Introduction
Personal and professional development are the two things responsible for the formation and organization of the group. Their development is necessary for each person individually since many follow the old attitudes when modern times demand modern solutions. Thus, this work aims to explore the professional and personal development plan theme and its importance for each manager. Several literary sources were analyzed to substantiate the chosen action plan to eliminate such problems as time management, leadership, decision-making, and lack of communication skills. I worked with the team on a consulting project for the Barlow Collins Clinic. This medical organization is a reasonably small institution in the city of Fareham. The main problem for Barlow Collins Clinic was presented by the service sector in which the institution continues operating and growing. The steps to solve the problem focused on identifying the organization’s main issues, using personal reflections and experience as a personal consultant for Barlow Colins, and reviewing the existing body of knowledge on the issue.
The Steps Taken for Solving the Problem
The several problems of the Barlow Collins Clinic included the ineffective organization of the workplace and lack of attention to such aspects as an insufficiently established management system, lack of leadership enforcement, and decision-making issues. In general, it is assumed that a medical institution can improve the effectiveness of its work with the help of specialists. However, in Barlow Colins clinic’s case, the main problem was the lack of effective measures focused on attracting new customers. As a solution to the issue, I applied relevant methods of intelligent marketing policies, such as the use of different social media platforms. Active social media management was necessary to connect the existing backlinks and increase the traffic of the clinic’s website to attract more new customers.
In the research, I held the position of business consultant for the Barlow Colins clinic. During my experience as a business consultant, I detected several difficulties that significantly reduced the organization’s work efficiency. The primary areas of the problems included time management issues ineffective commutation with both employees and clients. The first identified problem was lousy feedback towards the clients. In other words, the company faced significant difficulties and negative publicity when filing a complaint, suggestion, or review. The problem emphasizes the lack of sufficient feedback system development in the organization.
Several strategies have been developed for the professional development of the medical organization, including measures focused on increasing the involvement of specialists and raising their awareness about previously identified problems. Further investigation allowed the identification of other areas that require changes. In order to provide the solution in this case and ensure the normal financial functioning of the organization, I thoroughly examined the detail of the reasons behind identified organization’s issues. The last major problem of the organization was sourced in the field of cause and solutions. Despite being non-negative in their character, the consequences of general activities in this field negatively affected the performance of the staff and the entire organization. The measurement taken at the workplace proposed holding familiarization days, which can help lay the foundation for classification. To speed up this process, I took the initiative to show my opinion and talk about the required changes.
Another problem I faced during my experience in the consultancy process was the organization’s lack of attention to detail. This problem was then determined as a result of the conducted survey. Effective communication inside and outside the company is essential for human interaction (Quintanilla and Wahl, 2018). To save time for interviews, researchers conducted an online survey that showed employees’ dissatisfaction with the quality of communication within the workplace. Moreover, conducting the survey allowed a positive outcome in providing outlining plans for the development and acceleration of the company’s work through the news strategy without negative results in key performance indicators. The new strategy aimed primarily to collect the data through follow-up communication with the client. Furthermore, as the client did not respond in the required time, we had to arrange for Plan B, which presented an alternative way to collect the data. However, later the clients responded to our follow-up email, and they posted the survey uh to their Facebook page. During this activity, I was trying to motivate and encourage the group leader and the group members to follow up with the client to ensure that there was enough time for the survey analysis.
Literature Review
In order to gain the best understanding of the problems under study and find the most balanced and acceptable solutions, the research includes the study of digital sources. Henceforth, one of these articles in the conducted literature study focused on the relationships between participation in personal, professional development activities, teamwork, and performance (Welp et al., 2018). The paper illustrated the value and usefulness of development activities applied in remote territories. The relationship between frequency of participation in personal professional development activities and both perceived teamwork and performance was mediated by reflective thinking.
Thus, to bring positive results to the company, it is necessary to apply personal development plans for personnel. Moreover, performing measures focused on employees’ personal development for the company can positively influence the connection between the frequency of participation in personal, professional development activities and intuitive thinking (Welp et al., 2018). In the study, the authors collected the results of the application of development plans through an analysis of the personnel’s level of satisfaction with the job (Hargie, 2018). In addition to providing positive emotions and increasing employees’ involvement in improving the quality of work, the measure also had a positive effect on their reflexive thinking and perception of teamwork.
Another article focused on the story of the action learning application in Nokia provided valuable, necessary information about the company’s development and personnel for the research. As a world-class manufacturer of mobile phones, Nokia contributes to the development and expansion of convergent industries. The company’s managers themselves note that they have been using action training for more than fifteen years, with different expectations of return and success. Therefore, participation in collective and group events can become an effective tool for improving personal effectiveness. In conclusion, events and groups in the workplace will help improve the communication skills that I will need as a consultant in the future.
In addition, the company used various technologies to turn company into the most efficient kitchen giant. A prerequisite is to increase flexibility and the ability to change in a rapidly changing world. To improve and expand our approach, we used a survey process to understand what has worked well with action training in the past and how people can improve the relationship between business strategy, training, and organizational development. The following source focuses on an improved behavior model. It examines the cultural training conducted for the company’s staff to improve work with clients (Felix & Keevill, 2008). The authors note that the spiritual and cheerful attitude of the company’s staff can influence the appearance of a new leader, which will lead the company to a more significant profit (Welp et al., 2018). From the beginning, as a sporadic intervention with a small number of leaders scattered throughout the organization, action training has become an integral part of our approach to developing our leaders.
The last literature source under study provided information on the effectiveness of specialized training for company employees and the development of their skills. At the end of the practical training, the researchers collected data on the dynamics of the impact of the implemented measures and how it affected the development of personal skills of personnel (Spencer, 2005). Therefore, the author determined that the field employees had the opportunity to spend time on purposeful reflection and concentration on one aspect of the work, and the knowledge gained about the experience of learning actions was consolidated. Moreover, there was an improvement in interpersonal relationships in the workplace, which affected the strengthening of relationships and the level of bonds of trust and support.
Findings and Reflective Measures from Personal Experience
In this way, after carrying out the necessary qualitative research to obtain information, much practical knowledge about personal and professional growth can be obtained. To be more specific, I singled out the need to become a more competent employee, devoting more time to such an aspect as data collection. I can conclude that over time, with a proper attitude to work and self-development, I will be able to manage time more efficiently to avoid any troubles that may affect both the personal and the production or the company as a whole.
I try to maintain professionalism in difficult situations that may arise in work. As an example, from my personal experience, I can say that from my experience with the project, I realized how vital marketing strategy and mainly digital marketing is for small businesses. Moreover, the information and skills I acquired about digital marketing will help me develop and improve businesses in the future. Through exploration of difficulties and nuances of digital marketing, I acquired valuable practical information that encourages me to consider being a digital marketing consultant. My strengths, in this case, can be attributed to my good attention to detail, which allows me to identify things that others miss, which makes me a good team player in the group. Another strength is the leadership qualities that can help me in the future.
Tasks that require additional development and training are to assign tasks to the participant, despite the advantages of this applied research.
Conclusion
Hence, one of the main aspects I need to improve for future career development is public speaking. Another positive side worth mentioning in personal reflection is that I had an opportunity to participate in meetings with people. Making new connections helps to enrich the experience and improve communication skills (Newnam and Goode, 2019). However, working with the team on the point under study helps me overcome the problems that have been mentioned earlier. Thus, uncertainty in my public speaking abilities and presentation skills may hinder my progress. In the future, plan to make as much effort as possible to develop other equally important skills. In addition, I have a desire to take as many online courses on personal and professional development as possible to improve my skills. This feature will help me with e-commerce and digital marketing shortly. I will join to keep abreast of developments in digital marketing. Thus, in the study, it was concluded that communication occupies an important place in marketing.
Reference List
Felix, E., and Keevill, J. (2008) ‘Action learning in the BBC,’ Action Learning Research and Practice, 5(3), pp. 239-248.
Newnam, S. and Goode, N. (2019) ‘Communication in the workplace: Defining the conversations of supervisors,’ Journal of Safety Research, 70, pp.19-23.
Quintanilla, K.M. and Wahl, S.T. (2018) Business and professional communication: Keys for workplace excellence. Sage Publications.
Ropponen, T. (2003) ‘The Nokia story of using action learning,’ Action Learning Research and Practice, 5(2). pp. 161-165.
Spencer, C. (2005) ‘Action learning in John Lewis,’ Action Learning Research and Practice, 2(2), pp. 189-195.
Welp, A., Johnson, A., Nguyen, H. and Perry, L. (2018) ‘The importance of reflecting on practice: How personal professional development activities affect perceived teamwork and performance,’ Journal of Clinical Nursing, 27(21-22), pp. 3988-3999.
Hargie, O. (2018) ‘Training in communication skills: Research, theory and practice,’ The Handbook of Communication Skills, pp. 609-622.