OGL 482 Pro-Seminar II

Unit 3 Assignment:
Networking Plan Template
Section 1: The Career Decision Matrix
As you move through the data-gathering phase and begin to generate options for potential jobs
and potential employers, this is when you can build and use a Career Decision Matrix. Following
the information from Harrington & Hall text, Career Management & Worklife Integration,
Chapter 4, pages 92-94, you will research, gather, and analyze information from your self-
assessments (i.e. the Kuder assessments in Unit 1, in particular), thematic analysis (themes),
career resources and more to create your Career Decision Matrix.

Career options are broader than jobs. They are paths you can take to get to where you want to be.
Here is a resource that can assist you in determing:
https://careerwise.minnstate.edu/careers/pathways.html

Answer the following:

1) As you have gathered your data take the time to share and fully describe your top
four (4) possible career options. You want to be specific, as this creates a more
meaningful matrix. Describe each career with as much detail as possible. Consider
the following to be used in your 2-3 paragraph response per career option: career
field / organization / job-related responsibilities / opportunities for advancement /
future outlook of the career field. These responses need to demonstrate that you
have gathered your research and analyzed it, so there should be citations referencing
where you got your information, using APA standards. Remember to include why you
are choosing each career option.

a. Call Center Classroom Trainer for Medtronic Diabetes-

This would be considered the medical field. The company produces

medical devices, and the diabetes division supports customers who wear a

Medtronic insulin pump. The organization is Medtronic and I have been

employed there for almost 13 years. Although I know the medical device we sell

saves lives, I also know that call centers are getting replaced by AI. Many call

1
Last Update: May 2021
 centers have already begun to use AI and by 2025 the chatbot market is expected

to exceed $9 billion (Go4Customer, 2023).

I have chosen this career after reflecting during my identity narrative and

creating my themes. Ever since I was little, I have had a passion for teaching and

had a few opportunities to assist with training at my company. This career would

give me the opportunity to grow with my company, as this would be a promotion

for me. The training team teaches all the new hires how to do their job. I think I

would love this job and I also think would be pretty good at it.

All new employees that start at Medtronic Diabetes first learn about the

disease itself and what our customers go through daily. The trainers teach them

about diabetes and how our products them manage this disease. Once this training

is done, the trainers teach them everything they need to know about our company

and our products. Then the employees will begin to learn about specific processes

for their particular job.

b. Call Center Sales Rep for Medtronic Diabetes-

Again, this would be with my current employer, and I realize that many

call centers have begun to use AI so is a challenge I may face moving forward.

When I made the decision to go back to school, my hope was to move to the Sales

department within my organization. This would be somewhat of a lateral move

for me, but I would have the possibility of bringing in more income through

commission. I think I would also be good at this job and could make a lot more

money.

2
Last Update: May 2021
 It's not just about the money though. The sales representatives reach out

to customers who have been identified by their doctor as needing an insulin pump.

The sales representative works with the customer, their doctor, and their insurance

to get the insulin pump shipped to them. I love being part of an organization that

make a device that saves lives, but I believe I would feel like I have more of a

purpose if I am the ones getting them started on this device. I believe this job

would be very rewarding for me and give me that sense of purpose I am looking

for.

As a sales rep, you earn an hourly rate, as well as a monthly commission

and quarterly incentive. If you do well at this job, you can earn a lot of money. I

have heard that this job is stressful, but I feel it would be very rewarding and that

would ease some of the stress. I really believe in the products that we sell and that

is why I think I would be successful in this position. This job also has an

opportunity to be promoted to a supervisor down the road. I would not want to be

a supervisor until I have mastered the job.

c. Nursing Home Activities Coordinator-

I couldn’t find a whole lot of information about the future of this field, but

I feel like it’s not going away any time soon. I don’t see nursing homes being

taken away any and there will always be a need to keep the patients occupied so

that they don’t get depressed. When I was in my early 20’s I spent a lot of time

volunteering at a local nursing home, mainly helping with the scheduled activities

such as Bingo. I enjoyed every minute of it since I have always held a special

place in my heart for the elderly.

3
Last Update: May 2021
 The activities coordinator oversees the activities for the residents. This is

filled with games and activities to keep their minds thinking and to get them out

of their rooms. They also plan functions to include their families such as picnics

or festivals. When I was little, I used to go door to door visiting my elderly

neighbors just to keep them company. Even as young as 8 or 9, I felt sorry the

neighbors who lived by themselves and didn’t have anyone to talk to. I know that

I would really love this job, but I also know that the pay isn’t all that great.

The pay for this job, would be less than what I am making now, but this is

when I must really reflect on what I want for my future. I know that I enjoy

working with elderly people and that this job would give me a big sense of

purpose, but I also worry about the grief I would encounter when residents pass

away. This is something I have taken into consideration and not sure that I can

handle.

d. Non-profit Worker for Children-

This is a career that I started thinking about after really reflecting on my

values when doing my thematic analysis. This was after really thinking about

love for children and will to help others. I have never had a job like this before

and am not able to be too specific because at this point, I just know that I would

like to work with kids in need. My sister has become a foster parent, and it has

really opened my eyes to how many kids need help.

4
Last Update: May 2021
 I am not looking into fostering but would love to have a job in which I am

working with kids in need and can be some sort of role model to them. I feel this

job would be the most rewarding job to me when it comes to having a sense of

purpose, love for children, and helping others, which are a few of my themes.

They say you can really succeed when you love what you do, and I have no doubt

I would love doing this type of work.

This job scares me a little though because it something way different that

what I do now. I have worked in the corporate business world for the past 15

years and professionally that is all I really know. I feel that I would definitely be a

little lost coming into this new career.

References:

Go4Customer. (2023, November 2). Future of call centers 2025.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/future-call-centers-2025-go4customer-f7sbf/

Now that you have determined these four options, take a step back and share a fifth
UNTHINKABLE (UT) career option, that you would never do, but are trained for
by what you have learned by earning your degree. Think about skills you have
acquired while earning your degree, which would be transferable to something
completely different.

e. Call Center Billing Supervisor for Medtronic Diabetes-

This is a position that is currently opened with my current employer,

Medtronic. I am currently a team lead and to be a supervisor, you need to have a

bachelor’s degree. Finishing my bachelor’s degree will open a lot of new

5
Last Update: May 2021
 opportunities for me within my organization. I am interested in many

departments, but billing is not one of them.

My company sells insulin pumps to diabetics and provided them with

ongoing support to get the supplies needed to continue pump therapy. Our billing

department is just like any other billing department and must discuss past due

balances with our customers. Sometimes we are unable to send them the supplies

they need if they have too big of a past due balance on their account. Medical

supplies are not cheap, and I feel bad for our customers who struggle to pay their

bills. I am now qualified to do this job, but I know that I would not enjoy it.

Our billing department doesn’t only handle past due balances, but they

take payments, send invoices, and work with medical insurance companies to get

our supplies and devices approved. These are all things that do not interest me,

and this is another reason why I would never want to work in this department. I

believe math is one of my strongest subjects and so I feel I would do really well,

but at the end of the day I would not be happy.

2) Using the information you have gathered and shared above it is time to fill in your
Career Decision Matrix. You can find an example in Table 4.2 on page 93 of our
text. When you complete the matrix below, be sure to remove any unnecessary
labels.

a. Down the left hand side of the matrix, you will list your ten (10) life themes
from your thematic analysis. You can also add more that were not part of your
presentation as Theme 11 and so on.

b. Across the top of the page, you will list the five (5) career options you are
considering.

6
Last Update: May 2021
 c. Next, fill in each cell with a high (h), medium (m), or low indication of the
match between that theme and the alternative under consideration.

d. Calculate your Career to Theme Consistency Points (CTCP) aka Summary, by

assigning high = 5, medium = 3, and low = 1, and then adding them up to
determine the ranking of your career choices to your themes. Not all themes
can have high designation (if everything is important, nothing is important).
The goal is to identify how your career options align with your life themes, so
you have better information to determine which aspects are most important
to you in your next career step.

Call Call Center Nursing Non- Call

Center Sales Home Profit Center
Classroom Activities Worker

7
Last Update: May 2021
 Trainer Representativ Coordinato for Billing
e r Children Superviso
r

Financial 5 5 3 1 5
Stability

Sense of 5 3 5 5 3
Purpose

Helping 3 5 5 5 1
Others

Love for Kids 1 1 1 5 1

Love for 5 1 5 3 1
Teaching

Family Love 1 1 5 5 1
& Support

Determination 5 5 3 3 3

Need for 5 5 3 3 1
Reassurance

Understandin 5 5 5 5 3
g Others

Empathy for 3 5 5 5 1
Others

CTCP 38 36 40 40 20
(Summary)

3) Now that you have determined these career options in relation to your life themes:
a. Reflect to what extent your Career Decision Matrix development process has
helped your career development decisions.

The Career Decision Matrix has helped me realize that I will be ok with whatever

decision I make as there are pros and cons to all of them. It has showed me that at the

end of the day, I really need to decide what is going to be best for me and my family.
8
Last Update: May 2021
 I have always taken the “safe” route when it comes to my career to have that financial

stability as a single mom, but now that my kids are grown, I can focus a little more on

myself and what is going to make me happy. The matrix has allowed me to see how

the different careers compare when it comes to the things that are important to me.

The OGL program has really changed outlook on what I want for my future. I

became a mom at the age of 18 and have always looked for jobs solely on what they

paid so that I could support my family. After really reflecting on my values and

“themes”, I can look at this matrix and really see myself stepping out of my comfort

zone in looking towards my future career. I am happy now with my current employer,

but I feel that there are other jobs out there that will bring me more joy.

b. Share which career option(s) you feel would be worth researching more and
pursuing as you begin to think about your networking plan.

As I looked at the matrix, something really stood out to me. I saw pros and cons

to the different careers, but I felt the career of being a trainer for my current employer

really had a little bit of everything that I am looking for. I have a sense of belonging

to the company I work for now since I have been there for almost 13 years. This

position would allow me to stay with the company and still grow into something I’ve

always wanted to be, a teacher. Being a classroom trainer would allow me to be what

I initially went to college for right out of high school.

During my time with Medtronic, I have had several opportunities to help our

training team. This included an opportunity to travel to Philadelphia for a week to

train a few reps and later an opportunity to travel to the Philippines to help train a

9
Last Update: May 2021
 new class of 30 reps. Both opportunities gave me insight to what our training team

does daily, and this is something I am very interested in. In the past, joining the

training team was not an option for me because it required a bachelor’s degree, but

now I will have the qualifications needed. The downfall to this position is that these

job opening do not happen often so I don’t know when the next position would be

available. I would like to learn more about similar opportunities I may not be aware

of.

10
Last Update: May 2021
Section 2: Networking Plan
Now that you have completed your Career Decision Matrix we now need to move forward and
develop a networking plan that you can use to help you reach your career goals. Review
Harrington & Hall text, Career Management & Worklife Integration, Chapter 4, pages 77-83.
Developing and managing your network of people who can help you is an important ongoing
process whether or not you are currently happy in your career.

The purpose of this activity is to:

• Help you assess and enhance (extend or strengthen) your developmental network relative
to major challenges you will face in the next 1-3 years
• Help you develop a networking strategy that will work for you
• Help you develop a specific plan to pursue over the next 6 months to 1 year
• Create an accountability mechanism

Research on leadership development has demonstrated that people benefit from a variety of
developmental relationships, including short-term and long-term alliances with bosses, peers,
senior executives, coaches, subordinates, and family members, the more diversity and depth
there is in your developmental network, the better. Depending on our dominant learning tactics,
we are more or less likely to pay attention to the quality of our developmental network.
This assignment was adapted by Professor Kathy E. Kram from a worksheet developed by
Professor Deborah Kolb, Simmons Graduate School of Management. Adapted by permission.

Answer the following:

1) As you think about the major changes that are likely to take place at your place of
work in the next few years, what major challenges and opportunities do you foresee
that you will need to deal with in the next 1-3 years?

Describe and explain why these are your top three (3) of Challenges here:
a. Department/company layoffs- About two years ago, our company retained a

new president for our division. This new president has made many changes over

the past couple of years, including department layoffs in multiple departments.

These layoffs have come very unexpectedly, and this causes everyone to feel their

11
Last Update: May 2021
 job is at risk. Losing my job would be very challenging for me since I live

paycheck to paycheck.

b. Change in organizational structure- I work for a call center and about four

years ago our organization decided to outsource some of our calls to the

Philippines. In doing so, many of the departments have seen a shift in some of

their work go from the US to the Philippines. This was the case for my

department as most of our incoming calls are now taken in the Philippines. I

worry that they will take more our work and give it to the Philippines. This would

be challenging as our department would be given new responsibilities or could

possibly be terminated.

c. Budget cuts- Since getting our new president two years ago, she has made many

budget cuts. She has cancelled many incentives our company offered, including

our big employee of the year award. We also had another award program in which

leadership could award us points if we did something that stood out. We could use

these points to go online and buy gift cards as well as other prizes. Our office now

has the bare minimal supplies, and we continue to see budget cuts happening. I

worry that the budget cuts will affect our merit increases this year and that would

be challenging for me because I really rely on my raises to help with my bills.

Describe and explain why these are your top three (3) of Opportunities here:
d. Opening in the training department- This would be the best opportunity for me

because I really feel that this job would be a perfect fit for me. This job really ties

12
Last Update: May 2021
 with many of my themes, and I believe I would love my job. I see jobs posted for

the training department every few years or so if it this was an opportunity for me,

I would want to take it. This job would bring me joy and also be a promotion for

me in which I would be more financially secure.

e. Lateral move to our sales department- I am currently a team lead in the returns

and exchange department and I cannot really move to any other departments that

are going to pay more without a bachelor’s degree. If I were to move to the sales

department after getting my degree, I would have the opportunity to make more

money in commission. I would also be able to have more interaction with our

customers and be able to form connections with them. This would give me the

opportunity to learn more about our company so that I can be more successful in

the future.

f. Opening for a department supervisor- I would love to stay in my department

and move up to a supervisor, but we are a small department and there won’t be

another position available unless one of our supervisors leave. If that were to

happen, this would be a great opportunity for me since I have been a team lead in

my department for over 10 years and have the knowledge to really help my team.

Many times, I feel like I am already doing that job, however, I was not able to

apply for the supervisor position before because I did not have a bachelor’s

degree. I would love to be able to move up in the organization and stay with my

team. I feel we are more like family after all these years.

13
Last Update: May 2021
 2) Given these challenges and opportunities, what type of help are you most likely to
need? Check one and explain why.
a. Help in getting the job done ______
b. Help in advancing my career ______
c. Emotional support ______

d. All of the above __ _

As I look at my opportunities, I can see support needed in many ways. If I were to take

on a new career opportunity, I would need help learning the new role and how to get the job

done successfully. If I took on a supervisor role, I would need help making that transition as

this would be my first time in a supervisor role. I would need emotional support from my

family as I make a new career move, understanding that I may be a little more stressed during

this time and may need to put in some extra hours in the office. Looking at my challenges, I

also feel I would need support in many ways. If I was laid off, I would need a lot of

emotional support to help me get through this loss since I have been with my company for

almost 13 years. I’m sure there would be a little bit of a grieving process for me in that case.

If there are organizational structure changes, I would need help in learning anything new my

department would be handling. With these possible challenges and opportunities, also comes

growth so I would be ready to tackle whatever comes my way, but I realize I could always

use help.

3) If your major challenge or opportunity is related to your work, how well positioned
are you to get information, advice, and resources about new opportunities and
possibilities? Check one and explain who can help you and why.

14
Last Update: May 2021
 Very Well ______ Okay __ _ Need to Expand My Network ______

My major challenge would be getting laid off. My organization has had several layoffs

over the past couple of years and I know this could be a possibility for my department as

well. I have had several friends and colleagues in other departments go through a layoff

within my organization and I have kept in touch with many of them to see how they are

doing and what sort of work they are doing now. I am aware of many job opportunities out

there due to information my friends and colleagues have provided me. I would say that I have

a pretty good group of people in my network, but I could always use more. I wouldn’t be

completely lost, but I could always expand my network to be more prepared.

4) If your major challenge or opportunity means making a move into a leadership

position, do you have relationships with people who can give you advice and
effectively advocate or champion you for important assignments or other
developmental activities? Check one and explain who can help you and why.

Yes __ _ No ______

Yes, I have a supervisor from another department that I have approached to be my mentor

and he agreed. We had lunch one time and he provided me great advise. Once I was told that

I could not ever be a supervisor without a bachelor’s degree, I did not continue to meet with

him because I felt like I would be wasting his time. I know that if I approached him again, he

would be more that willing to mentor me and help provide me support in any way he can. He

has been with the company for over 20 years and there is so much I could learn from him. I

chose him to be my mentor because he is well-respected within his team and within the

organization. I also know that he feels highly of me and wants me to succeed.

15
Last Update: May 2021
 5) If your challenge or opportunity means that you will need emotional support, to
what extent do you have people who can give you support? Check one and explain
who can help you and why.

a. I have a strong support network to help me. __ _

b. I don’t have people to help me through changes I will have to make. ____

A part of me feels like crying when I think about the amount of emotional support I have.

I know that I am very fortunate to have so many people who love me and want me to

succeed. I have two very loving and supporting parents and I go to my dad for advice all the

time about everything. I also have two older sisters who have always been there to support

me in everything I do. One sister has a master’s degree and the other owns a small business

with my brother-in-law. They both give great advice, and I can always count on them. I also

have the best boyfriend who has been my biggest supporter while going back to school to get

my bachelor’s degree. He is always there to lend a listening ear and is a supervisor himself,

so he also provides great advice when it comes to work. I know that whatever challenge or

opportunity I am facing, my loved ones have my back and are ready to help me.

6) If your challenge or opportunity means that you will need help getting the job done,
advancing your career, or getting emotional support, do you have people in your
network who can fulfill these functions? Check one and explain who can help you
and why.

Yes __ _ No ______

Being with my company for almost 13 years, I feel like I have a lot of connections within

the organization. I also feel that I carry myself well and that I am respected by others. There

are many times now in which I reach out to others for help, and everyone is always willing to

help me. I believe this is because of my willingness to help others when they approach me. I

may not always have the answer for everyone, but I help them find it. I feel like I work good

16
Last Update: May 2021
 with other department leaders in finding resolutions. This is why I feel that others in my

network would be willing to help me get the job done and help me learn. I am in close

contact with one of my previous supervisors who is now in another department, and he helps

me out in so many ways. I can always count on him to help me with work advise and to

provide that emotional support while I am at work.

7) What is your approach to building relationships? How are you at initiating

relationships? In what settings are you most comfortable meeting people?

a. Joint or shared work, projects, and committees ______

b. One-on-one appointments, with specific agendas __ _

c. Informal “no agenda” social settings ______

d. Going for coffee, lunch, or drinks __ _

e. Leisure activities such as golf, tennin, or theater ______
f. Other ______

When I am building a new relationship, I prefer to meet with that person in more formal

settings, such as planned meetings. This would be to introduce myself and discuss certain

topics. Through this, I hope to get to know them better in which we could then start

meeting at a more informal setting to discuss things, such as going to lunch or meeting

for coffee. I feel that one of my strengths is that I am a people person and can get along

with almost anyone. I may be a little shy at first, but it doesn’t take long for me to get to

know someone and have a better working relationship with them. I try to get a good

understanding of who people are and find that it makes it easier to work with them if I

understand them better as a person.

8) What is your preferred style?

17
Last Update: May 2021
 a. Occasional phone calls or e-mails just to ask “how are you?” ______

b. Phone calls, e-mails, or visits with specific requests or questions __ _

c. Holiday cards and letters ______
d. Dropping in or calling when you’re in the neighborhood ______

e. Arranging in advance to get together at professional meetings __ __

f. Relying on the chance that your paths will cross ______

g. Inviting people to join you for lunch, coffee, golf, and so on ___ _
h. Contacting people when you find some information, an article, or an opportunity that
might interest them ______
i. Other ______

My preferred style of communication is phone calls, emails, lunch meetings, or coffee

date. This may change over time, but being a mom of four and working full-time, I never really

had a lot of spare time for anything other than an occasional lunch or coffee date. Phone calls,

texts, and emails have been my main method of communicating with others. If I were to have a

meeting with someone, I needed it to be planned so that I could work that meeting around my

busy schedule. As much as I love talking to my friends and family, there wasn’t a lot of time to

do so. Now that my kids are older, school has taken up my time over the past couple of years. I

am excited to graduate, as I will now have more free time on my hands, and I look forward to

catching up with friends and family. I know that I need to make more time for the people and

things that are important to me.

9) Now turn your attention to the “Action Planning” part of the exercise (top of page 82).
Respond to the following questions:

a. What are your goals in developing a professional network? Be specific.

My goals in developing a professional network are to find people who I feel can really help

me further my professional career. I would like to communicate with people in my current

network that I will soon be graduating and explain to them what sort of career

opportunities I am interested in. This is so they can possibly get me in contact with any

18
Last Update: May 2021
 connections they have in the field I am interested in. I would also like to explore LinkedIn

more and add at least 10 new people to my network that I do not know but are in the field I

am interested in. I would also like to talk to some of the people in my network that I work

with and let them know what my goals and interests are so that they can also let me know

of any opportunities they come across. I think that if I follow my action plan, I will be

successful in finding a career that is right for me.

b. How will a well-developed network of contacts help you achieve your career goals?

We learned about how to successfully job search and how there are so many jobs out

there that you may not even see if you are not searching properly. Sometimes, we may

not even be looking for a new job, but there may be something newly available that is a

perfect fit for you. I think that if you a well-developed network of contacts, they can help

you with your job search and make you aware as new opportunities come available to

you. By having a well-developed network, you can let your network know what your

goals are and exactly what you are looking for. They may know someone or know

someone that knows someone. Networking can open so many doors for you if you do it

properly and can really help you in your I look forward to growing my network and

finding my dream job.

c. What are some of the characteristics of the people you are looking to include in your
network?

I kind of people I am looking to include in my network are people I look up to. These

people who are successful, honest, respected, and ethical. I think it is important for them

to be successful because they can help you grow and show you how to work your way up.

I need them to be honest so that I can trust that they are looking out for me and genuinely

19
Last Update: May 2021
 trying to help me. I need them to be respected by others because that is the kind of leader

that I want to be. And last, I need them to be ethical. I want them to show me right way to

work hard and be successful. This goes back to my values and how I want to achieve

success.

d. Where might you come in contact with these people? How will you grow your
network / initiate contact with new potential networking contacts?

Being with my company for almost 13 years, I have many people within my organization

that are in my network. However, there are many supervisors, trainers, and leadership

team members that I do not know. I have my “go-to” people for certain departments

when I need help. To grow my network within my organization, I can start reaching out

to some of these other leaders when I need help so that I can start a working relationship

with them. Outside of my network, I can start networking through my LinkedIn. I have

always shied away from networking outside of work, but I feel it could be very helpful.

e. Who in your network are you looking to enhance your relationship with? How will
you go about enhancing these relationships?

Now that I have decided that my ultimate career goal would be to join the training team

in my current organization, there are two trainers that I have in mind. There is one that I

feel I have better connection with and understands me more as a person, but I know she is

very busy, and I worry that she wouldn’t have time to work with me and mentor me. The

other trainer is someone I worked very close with in the month that I traveled to the

Philippines to help train a new team. He has been a trainer for over five years, and I feel

that he could really teach me what I need to know to be successful in that department. I

would start by reaching out to them directly by email to see if it’s okay for me to set up a

meeting with them to go over what help I am looking for. If they are open to it, I would

20
Last Update: May 2021
 want to discuss with them what works best for them as far as follow up meetings. I want

to be courteous with their time and be able to work around their schedules since I know

they are busier than I am.

f. How can you leverage your existing network? Might some of your existing
networking contacts know others who you should be in contact with?

I have several colleagues that have recently been laid off and have had to find new

employment. Now that I am confident that I want to pursue a training or teaching career

in some way, I can make the people in my network aware so that if anything comes up in

their organization, they can let me know. They could possibly get me in contact with the

training department in their organization and they can help me build a larger network of

people who are more familiar with this field. My preference would be to stay with my

current employer, but I am very open to switching companies if I can find a career that is

going to make me happy and align with my themes and values. Networking outside of my

organization would be new to me, but I am excited about putting myself out there and

reaching my goals.

21
Last Update: May 2021
Section 3: SMART Career and Networkings
Using a SMART goals-based approach, as well as project planning and management skill best
practices, create a detailed project plan for at least two specific goals. At least one must be
related to your Career Plan, and the other related to your Networking Plan. Both of these goals
need to be things that you are passionate about accomplishing.
Your selected goals and SMART plan (see SMART goal information provided in the Unit)
should be structured based on a one to two-year timeline. It should include specific milestones,
action items, sub-tasks as well as task-related interdependencies as applicable. With respect to
each goal, critically think about what specifically are the things you will do in the next one to
two years to achieve these goals.

Develop a clear and detailed SMART plan, with facilitating goals and steps/actions required
to accomplish your selected goals. It should be evident, by looking at the format and structure
of your plan, that you have developed some significant skills respect to project management.
Include Gantt charts or other visual project representations as you see fit, and be sure to address
your approach to tracking/measuring your progress.

1) What is your Career Goal?

Within the next two years, I want to become a trainer or teacher and increase my income

by 15%. I will achieve this goal by networking and working with a mentor in this field to

help me learn what skills I lack for this position. Reaching this goal will allow me to

follow my passion for teaching and to have a job that aligns with my values. This will

provide me financial stability and I will have a job that brings me joy.

a. Specific

My career goal is to become a trainer or teacher in some way rather it be with my current

employer or a different organization in San Antonio, TX. I want to increase my income

by 15% over the next three years.

b. Measurable

I will measure this goal by the number years it takes me to achieve it and by the amount

of income I am bringing in at that time.

c. Attainable

22
Last Update: May 2021
 Yes, it is attainable, and I can work more towards my goal by networking more with

others in this field and by working with a mentor in this field to guide me on being

successful.

d. Relevant

This goal is important to me because I want to follow my passion in teaching. I have had

this passion my entire life and put it on hold to raise a family. I want to follow my

passion and feel this job will bring joy to my life.

e. Time-Based

I will complete this goal within the next two years.

Career Goal Gantt Chart

2) What is your Networking Goal?

My networking goal is to increase the number of people in my network within my desired

field of training/teaching by ten people. I will also work closely with a mentor in my

desired field for the next year, learning new skills for my desired field to build my

resume and gain confidence to pursue my passion for teaching.

23
Last Update: May 2021
 a. S – I will add at least 10 new people in my desired field to my network within the

six months and meet with my trainer mentor monthly for the next year. I will

learn at least 5 new skills from my mentor to build up my resume.

b. M – I will measure this goal by the number of people I add to my network and by

the number of times I meet with my mentor, along with the number of skills

learned by my mentor.

c. A – Yes, this goal is attainable as I now have the skills needed to do more

networking. I also have a plan set to work with my mentor monthly.

d. R – Working with my mentor and learning more skills relevant to my desired

field will help be build my resume and gain more confidence to pursue that

career.

e. T – My timeline will be to reach this goal within the next year.

Networking Goal Gantt Chart

24
Last Update: May 2021