Chapter 11

1. Chapter 11 Career Development: From New Graduate to Retirement

2. Career Development • It should be viewed as a lifelong process involving both the individual and the environment in which he or she lives • It is accomplished through self- and work environment assessment, job analysis, education, training, job search and acquisition, and work experience • Career development in an organization must include more than management employees

3. Question Tell whether the following statement is True or False: Career development occurs in the early phases of one’s work life, during the period of education, training, and job search. • True • False

4. Answer Answer: Rationale:

5. Career Stages: Promise • Reflects the first 10 years of employment; making wise career choices is important • Milestones: socialization to the nursing role; building knowledge, skills, abilities, credentials, and an education base; gaining exposure to a variety of experiences; identifying strengths and building confidence; and positioning for the future

6. Career Stages: Momentum • Is the middle career phase and typically reflects the nurse with 11 to 29 years of experience • Milestones: further building confidence in one’s competence; developing experience, gaining mastery, and establishing a professional track record; and finding a voice through aligning strengths with passion

7. Career Stages: Harvest • Commences in late career • Milestones: elevating mastery to sage practice for advancing the profession and positioning as a professional statesperson and establishing a legacy

8. Career Planning Includes evaluating one’s strengths and weaknesses, setting goals, examining career opportunities, preparing for potential opportunities, and using appropriate developmental activities

9. Justification for Career Development • 1. Reduces employee attrition • 2. Provides equal employment opportunity • 3. Improves the use of personnel • 4. Improves the quality of work life • 5. Improves competitiveness of the organization • 6. Avoids obsolescence and builds new skills • 7. Promotes evidence-based practice

10. Many Nurses Lack a Career Focus and Instead View Nursing as a Job • This viewpoint limits opportunities for professional advancement and personal growth since what cannot be imagined rarely becomes a reality • Many novice professionals and most young people neglect to make long-term career plans • Shirey (2009, p. 400) suggests that “extraordinary careers do not just happen; they are cultivated and planned”

11. Responsibilities for Career Development Career Planning (Individual) • Self-assess interests, skills, strengths, with weaknesses, and values • Determine goals • Assess the organization for opportunities • Assess opportunities outside • Develop strategies • Implement plans • Evaluate plans • Reassess and make new plans as necessary at least biannually necessary Career Management (Organizational) • Integrate individual employee needs and organizational needs • Establish, design, communicate, and implement career paths • Disseminate career information • Post and communicate all jobs for the organization openings • Assess employees’ career needs • Provide work experience for development • Give support and encouragement • Develop new personnel policies as necessary, at least biannually necessary • Provide training and education

12. The Organization’s Responsibility for Career Management • Integration of needs • Establishment of career paths • Dissemination of career information • Posting of job openings • Assessment of employees • Provision of challenging assignments • Giving support and encouragement • Development of personnel policies • Provision of education and training

13. Question Which are an organization’s responsibility for career management ? (Select all that apply) • Posting job openings • Offering support and encouragement • Providing education and training • Determining the course of an employee’s career • All of the above

14. Answer Answer: Rationale:

15. Career Coaching Steps • Gathering data • Asking what is possible • Conducting the coaching session

16. Involves helping others to identify professional goals and career options and then designing a career plan to achieve those goals In short-term careercoaching, the manager regularly asks employees questions or challenges them to refocus their perspective or improve their performance Career Coaching

17. Long-Term Coaching • Planned, systematic management action that occurs over the duration of an employee’s employment • Should occur at least annually in addition to performance appraisal • Includes data gathering, assessing what is possible, and performing coaching interview

18. Question Tell whether the following statement is true or false: Regular data gathering from employees is an example of long-term coaching. • True • False

19. Answer Answer: Rationale:

20. Management Development • It is a planned system of training and developing people so that they acquire the skills, insights, and attitudes needed to manage people and their work effectively within the organization • Often referred to as succession planning • Many nurses feel that they lack the knowledge and experience necessary to become a manager

21. Management Development—(cont.) • It must be supported by top-level administration • It must be planned and systematically implemented • It must include a means of developing appropriate attitudes through social learning theory and adequate management theoretical content

22. Question Tell whether the following statement is True or False: Management development can be initiated in any level of an organization, independent of the administration. • True • False

23. Answer Answer: Rationale:

24. In Management Development Programs • Top-level management should bear the cost of management development classes and create an organizational structure that allows managers to apply their new knowledge • Whenever possible, nursing administrators should teach some of the classes and, at the very least, make sure that the program supports top-management philosophy

25. Areas for Nursing Competency Assessment • Improvement of the quality and safety of health-care systems; informatics • Evidence-based practice • Knowledge of complex systems • Skills and methods for leadership and management of continual improvement • Population health and population-based care management • Health policy knowledge, skills, and attitudes

26. Professional Specialty Certification • Nurses must meet eligibility criteria that may include years and types of work experience, as well as minimum educational levels, active nursing licenses, and successful completion of a nationally administered examination • Certifications normally last 5 years

27. Personal Benefits of Professional Certification • Provides a sense of accomplishment and achievement • Validation of specialty knowledge and competence to peers and patients • Increased credibility • Increased self-confidence • Promotes greater autonomy of practice • Provides for increased career opportunities and greater competitiveness in the job market • May result in salary incentives

28. Résumés The résumé should be typed on good paper in a format that is easy to read The résumé should maximize strong points and minimize weaknesses The style should reflect good grammar, correct punctuation, proper sentence structure, and simple, direct language A cover letter should be included

29. All nurses should maintain a portfolio to reflect their professional growth over their career Nursing Portfolio