There is an argument for work-life becoming more stressful over recent years. We continue to deal with the aftermath of the pandemic, and with inflation rising in the US, this is sure to cause unease within the workplace. And although there are obvious solutions to help mollify employees, such as pay increases, other factors will simultaneously boost morale and improve company performance. And this solution is career mapping.   

Career mapping has a whole swathe of benefits for your business and employees. These include the following:  

• It allows your employees to stay on track while aligning their goals with company needs.  
• Career Mapping can help reduce employee turnover and increase loyalty.  
• Improving employee skill sets through clearly defined mapping will create a strong workforce and allow employees to progress internally.  
• Mapping = progression and will therefore attract talent.  
• Employees will feel more engaged with the company and individual job roles. Additionally, they will be aware of opportunities to take control of their career. 

Effectively it helps to create an environment that promotes success. For example, we chatted to a spokesperson from Arcarta, a due diligence platform for the art market. They explained how career mapping has been beneficial, “Arcarta leadership has found career mapping leads to building roles with our team, rather than for our team. This approach has produced a flat structure in which every employee would have the opportunity to add value while simultaneously advocating for their goals and interests.” 

And if you have a small business, do not be fooled into thinking that career mapping isn’t beneficial for you! According to Arcarta, mapping can be handy for small businesses. They continued, “In a small, tight-knit team including team members from different backgrounds and ages, this allows for an honest and supportive work environment where opportunities for growth and skill acquisition flow back and forth as opposed to feeding from the ‘top’ down. As a result, our employees can think ahead and think big – contributing invaluable ideas to the growth of the company and their place within it. This has led to intergenerational dialogue and mutual learning and mentoring, fostering a positive environment steeped in mutual respect.” We also discussed career mapping with Nicola at Viral.Press, “as a reasonably new start-up, who has recently undergone a rebranding, we have found that career mapping has helped employees adjust to changes and understand their job roles more thoroughly. Employees can see company goals and how these relate to their own”    

So how can you go about career mapping successfully? It is first vital to ask your employee to fill in a self-assessment form highlighting their goals, strengths and weaknesses, previous experience, and accomplishments. At a one-to-one meeting, employers and employees can create an individualistic career plan and find opportunities that align with their personal goals.  

The benefits of career mapping are extensive. And as previously mentioned, this is potentially even more important for small businesses. For example, the spokesperson from Arcarta gave this final piece of advice, “for small teams, this kind of career mapping and planning can lead to increased honesty and support – encouraging learning from every member regardless of position – and ultimately can become the glue that holds the team together.” And with all the other gains career mapping offers, honesty and support within a team are the most crucial. A happy team working together toward a common goal is a recipe for a successful business.