Using your knowledge of the stages of life and career development, explain how the career issues of a 27-year-old differ from those of a 45-year-old. What are the organizational implications of the issues you identified?
Career issues of a 27-year-old will differ from those of a 45-year-old because the 27-year-old is in the “early adulthood” stage or the “early career stage”. People at this age are just realizing their goals and dreams of what they would like to do with their life and they are starting their careers. They are trying to “find their place in society, obtaining meaningful work, realizing a lifestyle, establishing meaningful relationships” (Werner, 2017). A 45-year-old is in their “middle adulthood” or the “midcareer stage”. People at this stage are looking at their life and evaluating what they have accomplished so far and trying to decide what more they want to do. They are in a “period of stability” (Werner, 2017) and are productive at work. At this stage they find that they are either in a “plateau- a lack of significant increases in responsibility” and “obsolescence- one’s skills are not sufficient to perform tasks required by technological change” (Werner, 2017). They may also “reaffirm or modify their dream” at this stage. Organizational implications of the issues are people in early adulthood or early career stage is eager to learn and will most likely “experience occupational advancement” (Werner, 2017). They will need to learn the culture of the organization and I believe they would benefit from being mentored or coached by seasoned employees, which would probably be those that are in their mid-career stage. Those in middle adulthood or midcareer are already established and know their jobs, although, they may need the training to keep up with the changing technology. HR should provide the developmental trainings for each of these groups and team-building exercises so that everyone learns how to work together cohesively. Millennial workers usually have different ideas when they start at a new company, especially if they do not know the organizational culture and how things work. They tend to see things differently and may feel that the more senior workers are not as creative, when in fact they are very knowledgeable. Millennials also want to know the “why” before they proceed.
Explain why management development is one of the most common HRD activities found in organizations today.
According to the text management development is “an organization’s conscious effort to provide its managers (and potential managers) with opportunities to learn, grow, and change, in hopes of producing over the long term a cadre of managers with the skills necessary to function effectively in that organization” (Werner, 2017). This is one of the most common HRD activities found in organizations today because it “consists of providing employees with opportunities for learning, growth, and change” (Werner, 2017). Organizations need their managers to be more effective, so they invest in management development not only for the benefit of the company but also for the benefit of the employee. This investment in training is also an investment in the manager since they will be learning more knowledge and skills. HRD must keep up with changing times and with the changes in the organization and be able to provide training to managers to keep their training and skills current. HR must be able to assess the organization’s needs and determine where development is most needed. The best leadership development programs make certain that leadership is taught appropriately at all critical levels (Price, 2006).
