Five Year Plan

 

Over the last few years, I have been lucky enough to have a manager who was very supportive of development. Prior to that I always thought of development as something that an organization provided to their employees. Now I know that I must actively participate in my development to continue to grow and get the most of my career.

            Currently, I subscribe to Training Magazine, and am a member of the Training Mag Network. Training Magazine is not necessarily a peer reviewed journal, but they are a good association of training professionals across various industries. They also have several webinars, articles, templates, and other resources that someone in corporate learning can use.

            In addition to Training Magazine, I have been fairly involved in the Association of Talent Development (ATD). My current role is not actually L&D related, but ATD hosts conferences, and they have certifications for professional educators. I have considered joining ATD at times but have yet to do so. They have networking and support areas within their organization’s website that could be beneficial to someone looking to advance their career. ATD also has several publications including their monthly TD Magazine. Again, though directed toward those in L&D, TD Magazine has insightful information for all instructional designers and learning managers. They even have articles on use of LMS.

            A new group I had not heard of until recently is the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). I think because my role is corporate, we often tend to overlook some of the resources more focused on education. However, looking into AACE I think there is a lot of valuable information that could easily apply to my current role, as well as future roles I am working toward. AACE has many different publications. Two that looked particularly interesting to me were the Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching (JCMST), and Journal of Interactive Learning Research (JILR). The JCMST is directly applicable to what I do now. Currently, my role is to design eLearning for Pharmaceuticals. Which really is just teaching various science topics to learners who may not be familiar with the subject. The JILR is also relevant to me as an eLearning designer. This publication has research on a variety of topics regarding interactive media, content authoring, and a host of other topics related to eLearning. AACE does have a specific eLearning publication which is obviously applicable to my role, but I think eLearning is a topic which is already covered endlessly in other publications. JCMST and JILR are relevant, but also different than one might find elsewhere.

            In the next three to five years there are many things I hope to accomplish for my continued development. Curating my professional network is high on the list. I really hope to be able to find my dream job (maybe I’m already in it) in the future, but that does not happen by accident. When I find myself with more time, I plan to fully develop my LinkedIn profile, and begin seeking out other professionals to network with. If I join organizations such as ATD, I will be an active participant and develop relationships that will help me achieve my goals.

            Likewise, within ATD, I would like to complete some other certifications such as the Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD). Because I am in corporate learning, but not within L&D, I have gaps to address if I wish to move into another industry. The CPTD along with my master’s degree will help address those gaps. I also enjoy courses on edX and Coursera, so achieving related certifications on there such as graphic design or data analytics is a long-term goal for me.

            I also will continue to attend professional conferences in the coming years. With the fact that most of them have moved online, it has been much easier to get work to pay for admission. Attending conferences such as TechLearn by Training Mag Network is a fantastic way to stay ahead of industry topics.

            Finally, my lofty goal is to begin contributing to a website such as eLearning Industry or Training Magazine. My confidence as a writer has grown through these graduate courses, and I feel that I have contributions to make to my peers. My plan is to begin noting topics or issues that come up at work and document them. Using that I can create help articles for those facing similar issues. I hope to start this after I complete my degree and have more time. If all goes well, I may even apply to speak at a conference. My previous manager just started doing this, and it seems very exciting. Her ambition has given me the confidence to take the leap as well.

            Those are my plans. All in all, most are simple, but they are also achievable. If I were to sum it up, I would say, I really want to cement myself as a contributor within the industry, develop working relationships with peers, and broaden my skills in areas that I have less familiarity.