Episode 30
A long-term view of career mobility with Bev Kaye
February 6, 2020
The relationship an employee has with his or her direct manager is one of the strongest predictors of retention. How can companies use this information in their efforts to retain top talent? How can leaders assess their own career opportunities and ensure they have great options in the future? Diana talks with Bev Kaye, author of Up is Not the Only Way: Rethinking career mobility, about the mistakes companies are making that are costing them their best people, as well as ways we can all take control of our career paths.
You can connect with Bev on LinkedIn or through her website.
Resources Mentioned in the Episode
Up Is Not the Only Way: Rethinking Career Mobility by Beverly Kaye, Lindy Williams, and Lynn Cowart
Hello Stay Interviews, Goodbye Talent Loss: A Manager's Playbook by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans
Love 'Em or Lose 'Em: Getting Good People to Stay by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans
Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go: Career Conversations Organizations Need and Employees Want by Beverly Kaye and Julie Winkle Giulioni
Love It, Don't Leave It: 26 Ways to Get What You Want at Work by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans
The Androgynous Manager by Alice G. Sargent
Beyond Sex Roles by Alice G. Sargent
Rethinking Career Mobility: Key takeaways from episode 30
Career development needs to be a three-way partnership between the individual, the manager or leader, and the broader organization. The individual provides the spark, the manager gives support, and the organization offers the structure and systems needed for people to advance. Does your organization have all three in place?
Managing your own career is a framework that Bev likens to a backpack you take from role to role and place to place. The framework includes five Ps:
Who am I as a Person?
What is the Perspective others have of me?
How is my Place of work changing?
What are the Possibilities for me in the future?
What’s my action Plan?
Millennials have been characterized as a generation of job hoppers. In consultation with her millennial executive assistant, Bev offers some reasons for this trend. Some have to do with attention spans, but she also cited the ease of changing jobs and finding new opportunities in today’s marketplace, as well as a lack of education about the art of thinking through a career.
One antidote to job hopping may be lateral moves within the same organization. We need to shift the mindset around this topic. Many people have been trained to believe that an upward move is the only sign of progress, and in the reality of people’s long careers, this simply isn’t true. Instead of the image of a career ladder, think of a rock wall. Sometimes you have to move sideways, or even step down, in order to keep going up toward your ultimate goal.
One of the biggest mistakes Bev sees companies making, when it comes to retention efforts, is failing to notice their talent and act on what they’re noticing. Recognize when people love what they’re doing, or when they’re struggling. Verbalize that recognition and then mobilize to change as needed.
When people feel valued and recognized by their direct managers, they’re more likely to stay in the job. Bev says that people will decline a better job with more money if they have a manager who believes in them and is helping them grow.
Enabling career mobility means not putting all of your eggs in one basket. You may think you’re going one way, but you need a back-up plan in the event that doesn’t work out. Examine the possible routes and be vocal about your preferences.
For your long-term career development, form a support group of similar people who can encourage each other. Tell your story, and encourage others to share theirs. We can get the best life lessons by listening to the ways people got to where they are today.
Question-A-Day: Bonus content download
Complete the form to access Bev’s Question-A-Day tool to help you be a better manager by building the habit of having career conversations. This download will provide you with a whole month’s worth of questions to get you engaging with your team, and even help you examine your own career ambitions.
