Latest news with #professionalDevelopment
Harvard Business Review
a day ago
- Business
- Harvard Business Review
Ask the Amys: Sabotaging Bosses, Irritating Employees, and More
Details Transcript What do you do when your request for professional development seems to annoy your manager? Or when you're aiming for a bigger role but keep hearing that you're 'too in the weeds'? Or when a team member's behavior undermines others but you're not sure whether to call it out because it feels like part of their personality? The Amys offer advice for advocating for yourself without setting off alarm bells, shifting from tactical execution to strategic thinking, and confronting behavior that's corrosive but hard to pin down. Other listener questions they respond to: How can I push for a more robust and effective feedback and review system at my company? How do I decide which workplace battles are worth fighting? How do I remain professional and confident when my soon-to-depart manager is belittling me? How can I raise gender equity issues in a department that favors male colleagues? Resources: ' How Managers Can Make Feedback a Team Habit,' by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis ' Get the Boss to Buy In,' by Susan (Sue) Ashford and James R. Detert HBR Guide to Building Your Business Case, by Ray Sheen and Amy Gallo ' How to Push for Policy Changes at Your Company,' from Women at Work ' How to Pick Your Battles at Work,' by Amy Gallo ' Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time,' by Tony Schwartz and Catherine McCarthy Speak Up, Speak Out (HBR Women at Work Series) ' How to Advance in Your Career When Your Boss Won't Help,' by Kristi Hedges ' You Can't Move Up If You're Stuck in Your Boss's Shadow ' by Rebecca Knight Thriving in a Male-Dominated Workplace (HBR Women at Work Series) ' 4 Ways to Improve Your Strategic Thinking Skills,' by Nina Bowman How to Demonstrate Your Strategic Thinking Skills,' by Nina Bowman
Fast Company
4 days ago
- Business
- Fast Company
How to get the growth opportunities you want at work
BY Research tells us that high performers thrive on challenges. Stretch projects help ambitious teammates grow their skills, and cross-team initiatives offer greater visibility. Yet, managers are overwhelmed, often unable to curate the bespoke growth opportunities their teams desire. As a result, 'seeking career growth opportunities' has become the number-one reason people change jobs, according to one survey by Gallup. If you want more out of your job, you're not alone. The good news is that opportunity is possible without plunging into a challenging job market. But it's on you to do the heavy lifting. Instead of waiting for growth opportunities to be served up, start creating them yourself. Here are three tips to get started. Define What a Growth Opportunity Looks Like for You The more specific you can be with the type of opportunity you desire, the more likely you are to get it. It's often helpful to work backward, first identifying the outcome you seek from a growth opportunity, and then considering the viable paths to that outcome. Do you want to improve your technical skills to ensure you stay competitive? Are you focused on elevating your human skills, like leadership and communication? Is your aim to expand your visibility in the organization and develop a stronger network? When you're clear about the endgame, you're better able to identify growth opportunities that align with your desired outcome. You're also more confident in saying no to opportunities that don't sync up. Spell Out the Specifics for Your Manager Most leaders are eager to support your professional development, but they don't have the bandwidth to curate a list of just-stretch-enough options for you. Do the heavy lifting—and make it easy for them to nod along. When you make a request to your boss for organizational resources, a financial investment, or just the agreement that you can prioritize a developmental opportunity, it's on you to spell it out. What's the opportunity? Why are you asking? What do you need from your boss? Take a look at the differences between these two requests. Example B: I've shared with you my desire to move into a managerial role in the next two years. To ensure I'm ready, I'm making a proactive effort to develop my leadership skills. There's a one-day conference next month specifically for leaders in our industry, called X. I would like to attend this conference to elevate my skills, network with like-minded aspiring leaders, and gain insights from other organizations in our space. The cost of attendance is Y, and I'd be out of the office for a full day. I've reviewed the agenda and identified the sessions that I believe will be the most relevant to the future of our organization. Can we discuss this at my one-on-one this week? Example A is cordial and valid. Example B is strategic and ambitious. Connecting your goals to what the business needs adds urgency and validity to your request. Even with a well-crafted request, the answer might be 'no,' especially if your request involves a significant investment of organizational time or money. In that event, don't walk away defeated. Reiterate the growth you'd like to achieve and why, and ask for suggestions or alternative options. Give them time to think, be open to the paths they suggest, and know that often they'll end up saying yes to the original request if you continue to bring it up. Cast a Wide Net Frontline leaders are often stretched thin, managing large teams and their own mountain of deliverables. When your team is under pressure, your personal growth will not be top of mind for your (likely well-intended) leader. To safeguard your career trajectory, cast a wide net for growth opportunities, tapping into HR, other senior leaders, and organizations outside your own. For example, if you heard a senior leader talk about an interesting project at a town hall, reach out and offer to help. If you admire the work someone else did on a particular initiative, ask how you can be a part of the next round. You know your leader, your organization's culture, and the line between 'self-starter' and 'blatant disregard for the chain of command.' If needed, run your reach-outs by your boss first. In some roles, growth opportunities are truly few and far between. Look beyond your organization to challenge your brain: volunteering, industry events, and even hobby-based pursuits will wake up your mind and put you back in the driver's seat. Waiting for a senior leader to tap you on the shoulder and dub you ready for growth opportunities can cost you years of momentum. The power is in your hands to create the opportunities you want in the job you already have.
Forbes
5 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Why Career Growth Often Looks Like Standing Still To Others
You don't need a new job to be growing. You need new questions, better boundaries, and more truthful ... More reflection. That's how careers move forward Career growth is usually imagined as a visible ascent. A new title. A bigger office. More direct reports. But often, the most significant development happens out of view. You become more measured in meetings. More selective about the battles you fight. More comfortable saying 'I don't know.' You stop chasing visibility and start chasing value. Yet when that happens, the world may not notice. At least not right away. To others, it might seem like you are coasting. Like your ambition has flattened. Or worse, like you are stuck. What they don't see is the rewiring underway beneath the surface. The shift from performing to mastering. From collecting experiences to integrating them. From showing potential to realizing it. This tension can be uncomfortable. Especially if you've spent years proving yourself through constant motion. Slowing down—even intentionally—feels risky. But much of career development operates like adult learning theory suggests. The shift from surface learning to reflective depth often looks, from the outside, like less activity. In fact, it is evidence of growth. Understanding that difference is key. Not just for your own peace of mind, but for the way you support others who may be evolving in quiet ways too. When You Plateau Publicly but Rise Internally You used to speak up in every meeting. Now you speak when it counts. You used to say yes to everything. Now you know which opportunities are misaligned. You once sought exposure. Now you seek influence. These are signs of maturity. But to a casual observer, they may look like a loss of edge. Or worse, complacency. This is the paradox of growth. As you develop sharper judgment, you often become less visible. Less reactive. Less insistent on being the loudest voice in the room. But that restraint is a form of power. And over time, it compounds into authority. You can reinforce that growth without self-promotion. For example, when you decline a project, explain why. You might say, 'This isn't aligned with where I'm focusing this quarter, but I'd be glad to recommend someone else.' That response demonstrates clarity, not disengagement. If a manager misreads your quieter phase as stagnation, consider reframing. You could say, 'I've been investing more time into depth than breadth recently. Fewer projects, but more meaningful ones.' That one line shifts the narrative from pause to purpose. And if you worry that others are passing you by because they appear busier, remember that activity is not always leverage. Growth that lasts tends to look deliberate, not frantic. Why Clarity Can Look Like Indifference There comes a point in most careers where you no longer need to prove you can work hard. The question becomes whether you are working smart. This shift often leads you to simplify your calendar, limit your commitments, and protect your energy. But minimalism can be misread. When you stop volunteering for every committee or reduce your output to sharpen your focus, others may assume you are pulling back. The truth is you may finally be learning to prioritize. This is where self-determination theory becomes relevant: it suggests that true motivation thrives on autonomy, competence, and relatedness. The more you gain control over your time and attention, the more your performance reflects internal clarity, not external pressure. To make that visible without over-explaining, link your current choices to strategic goals. For instance, you might say, 'I'm focusing my efforts this quarter on two priorities that tie directly to our team's long-term plan.' That statement signals alignment, not withdrawal. You can also invite others into your thinking. Share frameworks you use to evaluate opportunities. Offer insight into how you are measuring progress. Over time, this kind of transparency helps others understand that your quieter mode is not a retreat. It is a recalibration. Not Every Chapter Needs an Announcement We live in a culture of updates. New roles. Certifications. Project launches. The pressure to be visibly advancing is strong. But real growth does not always follow that rhythm. Sometimes your development looks like managing your team more effectively, even if your title stays the same. Sometimes it looks like handling a conflict with emotional maturity you didn't have three years ago. Sometimes it is invisible to everyone but you. That kind of growth doesn't show up on LinkedIn. And that is fine. You could keep a private log of professional wins no one claps for. A time you navigated pushback without defensiveness. A moment you created space for a quieter colleague. An instance where you spoke less and listened better. These moments are not trivial. They are the foundation of leadership. If you mentor others, normalize this too. When someone says, 'I feel like I'm not going anywhere,' ask what skills they've deepened in the past six months. Help them name the ways they've matured, even if the org chart hasn't shifted. Progress isn't always upward. Sometimes it's downward into clarity. Or lateral into complexity. Or still, for a season, to recover perspective. You don't need a new job to be growing. You need new questions, better boundaries, and more truthful reflection. That's how careers move forward, even when they appear still.
Zawya
24-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
BIBF launches a new series of professional micro-credentials in Islamic finance
Manama, Bahrain – In line with efforts to strengthen Bahrain's position as a leading hub for Islamic banking and finance, the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) has announced the launch of flexible and practical learning pathways for professionals in the Islamic banking sector, through a new series of professional micro-credentials. This initiative has been developed in response to the growing needs of the labour market amidst the rapid changes taking place in the Islamic banking industry, particularly in areas of regulation, digitalisation, and specialised skills. These certificates follow a modern education model known as "micro-learning", allowing professionals to acquire specialised skills over a short period of time without interrupting their work commitments, thereby enhancing their job-readiness and updating their knowledge in line with international standards. The initiative includes various core specialisation courses including, Islamic Retail Banking, Risk Management, Treasury Management, Wealth Management, Shariah Audit etc. Each programme runs over a period of three to five days, delivered in a blended format combining in-person and virtual sessions led by subject-matter experts, offering maximum flexibility and practical understanding for participants. On this occasion, Dr. Rizwan Malik, Head of the Islamic Finance Centre at BIBF, stated: 'These programmes are designed to directly address the growing demand in the sector for specialised, practical knowledge. They are ideal for professionals seeking to upskill or shift into new areas, without the time commitment of longer academic programmes.' He added: 'The launch of this initiative reinforces Bahrain's position as a leading hub in Islamic banking, by responding to the market's growing need for targeted and practical training aligned with global standards. It also contributes to the development of national talent and prepares professionals to navigate ongoing digital and regulatory transformations in the sector, further enhancing the Kingdom's status as a global centre for Islamic banking and finance education and training.' For more information or to register, please contact islamicfinance@ or call +973 1781 5555. About the BIBF The Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) is the leading provider of education and training in the region, established in 1981 under the Central Bank of Bahrain. With a commitment to enhancing human capital, the BIBF serves not only Bahrain but also extends its reach to 64 countries worldwide, solidifying its global presence. The BIBF is dedicated to delivering excellence across a broad spectrum of business disciplines. It partners with numerous international institutions to offer thought leadership, assessment, and training in key areas, including: Banking and Finance Islamic Banking Executive Education Accounting and Finance Academic Studies Leadership and Management Insurance Digital Transformation and Project Management For more information, please contact the Marketing and Corporate Communications Department at: Email: media@ Website:
CTV News
23-06-2025
- General
- CTV News
‘It simply doesn't add up': Education expert questions PD day pilot project at N.B. schools
Parents and educators react to a New Brunswick pilot project that will add professional development days to school calendars.
