Building capacity: Navigating organizational opportunities as if they were a subway system

8th Annual NW Diversity Learning Series (2006)

Session Five: September 28, 2006:
Asking for and giving directions: Using coaching, mentoring and ownership as a strategy to guide you toward opportunities and growth.

Critical Questions: Getting Opportunities that Advance Your Career Development

In this exercise, participants were asked four questions:

1. What are the challenges you have to deal with when seeking access to opportunities that advance your career development?
2. In what ways does the culture of your organization support you?
3. How have others helped you on your journey?
4. What actions are you taking to make things happen? Each small group recorded their answers to the original question.

Common responses to question one, the challenges employees face, include:

• "Informal" or "Good Old Boy" systems
• Lack of complex job assignments to prove skills
• Blocked advancement due to who's immediately in front of you in your job assignment
• Lack of time to train/develop skills due to demands to get your job done
• No honest feedback
• Unclear career opportunities/pathways to advancement/hidden rules
• Financial constraints
• Organizational typecasting into roles that are difficult to get out of
• Lack of network
• Lack of motivation
• Lack of flexibility or creativity in organizational structure

Common responses to question two, in what ways does the organization support you, are as follows:

• Annual reviews and evaluations
• When I have freedom and autonomy in my job/no micro-management
• When supervisors are willing to give opportunities/take risks
• When there are no "boxes" or right ways to do things
• When I get education for promotions, further education for employees and family members/training and development
• When the org. is employee focused, have excellent employee benefits
• Work-life balance. flex time, option to telecommute
• When the org. provides tools - interactive, programs that are relevant to position, performance standards are online and visible to everyone
• Recognition
• Succession planning
• Formal mentoring programs

Common responses to question three, how have others specifically helped you on your journey, include:

• Being recognized early in career for potential
• Networking relationships (sponsoring or long term relationships)
• Coaching on how to interview
• Given special projects that are high visibility
• Broaden breadth of experiences, job rotation
• Provide support by being encouraged to continue education and training
• Sponsored into a company leadership development program
• Filter down info to me to expand knowledge base, or make myself more marketable
• Provide a positive voice for me/be an advocate for me in my absence
• Individual one-on-one coaching/leadership course from mentor
• Manager taking a risk in assigning positions without full qualifications
• Introduced to the philosophy of PIE (Performance, Image, Exposure)

Common responses to question four, what actions are you, the individual, taking to make things happen are as follows:

• Applying for jobs by accessing company job websites, and outside the company
• Showing an interest in jobs that need to get done/start projects that no one wants
• Participating in employee-paid education and other learning sessions
• Went back to school for further education
• Willingness to relocate
• Networking with people who have positions aspiring to others/keeping in contact with people you've worked with in the past
• Taking on leadership roles in committee work
• Participating in career coaching blogs
• Taking advantage of training opportunities
• Learning about other areas of the company
• Create personal/professional development plans with actions and dates
• Participate in activities both on and off hours
• Schedule time with manager to discuss development
• Expressed interest in working for a manager that eventually led to an open position

Kay Iwata, President of K. Iwata Associates, Inc., and Greg Clark, Principle, CoachCentric, LLC were the facilitators of this session on coaching, mentoring and career ownership.

The 2006 NW Diversity Learning Series (now in its 9th year) focused on the theme, Building Capacity: Navigating organizational opportunities as if they were a subway system.

Using the metaphor of a subway system, each of the six-bi-monthly morning seminars explored some of the ways that access to organizational opportunities and career development are hidden and therefore more difficult for women and people of color, as well as people who speak English as a second language, to utilize. The purpose of this Series was for everyone to become more aware of organizational culture and how it impacts building people's capacity, and for everyone, managers and employees, to become better at navigating these cultural obstacles along career paths.

For more information about the NW Diversity Learning Series, please visit the Series section of our website.

2006 Series Sponsors:

Gold Sponsors:

Silver Sponsor:

Bronze Sponsor:

Supporting Sponsors: