u58065 module guide

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Business School

Business School Undergraduate Courses

Module Number: U58065

Module Title: Placement

Module Guide

Semester 1 and 2, 2010/11

Module Leader: Nigel BryantRoom: N2.01

Email: [email protected]


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Module number: U51085Module title: Placement

CONTENTS

Module introduction..........................................................................................................3

Relationship With Other Modules.....................................................................................4

Learning Outcomes..........................................................................................................5

Teaching and Learning Experience..................................................................................6

What is this module all about?..........................................................................................7

Recommended Reading List............................................................................................9

So what is reflection and why do it?...............................................................................10

Further Food for Thought ..............................................................................................12

Timetable - what you have to do and when....................................................................13

Your Placement Journal.................................................................................................17

Your Skills Audit.............................................................................................................18

The Matrix......................................................................................................................20

Personal Development Plans (PDPs x 4).......................................................................22

26th Week Interim Progress Report ..............................................................................26

End of Placement - Tutor Visit & Your Presentation.......................................................29

Upgrade Study Advice Service....................................................................................31

Assessment Details........................................................................................................32

Employer / Tutor Assessment Form 2010 / 2011...........................................................33

PDP(s) Assessment Criteria Grid...................................................................................36

26th Week Interim Progress Report Assessment Criteria Grid.......................................37

Presentation Assessment Criteria Grid..........................................................................38

Employers Placement Assessment Criteria Grid...........................................................39

Regulations....................................................................................................................41

Cheating.........................................................................................................................42

A note on equal opportunities and diversity....................................................................43

Student evaluation of the module...................................................................................44

U58065 Placement - Student Evaluation Form 2010/11.................................................45


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OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY THE BUSINESS SCHOOL

Module introduction

Module Description

A placement job in a business organisation for a minimum of 48 weeks to give a significantlength of time to experience the realities of work. An opportunity for students to build on the

knowledge, understanding, skills and competencies acquired during the earlier part of thecourse, to develop those skills to a higher level and acquire others.

Module leader contact details

Name: Nigel Bryant

Room: N2.01, Wheatley Campus

Telephone: 01865 485613

eMail: [email protected]

Office hours: tba

Contact by email is preferable because of teaching commitments.

WAVES Office

Name: John Lambertstock & Lynn Burge

Room: WAVES Office, Wheatley Campus

Telephone: 01865 485950/5738

eMail: [email protected]

U58065 Module Guide 2010/11 - April 2010 Page | 3


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Relationship With Other Modules

Prerequisite: U51071 Skills for Placement Search

Level and Status: Level 5 Acceptable

Details of this modules relationship with other modules & fields can be found on PIP.

Context

i. Students opting for Placement have a real and distinctive advantage in the graduatejob market. As a distinctive and central feature of the Business and Managementdegree, all the modules in the first two years are leading up to this work based learningexperience.

ii. Although many of the varied skills can be simulated in the academic environment, thereis no substitute for the real experience of the world of work.

iii. As a group, students bring back to the fourth year of the course the accumulated workexperience of more than a working lifetime of an individual and so can enhance thefinal academic study with actual examples from a wide range of different organisations.In terms of time devoted to the course, the Placement year accounts for about one thirdof the total and therefore has a major impact on student development.

iv. The student is required to submit a job description / outline, a letter from theemployers offering the placement and a copy of the companys Terms and Conditionsof Employment (employment contract) to the Placement Manager for approval beforestarting the placement. It is advisable to get the Placement Managers approvalbefore accepting an employment offer.

Content

The emphasis of the Placement year is as a formative process and as such it is very much theresponsibility of the student to analyse their strengths and weaknesses to enable them todetermine their own Learning Objectives and to plan their own development.



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Teaching and Learning Experience

As a learning opportunity the Placement year is perhaps the most valuable part of the course.Employers can offer a learning environment which will enable students to have their ownunique experience of a working organisation. Although their Work Based Project is an entirelyseparate module, there is an inevitable link as it provides one means for the student to use

some of their learning experiences at work to incorporate into the report.

Students will be supported by the WAVES Office and a University Tutor who will contactstudents during the year to check on progress and help towards the achievement of objectives.

The Employer will be asked to appoint a Workplace Supervisor who is usually the immediatesuperior but could be, for instance the Department Head or a Personnel Officer.

Halfway through the Placement Year students will submit an Interim Progress Report. Duringthe final month students will make a Presentation to the Tutor and the Workplace Supervisoron their progress towards achieving the Learning Objectives. Students based outside the UKwill also submit an Interim Report. In addition they will be required to submit the visuals and asupporting commentary for a Presentation; they may then be asked a series of questions aboutthe content, structure and method of presentation.

Students will be invited back to the University for a Re-Engagement Day when they will reportback on their experiences and progress.

As a minimum requirement, students will be required to demonstrate the achievement ofcertain key skills determined by the University, and will be required to set their own personalLearning Objectives, negotiate a PDP with their Employer and produce an Action Plan to helpmonitor progress. The onus is on the student to assume ownership of this process and to usethe opportunities which it offers to their best advantage in order to learn the most from theparticular working environment in which they are placed.



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What is this module all about?

This module aims to assist you presenting your placement not only to your PlacementTutor and host company but to future graduate employers. It is also possibly helpingyou to gather a portfolio of material likely to be useful in your final year.

Gathering and presenting evidence based on:

examples of your contribution to your employer and understanding of their business,the sector in which it operates and your role within that,

examples of your reflective approach to personal attributes and skills development,

examples of your achievements and challenges you have faced on your placement.

This module expects you to be a reflective practitioner - that is, not just doingsomething but thinking about what you are going to do, doing it, thinking about what youhave done in terms of the impact on others and what it taught you about yourself and your

effectiveness.

Important Advice: If the assignments are not done at the correct time you may not beable to properly evidence reflection on your progress.

It also requires you to think about your reaction and response to what is going on around youand the people you work with a view to continued positive development of your placementand informing your future approach.

It is strongly recommended that you keep any evidence of feedback from others aboutyour work or performance. Even if this is negative you can use it as a start point forsubsequent reflection.

This is not a theoretical module. The techniques and tools suggested in this module aregoing to be encountered by you, all through your career and are used by most well structuredand successful businesses of any size or sector. The way you review, articulate anddevelop good practice is crucial to your effectiveness, job satisfaction and success.

We are asking you to own the process of your development. Pro-actively seek

opportunities that are going to allow you to develop by evidencing added value to thecompany. By maintaining and reviewing your own skills audit (Skills Matrix), PersonalDevelopment Plans, Placement Journal and through shared reflection on your PDPbetween you, your colleagues and your workplace manager you can more coherentlyexpress your ideas and are therefore more likely get to where you want to go.



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You may recognise the Kolb (1984) four stage experiential learning cycle in your progress:



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Recommended Reading List

The following webpage is highly recommended and is designed to guide reflective writing.

http://www.rlo-cetl.ac.uk:8080/rlo/reflective_writing/reflective_writing.html

The following reading is recommended to support the completion of your assignments andoffer you long-term life / career skills that have the potential to significantly increase yourfuture success. Both are in the library at Oxford Brookes.

Neugebauer, J and Evans-Brain, J. (2009). Making the Most of Your Placement(Sage Study Skills Series)(184 pages - 16.99)

A useful guide to obtaining and completing a placement.

Cottrell, S. (2003). Skills for Success: The Personal Development Handbook.

Palgrave Macmillan. (312 pages - 11.99) Brookes library shelf ref: 378.170281COT

This text offers valuable insights into your development and practical tools that you can applyin the workplace. This text could be usefully used as a framework to guide yourdevelopmental reflection in assignments for this module. There is a free access website thatsupports this text at:http://www.palgrave.com/skills4study/html/pdp/index.HTM

Fanthome, C. (2004). Work Placements A Survival Guide For Students.Palgrave Macmillan.(160 pages - 10.99) Brookes library shelf ref: 331.128FAN

A complete guide to placements delivered in a very readable and informative way. Sectionscover topics from advice on dealing with issues and getting the most out of your placement to

practical techniques on how to complete assignments. It is expected that your assignmentsengage with the issues and concepts in this text.

http://www.rlo-cetl.ac.uk:8080/rlo/reflective_writing/reflective_writing.htmlhttp://www.amazon.co.uk/Making-Most-Placement-Study-Skills/dp/1847875688/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1270508060&sr=1-1http://www.amazon.co.uk/Making-Most-Placement-Study-Skills/dp/1847875688/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1270508060&sr=1-1http://www.palgrave.com/skills4study/html/pdp/index.HTMhttp://www.palgrave.com/skills4study/html/pdp/index.HTMhttp://www.rlo-cetl.ac.uk:8080/rlo/reflective_writing/reflective_writing.htmlhttp://www.amazon.co.uk/Making-Most-Placement-Study-Skills/dp/1847875688/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1270508060&sr=1-1http://www.amazon.co.uk/Making-Most-Placement-Study-Skills/dp/1847875688/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1270508060&sr=1-1http://www.palgrave.com/skills4study/html/pdp/index.HTM


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So what is reflection and why do it?

As graduates in the workplace you will be expected to be able to manage your owndevelopment and be able to effectively articulate objectives and progress to those aroundyou. Common forms in the work place are staff appraisals, task reviews and team meetings.

However you may find that you are in an environment where these formal structures do notexist and yet you may still need to evidence your continued professional and personaldevelopment, perhaps to gain a qualification or in order to win promotion. You may one daybe in a position yourself of managing and investing in a team in order to get the best resultsand output from them. In all these cases, to be effective, you will need to have a clear ideaof how to reflect on your own practice as well as that of others and will usually have toproduce a wide variety of coherent, transparent evidence to support your conclusions.

In this module you will be using the tools of Personal Development Planning and reflectivewriting to support your findings. You will, at the end of the placement, be bringing it alltogether by giving a concluding presentation to your Placement Tutor and workplace

manager.

Reflection involves describing, analysing and evaluating your own thoughts, assumptions,beliefs, theory base and actions. It includes:

Looking forward (prospective reflection) Personal Development Plans

Looking at what we are doing now (spective reflection) Journal, Skills Matrix

Looking back (retrospective reflection) Journal review, PDP review, PersonalProgress Reports

In completing the assignments in this workbook you will be using all three and should do so,in a conscious and timely manner, you will be helped by the structured approach of thismodule. When you look at a completed piece of reflective writing be aware of which of thereflective styles above you are adopting and perhaps if there is a bias towards one, thinkabout how to include the other two.

Alsop and Ryan (1996) offer this useful metaphor to help understand the reflective process:

Reflecting by looking forward is like looking at a holiday brochure before we go away. We

get ideas about what the location might be like, what we might do and whom we might meet.

Reflecting by looking at what we are doing now is like looking at ourselves in a pool of wateror a mirror; it shows us as we are at that point in time.

Reflecting by looking back is like looking at a photograph or video when we return from ourholiday. It tells us about where we went and what we did and whom we met.



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In essence what you are trying to do is:

Gather evidence and information (this can be in any format, formal or informal).

Tell the story of your experience through prospective, spective and retrospectivereflection.

Identifying themes or issues, taking a step back from the detail and looking holistically

at what you have written down and gathered. Thinking about everyone who is involved, from all angles.

Consideration of the factors influencing your behaviours and experiences feelings,beliefs and assumptions as well as the facts.

Linking thoughts to previous experience and future behaviours, similar / different?Why / why not?

Learning to use reflective tools to prompt action based on effective reflective thinking willpotentially be a valuable outcome of this module that you can take away and apply widely forsuccess in development and decision making scenarios after you graduate.

(Acknowledgement to: Learning & Assessing Through Reflection, Stephanie Fade.www.practicebasedlearning.orgfor basis of the text for this section)

http://www.practicebasedlearning.org/http://www.practicebasedlearning.org/http://www.practicebasedlearning.org/


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Further Food for Thought

The following is offered in order to perhaps either kick-start your thoughts or to recap on someof the language that whilst used in reflective writing and recruitment is not perhaps part of youreveryday vocabulary.

By looking at these and thinking about their meaning you perhaps discover a way of givingyour writing for this module more depth and context.

The Association of Graduate Recruiters in 2006 stated in a response to a survey of theirmembers that the following skills, ranked in order, are either important in a graduates profile ordifficult to find in graduates leaving University.

Important Skills Difficult to find skills

1. Motivation and enthusiasm 1. Commercial awareness

2. Team working 2. Skills associated with leadership

3. Oral Communication 3. Risk taking/enterprise4. Written Communication 4. Project management

5. Flexibility 5. Managing own learning

6. Customer focus 6. Second language

7. Problem solving 7. Problem solving

8. Managing own learning 8. Customer focus

9. Commercial awareness 9. Report writing

10. Planning and organisation 10. Cultural sensitivity

If you look at many job descriptions and specifications you will see many of these skills eitherlisted as required or implied in the description of the responsibilities that the position offers.

When putting your placement into the context of your future career aspirations it is probably thequality of your ability to articulate that you have these skills and attributes from a reflectiveperspective that will get you the job.

More important than that, it is the continued attention to the set of skills that match the profile ofthe job and your ability to re-evaluate, re-assess and re-align yourself to changingcircumstances that will enable you to progress and transfer success, experience and learningfrom one context or opportunity to another.

One interpretation of this might be that, as we know, many undergraduates and graduateshave these skills, however they are not used to the language or the most effective way ofarticulating the evidence in a meaningful way to employers or to whoever is wanting to makean assessment of the individual student. It is the tools and methods that can be learnt andthrough them the engagement with a reflective way of thinking that can allow for a greatersuccess at articulating skills relevant to a particular context. At a deeper level a reflectiveapproach can also prompt positive conscious behavioural change in the individual often at themicro level but sometimes with amazing results.

Hopefully this module has enabled you to be ahead of the rest in this respect.

"To be employed is to be at risk, to be employable is to be safe."(Dr P. Hawkins - The Art of Building Windmills, Career Tactics of the 21st Century)



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Timetable - what you have to do and when

IMPORTANT NOTE: You may need to make reference to your placement assignmentsin final year modules before you can collect the coursework from the UndergraduateOffice in Semester 2. You are advised to keep your own copies for use in Semester 1next year.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you meet deadlines -

put key dates in your diary.

Before you go on placement

You should have attended the Introductory Session to this module.

Read the whole Module Guide and Placement Survival Guide - do not attempt to do

anything except understand what is involved, if you need clarification contact usbefore you go on placement.

MAKE SURE YOUR PLACEMENT IS APPROVED you should have a signed copy ofthe Placement Approval Form. If you have not you are strongly advised to check yourstatus with the WAVES Office BEFORE THE START OF YOUR PLACEMENT. You willnot pass the module unless your placement has been signed off as approved.

Ensure that you are fully enrolled and registered for U58065 across both semesterson your PIP for your placement year. Dont forget to update your term timeaddress.

By the end of your first two weeks on placement

You should have started your Placement Journal.

Hand your line manager the Managers Guide you were given at the IntroductorySession to this module.

Send up to date contact information for yourself and your manager to the WAVESOffice.

Return the Health & Safety Induction form found in the Placement Survival Guide tothe WAVES Office.

Complete your first Skills Audit, and then

Write your first (of four) quarterly PDPs; it is expected that you do this in discussionwith your manager, who will need to sign the PDP. You are expected to review, reflectand rewrite your PDP four times during your placement year. These are assessed byyour tutor.



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As s oon as possible after the first month on placement

Arrange a date and time for you and your manager to receive a telephone call fromthe your Placement Tutor. We will make a visit to your placement location if requested.

Week 26 of your placement (halfway through your placement period of 52 weeks)

Submit your Interim Progress Report (IPR) and your 1st

& 2nd

fully reviewedPersonal Development Plans (PDP) to your Placement Tutor. The Module Leader willhave informed you of your academic placement (assessment) tutors name and contactinformation prior to this date by email to your Brookes email account (so make sure youmaintain contact through your Brookes email account).

You will receive feedback via email and telephone if necessary.

It would also be a good idea to arrange the date for your Assessment Visit (see below)with your manager and Placement Tutor so that it is fixed in diaries early.

January 2011 ON CAMPUS RE-ENGAGEMENT EVENT (Date TBA)

Speakers and activities to support the increased value from your placement year fulldetails will be emailed to your Brookes email account nearer the time.

6 to 4 weeks before you finish your period of placement

The Assessment Visit from your Placement Tutor. You are advised to speak to yourtutor about this date well before the end of the academic year although it may take placeover the summer. If based outside the UK you need to arrange a virtual visit.

A week before the Assessment Visit date

Completed the review of and be prepared to hand in yourlast 2 Quarterly PDPs for the

year.

By the visit date

Ensure that your workplace manager has completed the Placement AssessmentForm and is available to discuss this with your tutor when they visit you. If you arebased outside the UK you must ensure your manager completes the form - you areresponsible for sending it to your tutor; you may additionally need to arrange a convenienttime for your tutor to call or email your manager.

Prepare a presentation to your tutor and work manager. Even if you are based outsidethe UK and your tutor may not visit, you are still expected to prepare and submit

the visuals and a supporting commentary for a presentation . You may then be asked aseries of questions about the content, structure and method of presentation.

In the last week of your placement

complete and send back the Module Evaluation Form to the Undergraduate Officeso we can continue to develop and improve the module. Thank you.



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Contact Module Leader after one month of Placement

It is expected that you will email your Placement Tutor shortly after the first month onplacement, to arrange for us to contact both you and your manager by telephone to discusshow the placement is progressing and to offer our support.

This contact will be by telephone to the number on your Placement Approval or UpdateForm. It is your responsibility to ensure that we have the correct numbers to call (usethe form on page 6).

If you want to discuss issues in confidence please arrange a time / number for us tocall you or send an email.

Exceptionally, we will make a visit to your placement location if requested by either you oryour manager and if we think it would be of assistance.

Visits

If we are to visit we will ideally want to see both you and your manager. We willexpect you to coordinate this and agree the date with your manager. The usual formatof visits is that we see the student first for 30 40 minutes and then meet with themanager too for 20 30 minutes.

If we make visits please be aware that geographical considerations, journey times and otherSemester One commitments play a part in our availability. (We do not visit outside the UK).

Any contact from us is about supporting you and your manager in order for both parties to

get the best out of your placement. We will talk about your progress it is about honest andopen exchange of views and feelings in order to explore options for the most constructiveexperience possible for both you and your employer.

Key Points to Remember:

Listen and be receptive.

Make notes of actions to be taken.

It is a chance to gain advice and guidance if there is anything concerning you. Make sure

we all get the full picture. Early support can avoid later anxiety and stress!

You should clarify or check your understanding of the advice and comments made.

Consider, reflect and act on the feedback given.

If you have an issue in the workplace it is your responsibility as an employee to talkto your manager or a representative from the HR department or a Unionrepresentative. We would always advise you to explore solutions in the workplaceas the first step to resolving any issues.



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Submitting or communicating by email

You are STRONGLY advised to ensure that get an acknowledgment that tutors havereceived your work. Keep this confirmation and ALWAYS follow up by posting a hard copy.Some external email addresses are sometimes seen as junk by Brookes spam filters. If you

put a content-specific title to your email it may stop this happening.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ALSO KEPT COPIES AND BACKUPS OF YOUR WORK.



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Your Skills Audit

We ask you to begin with a process of self-analysis and then choose areas for developmentduring your placement year. From a vast range of possibilities we have developed a list ofTransferable Skills & Functional Objectives listed in the matrix which follows this section.

The idea is to build an honest picture of where you are and therefore which issues needdevelopment and as a priority should therefore be included in your initial PDP. This willenable you to reflect, structure your progress completing your PDPs, reports andpresentations to a better standard.

In the Personal Development Reports we will be asking you to profile your skills developmentagainst those demanded by the roles and responsibilities of your placement.

Recommended: Complete your first Skills Audit when you start work to indicate to youwhat skills objectives you could set for your 1st Quarter PDP. Repeat this analysis as

part of the preparation for each quarterly PDP.

This may help you to maintain logic in the objectives you are setting and give youthemes to explore and describe in your Reports and Presentation. You will be able tomonitor your progress and development, remember to gather the evidence in yourJournal.

Tip: If you are being honest and because later in your placement you realise you overstatedyour skills at the start, you may even find ticks going backwards. This is not a problem as itproves your greater appreciation for the context in which you are using your skills and this iscertainly worth commenting on in your Reports.

Aims

To identify and focus on specific skills sets that have been evidenced to be the onesgraduate employers favour in recruitment and selection.

Method

Read through the list of skills carefully and place a on the horizontal scale at thepoint which best indicates where your current level of achievement lies. Be honest! Youare not being tested by us, and the matrix is not an assessed element in the module.(Although you might want to include it as an appendix in your PPRs). It is your chance totruthfully identify to yourself your strengths and weaknesses for development.



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Key to Matrix - and an indication of subjective values.

1. = none - never done it

2. = a little skill - done it but not really confidently or correctly

3. = some useful skill - done it a few times, with help and it worked

4. = a good level of competence - can get it right most of the time on my own

5. = a very good level of competence - can get it right all of the time

6. = an expert level of competence - have successfully taught others how to do it toan evidenced good level of competence

Add up your score for each skills set / box.

Results and What to Do With Them

The lower the score the higher the priority you should give this aspect in yourPersonal Development Plans (PDPs).

Talk to your manager about what objectives you can set in your PDPs that will address yourfindings and will also be on their agenda in terms of your contribution to the company. Youcan then reflect on and discuss working towards them when you write your PersonalProgress Reports (PPRs).

There may be gaps in your skills assessment that your placement will not address. This isok, but will be something you need to comment on in your 2nd report when you will write a

skills profile for the job, yourself as you are at the end of the placement and an action plan foryour final year at University.



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The Matrix

By scoring yourself at the start of each quarter period you will be able to determine which setof skills may need to be your first priority for each of your Personal Development Plans.

Reflective thinking: What benchmarks have I used / am I using? What has led to changes?

1. The World Of Work 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Understand culture and realities of working life

Understand functional links within the company

Understand functional links with other companies

Understand the companys business

Understand the companys products / services

Put total score for this skills set in last column

2. Technical Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Word processing

Spreadsheets

Databases

Graphics / Presentation software

Internet / Intranet


3. Planning & Organising Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 ScoreOrganising Information

Setting & Meeting Deadlines

Co-ordinating Tasks & Prioritising Workload

Managing Time Effectively

Working Unsupervised


4. Information Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6Score

Asking Appropriate Questions

Assimilating(Learning, Understanding, Absorbing)Information

Researching & Analysing Information

Keeping Records

Summarising Information




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5. Performance Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Making A Presentation

Speaking To A Large Group

Speaking At Meetings

Chairing Meetings

Attention to Accuracy


6. Communication Skills (Verbal and Written) 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Explaining Complex Concepts & Ideas

Dealing Effectively With Colleagues / Clients

Writing Business Letters

Writing Proposals & Reports

Appropriate Use Of The Telephone


7. Interpersonal Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Relationships with Peers and Team Members

Understanding How Others Feel / Empathy

Networking

Encouraging / Motivating People

Relationships with Management

Put total Score for this skills set in last column

8. Assertiveness Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Saying No Appropriately

Responding to Criticism Appropriately

Stating Your Views To Management

Expressing A Grievance Appropriately

Expressing & Receiving Appreciation


9. Developing Leadership Skills 1 2 3 4 5 6 Score

Negotiating And Persuading Skills

Inspiring Trust through Sound Judgement

Taking And Carrying Out Complex Decisions

Seizing Opportunities

Creative And Innovative Problem Solving




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Personal Development Plans (PDPs x 4)

You are expected to submit four fully reviewed PDPs to your Placement Tutor, twowith the Interim Report and two as part of the Presentation at the end of yourplacement.

They are Quarterly forecasting and review documents. The format we use is the mostcommon form of staff appraisal in the UK. Some companies run appraisals for placement

students; feel free to incorporate these documents if the timescale fits and the company givetheir permission.

Note: If you have not written the first one by the end of your second week onplacement you are already behind.

Ask your manager to sign each Plan to indicate they have read it through with you atthe start of each quarter and then again with their comments at the end of the quarterto indicate to your tutor that a review has taken place.

Setting & Reviewing Objectives.

Divide your placement period into 4 quarters. At the start of each quarter period :

1. Do a Skills Audit using the Skills Matrix to suggest areas for attention,each Quarter can be done in a different colour.

2. Detail at least 5 task objectives from the workplace that relate to identified shortcomingsin the Skills Matrix for inclusion in your PDP, talk to your manager about what they seeas the priority and try to link them with your matrix. Objectives should be a mix of yoursand your managers aspirations for you.

3. Set a review date for the end of the quarter.

4. Write up a review at the end of the quarter; ask for a review from your manager.

5. Use that review to help set objectives for the next period.

Your manager at work will probably direct you towards setting objectives that fulfil theirexpectations and will therefore potentially be the best evidence of your contribution in theworkplace to use in your Reports. It will probably be up to you to link these with your SkillsMatrix, but if they do not match development needs then set your own objectives that do.

Your manager will probably be the best person to assist you to review your objectives at theend of each quarterly period. Reference to PDPs and review comments can then be used inyour Personal Progress Reports.

Once set out to your satisfaction DO NOT amend your PDP. If an objective does notwork out in the way you or your manager intended DONT change it keep it in yourPDP and reflect in the report or presentation on what happened instead.

Most learning will be gained from change, as a potential future manager you will havea lot to gain from noting in your journal yours and others responses to issues, howyou develop your coping strategies as well as examples of management practice youobserve.



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Personal Development Plans are the Action Plans agreed between you and your managerat work for the implementation and achievement of your objectives whilst you are onplacement. They are active documents, drawn up in advance of a review period. Youmay also want to refer to the Module Learning Outcomes and Placement Assessment Formfound later in this booklet to suggest goals and targets to work towards.

PDPs put you at the centre of the learning and development process . You can use them

to plan your placement learning and skills development with a view to your future career.PDPs can also allow you to make connections between skills acquisition to meet yourobjectives and future application of those skills in other areas whilst on placement. They canalso give you structure and coherence when presenting your placement year to tutors orfuture employers.

Tips

Use the C.S.M.A.R.T. objective format. Most corporate staff appraisal systems also usethis model, if your manager sees your PDP as Staff Appraisal then you have got it right.

Do not set long term (whole placement) objectives, they are normally vague andtherefore difficult to evidence. If you cannot avoid setting long term objectives break themdown into several quarterly milestones, review and evidence achieving each step!

What are C.S.M.A.R.T. Objectives?

Challenging - the objective should push personal boundaries and build on previousexperience. However, the biggest danger here is that you are too ambitious. There isnothing quite as demoralising or pointless as an impossible objective! If possible, setobjectives that highlight transferable skills. Your next CV could usefully reflect these skills

and from your PDPs you would have the examples to use.

Specific - use simple language, the objective should be singular and clear in purpose. Donot be tempted to get too complicated.

Measurable - set a method of measuring your achievement, at the end of the quarter is itreally going to provide a measure of your success? A numerical measure is good but notessential, you may have to think quite carefully about this.

Achievable Challenge yourself but do not set out to fail avoid being over optimistic asconsistently failing to meet expectation can be very demoralising.

Relevant - Do not set objectives that are too basic or irrelevant either to you, yoursupervisor, or your company.

Time defined - you need to set a target date for achieving your objectives. The timespanwithin any quarter for meeting your objective can be as short or as long as you want. Someobjectives will run for the whole quarter, some might refer to a specific event and bemeasured over 24 hours. Try to have a mix of deadlines.

The next couple of pages are examples of the sort of documents you could produce toevidence your preparation and completion of Personal Development Plans.



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An Example Personal Development Plan :Example Layout and Notes for Guidance

The Challengingand SpecificObjective /

Outcome.

Measurable by: Achievablethrough:

(this is the what,when, who andhow)

Relevant to yourjob & Skills Matrixbecause:

Timescale formeeting theobjective is:

Maybe have oneobjective per pageso you can expandon them or addcomments andnotes at a later date.

How do you thinkyou will know if youhave succeeded?

The ideal is to comeup with a numerical /statistical measure.If you really cannotidentify a numericalvalue here makesure what you do

choose doesmeasure yoursuccess.

i.e. At the end ofthe review period Iwill know I haveachieved thisobjectivebecause

When and what arethe specific eventsthat are going tohelp you reach yourgoal?(i.e. meetings,promotions, trainingcourses, etc.)

What resources doyou need for

success?

Who do you need tocontact?

How are you goingto make it happen?

State the relevanceof the objective setto you, to thecompany and whereit fits yourdevelopment / SkillsMatrix.

Use the code 1 9

to identify thesections (there maybe more than one) inthe Skills Matrix thatthe objective willhighlight and allowyou to evidence yourdevelopment.

Remember no long-term dates. Try tokeep them withineach quarterly period

Break a long-termobjective down intoachievable & specificmilestones that you

aim to havecompleted by the endof each quarter.

Repeat the above for each objective and then set out one page for review at the end of the completedPDP that looks something like this:

End of Quarter Review Date: ............................

My end of quarter review of this PDP

My Managers end of quarter feedback

I will apply both of the above to my placement in the following way

Signed: ......................................................... Signed: .........................................................

You Your Manager

You are advised to attach notes or guidance so that your tutor can more easily put thecomments in their context (i.e. a glossary of acronyms, abbreviations, organisational maps.)

It is the feedback, re-doing the Matrix and reflective thought that can guide theformulation of your next set of objectives.

u58065 module guide

Documents