Re-write of case studies - Blueprint - Australian Blueprint for Career ...

PD Kit
For Job Search
The use of the career portfolio for obtaining work is becoming increasingly common.
A job search portfolio is a marketing and self-promotional tool for individuals to use in
interviews or for the self-employed to present to prospective clients.
The evolution from the resume as a stand-alone self-marketing tool to the resume as part
of the career portfolio parallels the change from permanent secure jobs to more temporary
forms of work. The career portfolio becomes an essential tool to support the resume, as
employers become more interested in evidence of the skills that prospective employees
have, rather than relying on academic qualifications or what their experience has been in
the past.
The only job security that workers can count on in today’s economy is the transportability
of their own skills. Skills security is replacing job security, and the portfolio represents
concrete proof of a worker’s skills package. This package of skills may have been developed
through volunteer jobs, hobbies, parenting, and other learning experiences. It is important,
however, to realise that the portfolio does not replace the resume, which is still a
commonly used tool in recruiting.
For Employee Skills Assessment and Professional Development
In this changing world of work, companies are increasingly shifting away from job titles and
job descriptions towards team-based projects and outcomes. As a result, the way the
performance of employees is evaluated is changing. In performance appraisals, employers
are now evaluating employees on the basis of their accomplishments and outcomes, rather
than simply on the time they have put in to a job. In this new work environment, the
portfolio becomes an essential tool for employees to demonstrate how well they have
performed during the year, what skills they have developed, and what professional
development they have undertaken.
Employers can use the process to help workers to set goals, evaluate performance and
identify further training requirements. For employees, the portfolio offers an opportunity
to track their skill development, set career and educational goals and think productively
about their future in the industry.
For Demonstrating Mastery of the Blueprint Career Competencies
The portfolio process provides an excellent vehicle for integrating the Blueprint career
competencies into career development practice. Portfolio samples can also become a
talking point for practitioners and learners to discuss the career competencies and
performance indicators, and how they relate to a learner’s particular career story.
In the same way that individuals need to develop skills literacy, they also need to learn
about the skills required to develop and manage their life, learning and work successfully.
Appreciating their own specific career management competencies and being able to
identify the ways in which they are able to be demonstrated is important self-knowledge
for individuals. You may find the checklists provided at Appendix C and Appendix D useful
for this purpose.
AUSTRALIAN BLUEPRINT FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT – ADULTS PD KIT 31