PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO Introduction Personal Details / Curriculum Vitae Qualifications / Professional Development Previous Experience Personal Development Plan Business / Team Plan Evidence of Achievements Appraisal / Performance review Job Applications
Introduction PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO This Personal Development Portfolio is offered as support for your development at work. It is not seen as something all employees must use but as a means by which anyone can voluntarily collect information that records and reflects his or her work. By reflecting on past experiences and present activities, you are able to: identify priorities and learning needs; set short and long term targets; plan for the future. Together with Appraisal or Performance Management and within the appropriate Business or Team Plan and the Continuing Professional Development framework, you can think about your practice and your career in a planned and systematic way. The Personal Development Portfolio offers a basic structure for collecting information. If you choose to use it, it is YOUR portfolio, YOUR property and YOU use it in the way YOU feel is best for YOU. It is hoped you will: find it useful in your career; use it at key points during the year; take it from post to post; keep it up to date at regular intervals by including recent information and discarding what is no longer relevant to you. Over time the portfolio may contain confidential information e.g Appraisal Statements or Job Applications. You decide if you wish to put such information in; no one will have access to your portfolio unless you want this. No doubt you will already have information and documents that would be appropriate to put in the portfolio. Perhaps these are in different places. Do take an hour or two over the next month to begin collating these. You will probably be surprised at the amount you can collect in a very short time. Some guidance in note form is provided in some sections to start you thinking about possible inclusions. In some sections there is supplementary documentation to support you. In addition to providing some forms in the different sections, all forms are available on the templates that are provided so that you can more easily keep information up to date and print this off whenever you need to.
Personal Details The form provided allows you to record basic contact information which is often required. Other information which it is sometimes useful to have on record include: National Insurance Number; Pay Reference Number; Membership numbers of organisations, both professional and personal. You may wish to use this basic information to develop a curriculum vitae. A Curriculum Vitae might also include details from other sections of this portfolio, for example: Qualifications; Past experience in the workplace and elsewhere; Knowledge, expertise and skills you have developed in the workplace and elsewhere; Membership of professional associations and trade unions; Hobbies and interests.
Qualifications/Professional Development Certificates you have been awarded. Qualifications training including NVQs Post-qualifications training Courses attended Record these on the form provided Was a report produced? What has been the impact in your work? Other development opportunities Some examples of professional development other than courses are: Self-directed learning packages E-learning Work shadowing Coaching Cluster activities to share expertise Secondments Membership of working parties at local, regional or national level Distance learning Representing the organisation in the wider community Giving presentations Organising events Mentoring colleagues In-house training opportunities Team-based development activities On-the-job learning Supervision and personal development planning Courses delivered
Previous Experience Transferable Skills you have acquired such as: Leadership Communication ICT Time management Team work Budgetary knowledge Presentation Other Roles in the wider community e.g.: Church Voluntary Organisations Scouts Guides Record to include: Dates of jobs Previous employment listing Other experience ( e.g. home, voluntary )
Personal Development Plan Your own Personal Development Plan should evolve from the formal opportunities provided through Appraisal or Performance Management. The targets or objectives you set with your appraiser or team leader will be part of your Personal Development Plan but will be shorter-term and be focused almost primarily on your present role. Whilst consideration might be given to what might be your next job, your Personal Development Plan will be no longer-term and will give consideration to your overall development of skills which you acquire beyond, as well as within, the workplace. You should refer to Lancashire County Council s Core Competencies which are included in this portfolio. In addition, other competencies may be relevant to you and the work you do. Lancashire County Council have also produced: Manager Competencies; Senior Manager Competencies; Executive Officer Competencies. For your particular role there may be specific professional competencies which may be taken into account. Other colleagues on Teachers Pay and Condition could make use of the Teacher Standards Framework included (for them) in this portfolio.
Business/Team Plan In a large organisation like the County Council, it is valuable to see how you fit into the plans the Council has for meeting its priorities, both national and local. You should be aware of these priorities. Then, through your own job description, your work within your team and how that team fits into the County structure, you will be able to see how you contribute to meeting the aims of the County Council.
Evidence of Achievements There will be different ways of identifying your achievements and this will depend, obviously, on the nature of your work. Evidence could include: Documents Policies Web-sites Videos Displays Analysis of data Photographic evidence Records of visits Reports Minutes of meetings Course evaluations And many more You should not need to duplicate what is held elsewhere. It might be enough to record on the form provided where such information is already lodged. Such cross-referencing avoids unnecessary duplication but provides a reminder when, for example, you are planning a job application or are preparing for an interview.
Appraisal/Performance Review Appraisal or Performance Review should provide everything within this Personal Development Portfolio. The system allows you to talk to your manager about your job and how you operate within your team and within the organisation. Appraisal/Performance Review should refer to team plans, the appropriate Business Plan and indeed, should feed into these as well. Further detailed guidance is offered in the relevant documents included in this portfolio.
Job Applications Recent application forms Recent letters of application Examples of job descriptions on interviews Blank application form References Testimonials