Is Basic Industries A Good Career Path?
At the beginning of talking about the career path and its planning and its importance for human resource management in modern business organizations, it should be noted that the job is the main pillar in human resource management. We choose them for specific jobs, and they are suitable for these jobs without others, and effective human resource planning is based on placing the right person in the right place and job to achieve the goals of the organization.
The planning of the career path is closely related to the job description cards because the individual in the organization must have sufficient knowledge of the duties, responsibilities, experiences and skills included in the job description cards on the hierarchy of the processes of promotion to senior positions in the organization, thus making him draw a self-plan for himself in the optimal choice For a job that corresponds to his ambitions and his material and moral capabilities.
Just as individuals are different, jobs are also different, and the function of human resource management in any organization or institution is to reconcile these two differences and to put the right man in the right place, as the main goal of human resource management is to raise the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of the human element. Arab business organizations lack the element of career planning and the development of career plans for employees, due to the absence or lack of clarity of vision for the organization, and the absence of proper strategic planning for work and employees.
As the planning and development of the career path focuses on achieving compatibility and congruence between individuals on the one hand and between jobs and career growth on the other hand, and the changes and knowledge and technological revolutions that occur in this whole world, and interest in each of them increases to the degree that it can be said that there is an individual entrance and an entrance Organization for career planning and development. As the individual approach focuses on helping individuals to know their goals, know their capabilities and abilities, and introduce them to the means necessary to achieve these goals and insight into their future and current reality. ) And in the stage of family stability, and since this planning will help the individual achieve his desired goals and job satisfaction.
As for the organizational approach, it focuses on following administrative methods (such as training, transfer, promotion, early retirement, rotation) to put the right man in the right place in order to achieve the organization’s goals of productivity, starting with a good identification of the organization’s needs of workers and searching for them from appropriate sources, and attracting them to join the job, especially in Jobs that require high competencies and skills, followed by directing new employees to their jobs and training them to fill new jobs, laying off unsuitable employees, reducing disguised unemployment, and qualifying workers to leave the service.
Job security is an important factor for many people when they choose a job, as well as the opportunities for promotion available to the incumbent and the social position, which is the status or position that a person occupies in society resulting from occupying the job.
First: the concept of career path.
Researcher Jamal El-Din Mohamed Al-Mursi says: The concept of the career path can be viewed from several angles. It may be seen as a group of successive jobs that the individual occupies throughout his career, which are affected by his trends, ambitions, hopes and feelings, and he may look at the career path from the perspective of movement within the organization. The career or career path may also be seen as a distinctive feature of the employee, as the path of each employee consists of several positions, administrative positions and diverse experiences.
Dr. says. Ahmed Maher: The planning and development of the career path concerns the organization, to the same extent that it concerns each individual individually, and both are concerned with his pursuit and behavior to achieve compatibility between the individual and the job, and the interest increases from each of them, to the extent that it can be said that there is an individual entrance to the planning and development of the path career, and an organizational approach to planning and developing a career path.
Based on this, the definition of the career path is: the model of work-related experiences that extends through the life of the individual, and job experiences include all job positions, work experiences and types of tasks, and there are some researchers who added behavior and trends related to work , and it is also the path that consists of a series of homogeneous jobs At the same levels or in multiple administrative levels, which is available to all individuals to walk from the moment they enter the organization until they leave it, defined by clear laws and standards aimed at achieving integration between job requirements and the material and moral needs of individuals, so it is necessary for managers to understand the process of career development And the differences in the needs and interests of workers at each stage, so that their efforts can be effective.
The career path in Career the Path is one of the modern administrative topics addressed by researchers, and management literature indicates that studies on this subject are rare, and it did not receive sufficient attention until late, compared to the rest of administrative and behavioral topics, which have become specialized and have branches as well, despite the existence of career paths in practice since That man knows business in various fields . Studies confirm that career path planning concerns the organization to the same extent as each employee individually, and both are concerned with their pursuit and behavior to achieve reconciliation between the individual and the job, and the interest in each of them increases until it can be said that there is an individual entrance and an organizational entrance to planning and developing the career path.
Career path is the course which shows successive functions that a group where the graded individual or transmitted to them during the career age in the enterprise, either vertically across organizational base organizational structure levels until the peak is called the movement to upgrade, or horizontally are called functional transport horizontal, contemporary the orientation in drawing career paths no longer limited to the number of vertical posts that moves to the individual through the promotion through organizational structure, no longer a favorite person who confined himself in the field of one specialty and moves within the function of the minimum function of only the highest, what is needed now filled individual multiple and diverse vertical functions and horizontally, This diversity gives him multiple and different skills. Diversity of experience is the main feature required in employees nowadays.
The concept of career path can be viewed from several angles; It may be seen as a group of successive jobs occupied by the individual throughout his career; Which is affected by his tendencies, ambitions, abilities and feelings and may be seen as a distinguishing feature of the employee, the job and the institution; it is a model of work-related experiences that extend through the professional life of the human being.
In order to achieve the organizational effectiveness of an organization, there should be a program for planning and developing career paths for employees; Perhaps one of the advantages of this program is that it works on:
Achieving the goals of individuals and the organization in terms of growth and job satisfaction and achieving productivity and profit.
Minimizing outdated experience and skills of employees; The employee’s stay in his place without training, rotation, transfer or promotion reduces his motivation for achievement and deprives the organization of opportunities to invest its human resources.
Reducing costs for the organization that follows the career path approach by investing human competencies in places that are commensurate with its qualifications, experience and skills, and achieving development in various activities and areas related to the individual, the job and the institution.
– Improving the image of the institution in the internal and external environment through its practical practices with its employees by taking care of their present and their future career, thus becoming an attractive element for the interests of society.
Here, a question may arise that: Who plans, designs and implements the career path program in business organizations, which responsibility is who?, and it can be said that there are several parties, each of which performs a specific task, and it starts from the individual himself when he determines his hopes and future aspirations, and determines the path he will take to achieve its objectives, then present the job specifications and its path within the organizational structure of the institution, the clarity of the executive regulations and procedures, the identification of the administrative unit responsible for building and updating the information base on a continuous basis, determining the paths of sectors within the institution’s scope according to a specific time plan, then monitoring any flaws in the application with continued support from Senior leadership of the institution. That is, the process of planning the career path is the responsibility of the individual and the organization together, an integrative and consensual responsibility.
It is important to acquaint employees with career and institutional development plans, and to identify the career paths available for progress and advancement in the present and the near future, so that the employee realizes in advance the professional, financial and moral features that will accrue to him, and the extent of their agreement with his directions and abilities, and prepare his thought and life towards the future to achieve productive and creative development.
Second: The importance of career path planning:
Gamal El-Din Mohamed Al-Mursi says: “The existence of a long-term program for planning and developing career paths for employees helps in achieving organizational effectiveness in human resource management. Specifically, there are many positive results that can be achieved through good planning of career development programs The most important of these positive aspects can be mentioned as follows:
1- Achieving the goals of individuals and the organization, if individuals aim to grow in work and be satisfied with it, then organizations seek to achieve productivity and profit, and planning the career path by putting the right man in the right place helps to achieve both goals.
2- Reducing the obsolescence of employment: The lack of interest in training workers, transferring them, or even laying them off, means that some workers remain in their places, until their skills become obsolete, and their motivation to work decreases, and the existence of career planning and development activities (through transfer, training and layoffs) means activating Workers’ skills, renewing them, and retaining what can be utilized of skills and abilities.
3- Reducing the cost of labor, the previous advantages make what is spent on career planning and development activities a return that exceeds the cost. What is spent on the matter while the cost of labor (represented in wages and incentives) exceeds the return and profit, and thus huge losses are achieved.
4- Improving the reputation of the organization, if the workers realize that their organizations take care of their future career, they will be a good tool to promote the organization in all the communities and places in which they may be, which ultimately leads to improving the image of the organization and expressing it as an attractive field for work. The need to plan the career path is urgent in the convergence of the goals of both the individual and the institution in the form of a relationship, which allows the possibility for the individual to work in the job that suits him and the institution finds the right person for its multi-level functions. Planning the career path by achieving the goals of the employees and the institution. If the employees seek to develop in their jobs and be convinced of them, the institution aims to raise productivity and improve outputs, and career path planning for its members helps to achieve the two goals together in addition to easing restrictions on the movement of employees. As the absence of career planning efforts means imposing restrictions on their movement within the organization, and placing them within rigid job walls that are difficult to move through. The lack of opportunities for promotions and movements between jobs harms those who are suitable for them, and therefore the planning and development of the career path releases the potential and capabilities of individuals.
Third: The reasons why the organization is interested in the employee’s career path:
1- The general educational level of human resources has increased in development at the present time… and this development, in turn, means an increase in the aspirations of individuals for a better and successful career future.
2- Organizations that seek to pay attention to the career development of their employees and plan for this development will undoubtedly be more attractive than those organizations that do not give importance to this matter and will retain more talented and ambitious human elements.
3- Organizations that plan for their employees or participate in their future career not only make clear to their employees their expectations of the performance required of them, but also define for them the path, options and opportunities available to them in the future.
4- Career development planning helps employees themselves develop their skills and abilities in order to improve their performance and productivity and bridge the gap between individual capabilities and job requirements.
5- Career development planning programs help identify individuals who are qualified to assume leadership and high professional positions, and then direct them to training and development programs that enable them to reach these positions.
6- Good management and the growing interest by management in career development and opportunities for advancement will lead to a happy and productive human force.
7- Organizations that do not pay attention to career development will face in the future cases of congestion and bottlenecks in the organizational structure and jobs, which leads to a stagnation in the system of promotions at all organizational functional levels, and this, of course, will have an impact on the motivation of individuals and their giving at work.
8- Providing opportunities for employees, assisting them in career development and opening up areas of development that raise their efficiency and improve their career opportunities will reflect on the reputation of the organization and will increase its attractiveness in attracting talent from abroad.
Fourth: Planning the career path at the organization level:
Any organization that wants to plan the career path for its employees and jobs can use many means, and in fact, all the functions of human resources management if they are well-performed and directed for this purpose, it is possible to plan and develop the career path, but the professional and professional preoccupation for each job separately, It makes it difficult to direct all human resources management functions to serve the planning and development of the career path in particular, so it is better for each organization to make independent efforts (through systems, procedures, and regulations) to take care of the affairs of planning and development of the career path. Examples of career planning and development methods include:
1. Qualification: After selecting the new employee, the organization has the responsibility to present him to the new job, through his practical, social and psychological rehabilitation, and this is done through an organized and formal program, and this program contains a complete file containing information about the company’s history, development, and organization their management structures, work systems, products and services they provide, wage systems, employee benefits and services, employee rights and duties, attendance and absence practices, and behavior at work. The program also contains training on the job itself, as well as presenting the employee to his direct superior, and the latter presenting it to colleagues and subordinates, with a full explanation of the social environment surrounding the job, the relationships and norms prevailing at work, with a realistic and actual explanation of the expected problems, and as you can see, that qualification It plays an important role in adapting the new employee to his new job, so that he is not deceived or shocked in his new job, and so that he is qualified for how to deal with new situations.
2. Rotation: This means exposing the new employee to multiple job experiences, by temporarily transferring him from one job to another, and this helps him to get to know other employees, their activities, and the practical and social work environment, and this helps later in the performance of work with different authorities, where the employee will know With whom he communicates, in what manner, and what information he takes, and perhaps from where he obtains it, and the rule here is to provide all employees with complete knowledge of everything related to the good performance of their jobs.
3. Challenging tasks: This means giving the employee a meaningful job, with a degree of authority, responsibility and freedom, with a definite beginning and end, with clear communications. The important thing is to ensure a strong start for the new employee, even if this leads to giving him relatively difficult and challenging tasks. For his abilities, the new employee may not know what is the nature of good work, and what is the appropriate amount of work? There is a fact that the difficult start and challenges the capabilities of the employees, is what determines his good performance in the following years, but if the beginning is calm and lax, then step by step the employee will walk the rest of his life in this lax way.
4. Involving executives in career path practices: Through some means, executives can provide good participation in building the career future of their subordinates. One of the most important of these means is assigning special tasks to subordinates, in a way that develops their capabilities, and through training them to perform work, directing, advising and guiding them, and coordinating with the Human Resources Department in proposing career paths, transfers and promotions, and successful companies reward those managers who participate in career path practices. Effectively, through incentives, prizes and recognition.
5. Transportation: The main purpose of transportation is to develop the workers, introduce them to the rest of the jobs, fill the need in certain jobs, and provide a high amount of diverse experience to a wide range of workers. The possibility of scrutiny between the individual and the job, and the movement of transport must be accompanied by a full explanation of what is happening to workers, its causes, and the qualification of employees for this process.
6. Transfer to the bottom: It is sometimes called “downloading”, which is the opposite of promotion, and it is imposed by the necessity to adhere to the available positions in the organizational structure, as it may not allow the promotion of existing employees, and the path becomes blocked for them. To open this path, workers who are blocked in front of them are encouraged to accept the process of transferring down a position in a department, or another department, on the grounds that the opportunity is available to the lower job and its path is open to the top, and in the long run this becomes in the interest of the individual; Because his promotions will be faster, clearer and stronger, and to the benefit of the organization; Because it will achieve compatibility between the individual and the job; And because it will adhere to the form of the current organizational structure that is appropriate for it.
7. Promotion: Promotion as a means of career planning and development plays an important role for both the individual and the organization. The individual achieves his desire for growth and promotion, and the organization achieves its desire to achieve compatibility between the individual and the job, and obtain high performance and satisfaction, and the important thing is that the transfer is based on achieving compatibility And on the basis of full knowledge and explanation of the employees, and on the basis of qualifying and training employees for promotion. He sees Dr. Ahmed Maher that the criterion of compatibility between the individual (in his abilities, skills and aptitudes), and between the job (in its components and the individual specifications needed), is the basic criterion for promotion.
8. Temporary promotion: In this practice, the promotion is carried out through the individual obtaining the benefits of the higher-paid job, financial grade, job title (job title), in-kind benefits, bonuses, services, office form and equipment. And sometimes the temporary promotion is carried out, by appointing an assistant to the director, or his deputy, or by delegating to a higher vacant position (and a person is called: delegated to such-and-such a job, or based in such-and-such a job).
9. Career path (or ladder) maps: They are maps that determine the sequence in the movement of the job, through transfers and promotions, and may be done using organization maps, and may start from a specific job, and end with several ends, and it is expected that there will be many maps for each job There are dozens, even hundreds, of maps for one job family (such as the financial family).
10. Early retirement: In some cases, senior employees, as they occupy senior positions, are an obstacle to the advancement and advancement of their subordinates, and therefore encouraging early retirement (or pension) becomes a solution to open the way for subordinates.
11. Assistance in searching for jobs outside the organization: If the organization is forced to lay off some workers, you may see that to meet its social responsibilities, and to help these workers, it searches outside the organization, and in similar organizations for vacant jobs, workers can fill them immediately, or after some Training, and the director of the human resources department should take advantage of his network of relationships with other companies.
Fifth: Planning the career path at the individual level:
As organizations plan and develop career paths for their employees, each of them must plan for his future career, and the importance of planning and developing career paths at the individual level increases in certain stages, the most important of which are:
1) The stage of an individual’s first job (usually after graduating from education).
2) In the phase of family stability
3) In the middle age stage (around the age of 45, where social and psychological problems abound).
4) At the end of the career path (before the age of 60, where the problem of retirement and leaving service appears).
Individual career path planning steps:
1. Insight into future hopes: Because the future is unknown, and difficult to face, and because of the lack of knowledge of the problems that may be encountered in his future, and because of the emergence of emergency situations, this makes the process of looking into the future difficult, and the individual must ask himself: What is the nature of Work, or the future he hopes for? As a digression from this question, the areas of activity, business, or jobs that the individual hopes to undertake or occupy are determined in very clear detail, and according to the same question, the required material capabilities, education degrees, experience, functional and personal skills, and any abilities are determined. or other skills required to achieve future aspirations.
2. Identifying the current capabilities and skills: The individual should review himself with an important question: What are the capabilities, capabilities and skills currently available to him? According to this question, current education levels, current experience, current job and personal skills, and any other current abilities and skills relevant to achieving future aspirations are determined.
3. Determining the difference between 1 and 2: The individual now reaches the possibility of comparing the first step with the second step, and it is clear that there are differences between them, if his hopes require full proficiency in English (for example, at a degree of 80%), while he is fluent in it to a medium degree (with a degree of 50% for example). The difference will be 30%.
4. Dealing with the difference and finding solutions: If the difference is a lack of English language skill of 30%, this may mean a solution represented in enrolling in an intensive English course, for a period of 6 months continuously.
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