Professional development can increase your skills as an employee, which can lead to new opportunities and career advancement. Professional development includes advancing skills, traits and competencies that contribute to your success in the workplace. If you’re interested in advancing your career, you might want to know how to improve your professional development.
In this article, we discuss what professional development is and why it’s important, then provide four ways to improve your professional development.
What is professional development?
Professional development is improving yourself through learning and training to advance your career. Companies may offer training sessions to further teach their employees, but an employee typically works on their own professional development independently. There are many ways that an employee can work on their professional development, such as taking classes, going to workshops or teaching themselves new skills. Professional development can also refer to staying up to date on new trends within your field and applying new practices to your current methods.
Why is professional development important?
Professional development is important because it can make you a better employee. This could help you receive more opportunities for career advancement, such as promotions or lateral transfers. Professional development can make you a more desirable candidate because of your knowledge and level of expertise in your field. Professional development improves your skill set and knowledge, but your company also benefits from your growth as an employee. This is important because they could recognize and potentially reward your success.