Personal Development Plans
Case Studies of Practice
Description:... The use and effectiveness of personal development plans (PDPs) in planning career and skill development activities for individuals within employing organizations in the United Kingdom was examined through case studies of seven firms and telephone interviews with representatives of seven other firms. The case studies/interviews focused on the following key issues for practitioners involved in developing PDPs: philosophy; scope and content of PDPs as vehicles for self-organized learning; relationship between the focus of PDPs and their links with other processes; implementation and support; ownership, control, and confidentiality; and impact. Most firms had all employees develop PDPs; however, some limited their use of PDPs to managers or white-collar staff. All PDPs covered similar areas but varied in the amount of guidance given to users regarding defining areas for development and development actions. Nine guidelines for developers of PDPs were formulated, including the following: make the key outcomes sought from introducing PDPs clear to all parties; make the processes used to generate PDPs realistic in terms of target group and level of available resources; and avoid focusing solely on skill development for employees' current jobs. (Appended are the interview schedule and information about the 14 firms studied. The bibliography contains 54 references.) (MN)
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