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PD Kit
4.6 Incorporating the Blueprint Career Management
Competencies into the Performance Appraisal Process
for Employees
Many of the skills that individuals need to manage their careers, are also skills that
employers seek in their employees. It is possible to develop performance appraisal systems
that not only assess an employee’s technical skills but also some of the career management
competencies of the Blueprint. Competencies 1–4, and 9–10 are applicable to most
workplaces, for example.
Assisting staff to develop career management skills, and to incorporate them into their
professional development plans creates a win-win situation for managers and staff.
During the Blueprint trial, the performance management process in a state government
department was reviewed to make linkages with the Blueprint. As part of the review a
manager within the department surveyed 10 line managers, using resources from the
Blueprint Appendices.
The manager found that even line managers who demonstrated some of the competencies,
were unaware of their significance as career management competencies, and were unable
to articulate the nature and function of many of the career management competencies that
they were already building with staff.
The manager developed and conducted a workshop on career development and the
Blueprint, focusing on the Phase IV competencies. Participating line managers were given
the opportunity to complete the Career Management Competency Checklist (see
Appendices in Blueprint Toolkit) and explore the ‘High 5’ approach to career development.
During the workshop it became apparent that Competency 1: Build and maintain a positive
self-concept was particularly relevant in the workplace, so a brainstorming session was
used to identify behaviours that would demonstrate the competency at different
developmental phases.
The manager drafted and circulated local standards relevant to this particular work setting,
circulated these to staff for comment and finalised them. These local standards were then
presented at follow on sessions held with staff to introduce the concept of career
development competencies as part of the performance management and review processes.
On the whole, the participating line managers were very enthusiastic about the idea of
incorporating a competency approach into their HR management practices, and the
workshop process demonstrated the relevance of the Blueprint’s career management
competencies to the workplace.
The workshop and trialling process made it clear that the Blueprint offers a useful
framework for exploring HR issues within the workplace and the manager’s long-term goal
was to incorporate relevant career management competencies into recruitment, selection
and performance management strategies. You will find a sample Performance
Management Template in the Blueprint Toolkit.
50 AUSTRALIAN BLUEPRINT FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT – ADULTS PD KIT