career Development
Career development is a substantial process that helps people to achieve their goals and skills while supporting an organisation positively. It accommodates growth in the career system with five main stages of development. These stages involve a pattern of work for an individual, from attaining a degree to retirement. Due to evolutional reasons, the stages have been improved to six modern stages of career development. For one to understand the modern stages of career development they should go back to the ancient yet important stages of development.
Five ancient stages of Career Development
1. Exploration:
This first stage is a period prior to college to work. One will be between the age of 20-26. At this stage, one decides what job to do in preparation for the next stage.
2. Establishment:
At this stage, one searches for a job and happily accepts a job offer. Because it is their first job, challenges will come mistakes occur. One needs to learn from each of the mistakes.
3. Mid-Career:
This stage caters to the performance of individuals at work. While some may increase their performance and gain more experience and skill, some will be content with maintaining their performance. Usually one tries to upgrade themselves and climb the ladder of success.
4. Late Career:
Late career is the stage when one has stopped climbing and prefers staying on one position usually acquires a consultation position. This occurs at rather old age for most people and one enjoys starting activities out of work.
5. Decline:
It is the final stage of career development and one retires. It can be very difficult to leave an environment that has been part of your life for long. One celebrates its success at this stage.
Six stages of modern Career Development
This six-stage of modern career are Assessment, Investigation, Preparation, Commitment, Retention, and Transition. Each stage follows another chronologically for better understanding. From these stages, one can understand why people change careers a lot during the course of their life.
1. Assessment
The assessment stage involves a lot of understanding of who one really is. One gets in a dilemma when they start to get ready for life in a working environment. Unaware and unsure of one’s values and strength they start to panic and assessment of one’s self is required. To help with that, a career counsellor or coach is needed to calm and help with the assessment.
2. Investigation
At this stage one investigates the available jobs in the whole world. Checking websites and other companies, it might be confusing when you find no job opportunities for what you have specialised in. Doubts may accumulate about whether the career path you chose was right or not. But all that is needed is to keep looking calmly and you will find that there are a variety of work opportunities for you. Searching for job opportunities involves asking others in your field of work what available jobs they have heard of.
3. Preparation
This stage is about the excitements of finally being in the working class. One will be so happy to finally start a meaningful job. Thus to succeed one has to be prepared for anything while at work. Start setting goals prior to getting a job and be ambitious. You should aim to do your best.
4.Commitment
Commitment stage is when one feels confident of their career choice. At this stage, one is happy for knowing what they really want and they feel it what they were meant to be. To show their confidence, one will start looking for a job and will be happy to accept a job offer in the field he or she specialised in. At these stages, one is committed to make it happen for her and pursue her career.
5. Retention
At this stage, one is comfortably handling everything at work and its enjoyable. To advance one’s skills and performance they are always up-to-date about organisational jobs. When at work you should master the skill to provide first-class customer service always and have a network system for clients. This is taught at this stage.
6.Transition
Strangely, at this stage, you are not fully settled. One is still confused about what to do next to keep himself or herself happy at work. Transition as it suggests, one will learn to make some changes in career directions. One might opt to quit and start on another organisation or even start one’s organisation. Sometimes they might not change just the organisation they worked in but their field of interest ad profession.
Career development stages are there to help one understand the importance of career choices. To avoid problems in the long run, one should take care when choosing a career.