The Challenge
In exit interviews, the number one piece of feedback we received was people didn't see a way to grow in their roles at the company. While department leaders had a strong understanding of opportunities available to team members, we lacked a clear framework that allowed everyone—team members and managers—to understand how they could progress in their careers with the company and develop the skills needed to achieve their goals.
The Approach
I started with the concept of a career lattice. This helped to illustrate a couple of key ideas:
- People weren’t restricted to one type of role. Provided they met basic qualifications, they had the freedom to take on new roles and develop new skills.
- There was a clear path for both ‘makers’ and ‘managers’.
The Career Lattice
Defining a Career Path
For each role in the lattice, I created a career path framework outlining core qualifications, role competencies, duties and responsibilities, and indicators. These details allowed each person to clearly understand what was required of them to progress in their careers. It also helped managers ensure their team members were building relevant skills and experiences.
“Maker” Career Path Guidelines
Rollout
To roll out the program, I created a presentation and supporting materials to help team members understand the framework, their responsibility in the process, and answer questions.
What’s Next
In addition to introducing this framework at Garmin, I implemented similar programs with other teams.
Based on what I’ve learned, I’ve developed a consulting program to help other in-house and agency creative teams implement career path programs.