Career Pathways in Construction

Job preparation

Searching for a new job is both exciting and stressful. The key to success is ensuring you take steps to know what you want from the company, if the company is the right fit for you and if your values align with the company values; you are setting yourself up for success. Knowing about company culture, hearing from current and past employees allows you to make an informed decision if this company is the best fit for you. Ensuring your Curriculum vitae captures your experience, knowledge and skills is key to getting to interview stage. A strong cover letter can highlight key achievements. Learn more here Interview preparation is necessary to convey why you would be a great hire for the company. It is more than googling; you must make a good first impression. You can find some useful tips here

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction

• Arrive early
• Dress to impress
• Be friendly & approachable
• Ask questions
• Safety first

In order to help make your early days in the company go as smooth as possible, we’ve outlined some useful tips for your first day in a construction job.

Empowering Women in Construction

Working Well for you Professional development planning Maximizing professional development (PD) opportunities involves setting meaningful goals, planning for and seeking opportunities for Professional Development, mapping career paths, and continually acquiring skills and knowledge (Sugarman, 2011)

Empowering Women in Construction

Professional development planning

• Used to guide future professional developments
• Usually includes personal and professional goals, directed by professional strategies to achieve each goal
• Professionals will continue to grow and develop- plan not static but dynamic
• Includes theories of learning, motivation and change

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Life Cycle of your Professional Development plan

1. Assess yourself.

• Self assessment.

Myers Briggs Type Indicator The Big Five DISC Personality

• Evaluate your personal & professional interests
• Current knowledge and skillsets
• Career aspirations

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction

Set your goals

Break up main goals into long term, medium term and short term.

• Long-term goals can be months or even years into the future.
• Mid-term goals should range from a couple of weeks to a couple of months.
• Short-term goals should range from a couple of days to a couple of weeks.

• use the SMART goal technique to ensure that your goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timebound. 

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Develop strategies

In order to get to your destination, you need a plan. You need to ask some key questions.

• How can I advance my competencies?
• How can I learn new skills?
• What do I need to do to get a promotion?
• What training do I need?
• Who do I need to talk to?

Draw up a plan of your current skills/capabilities as well as your goals and what you need in place in order to meet them. Write down your action plan

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction

Gather your resources

What do you need to succeed? Examples

• Webinars, Seminars, workshops
• Learning & development resources
• Professional networks –new peers/mentors
• Continuous professional development
• Social media platforms

Narrow them down to the ones that best align with your strategies & goals.

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Create a timeline

Deadlines can be helpful in sticking to goals. It is the T from SMART.

• Weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, annual?
• Realistic yet challenging?
• Contingent on what?
• Are dates flexible? How flexible?

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction

Track your progress

• Your plan is not linear but a life cyle.
• Keep it fresh- updates
• Adjust as you go
• Use software to assist with tracking

Useful resources Asana Professional development planning

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction

Professional Development plan template

Specific- What do you want to achieve? Measurable- How do you know you have achieved your goal? Achievable- Can you do it (resources, capabilities, time etc.?) Realistic – Is it a dream or can it be realised? How? Timebound- Do you have an end date in mind?

Empowering Women in Construction

Empowering Women in Construction