Dec

24

exploring my 2008 financial goal

Filed Under Uncategorized 

microscopeI mentioned before that my big financial goal for 2008 is really in connection with my career. I plan to gain chartered status - a mark of professional competency - and use that to obtain a promotion.

This goal isn’t a stretch target, but it isn’t straighforward either. Working backwards, to gain chartership, I need to complete the application form in which my personal statement should explain how I meet the relevant requirements.

The requirements are a list of competency statements and associated levels. I have a collection of evidence documenting the first 4.5 years of my career mapped against the competency statements but not against the levels. I’m missing the evidence from the last year or so - a collection of projects I’m working on that are not yet complete - so I need to write that up. I also need to assess my evidence against the levels required. So that’s two actions there:

  • write up the evidence from 2007
  • assess all evidence against levels

Once that is complete, I need to see whether there are any gaps in my experience, and work out how to fill them, given my current work plans for 2008. This will probably be a combination of on the job experience and maybe a couple of short courses. If there are things that I need that aren’t straightforward to fulfil given what I know I’m going to be doing anyway, I need to enlist the support of my line manager to make sure that they happen. So that gives me three actions:

  • determine whether I have any skills gaps
  • if possible, use my current planned work to fill some gaps
  • if necessary, enlist the support of my manager to help me fill the remaining gaps

The meat of the work is then doing the work and/or training to ensure that I do in fact meet all the requirements of chartership. Then the final element is writing up the application and gaining the relevant references.

Image by xmatt

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Comments

7 Responses to “exploring my 2008 financial goal”

  1. Mrs. Micah on December 24th, 2007 4:11 pm

    I think showing that kind of initiative will certainly be a good step towards promotion. You’re proving yourself an engaged and dedicated worker!

  2. plonkee on December 24th, 2007 6:00 pm

    I certainly hope so, it shouldn’t hurt anyway.

  3. guinness416 on December 24th, 2007 10:42 pm

    I got chartered early this year (different industry, I suspect, but if you’re a quantity surveyor let me know!) and the effort required to get it was well worth the while. Whether or not you get chartership or a promotion, it’s a good thing to take the time to look over your career and experience in such a manner, and to present on it. Clarifies a lot. Best of luck!

  4. Patrick on December 24th, 2007 11:19 pm

    This sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into it. You definitely will not hurt your case by laying it all out in such an organized manner. I wish you luck. :)

  5. RacerX on December 25th, 2007 1:27 am

    I have enjoyed this blog for some time, and this is a good reason why. Constant movement toward your goals. Adding you to my Good Karma page of links.

    Great Work, and have a great holiday.

  6. Llama for brains on December 26th, 2007 9:51 pm

    I got chartered a year or two ago. After way too long. Was a pain, but well worth it. At first it made no difference. But after a bit, a few things linked to being chartered, like being invited to do some stuff, bits of jobs requiring someone chartered, and so on. It might have some bearing on possible promotions.

    Next to go for the Fellow status ;)

  7. Rob Lewis on December 27th, 2007 10:34 pm

    A great goal to have Plonkee - I’ve posted my goals here: http://money-watch.co.uk/3884/financial-goals-for-2008

    There’s nothing particularly exciting there, but hopefully by blogging them it will give me some motivation to act on them.

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