Module 6 Career Plan OGL 482 Pro-Seminar II Denise Wolsieffer … · 2020. 2. 4. · MODULE 6...

Running head: MODULE 6 CAREER PLAN 1

Module 6 Career Plan

OGL 482 Pro-Seminar II

Denise Wolsieffer

April 15, 2018

MODULE 6 CAREER PLAN 2

Module 6 Career Plan

This paper summarizes in detail, my core ideology, a career plan, and the big, hairy,

audacious goals (BHAGs) that I have set for myself. I am a 55-year old who is currently

employed in a long-established profession. Many of the self-assessments and much of the

reflection in which I have engaged throughout Pro-Seminar II has been focused on what I want

to do in retirement and during the last few years leading up to it therefore, my career plan

focuses on the next ten years. There are four sections to this paper, 1) Creating my BHAGs, 2)

Career Vision, 3) Long-Term Strategy, and 4) the 1 to 2 Year Plan.

Jim Collins (2018) when speaking on BHAGs has said, to avoid complacency, one must

determine a BHAG and follow that up with yet another, more difficult, goal. Therefore, I have

decided upon five BHAGs that reflect my core ideology and envisioned future as you will read in

Section 1. These BHAGs are supported by my vision, mission, and life themes that reflect my

core ideology. In Section 2, I describe how I expect my career to evolve over time as I move

into semi-retirement, and the new ways in which I anticipate my focus to change. In Section 3, I

provide details around my long-term strategy and the rationale for the timeframes that I provide.

In Section 4, I have evaluated each of my BHAGs according to SMART Goal criteria insuring

that they are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound (Thomas, 2001). I have

also presented a screen shot of a portion of my detailed, Ten-Year Career Project Plan that

includes step-by-step information, important milestones, and marks the completion of my

BHAGs. The full Excel spreadsheet of my Ten-Year Career Project Plan has been submitted as

an ancillary document along with this paper. Finally, I end with a conclusion summarizing the

paper.


Section 1: Creating my BHAGs

While working through the assignments in Module 4, I created a vision and mission

statement for myself which is featured on my e-portfolio. My vision focuses on my core

ideologies which includes commitment to personal development, spending time with loved ones,

and pursuing happiness (Wolsieffer, 2018). It is upon this vision that I formulated my BHAGs

beginning with completing my final two classes as ASU and graduating with a B.A. in

Organizational Leadership. Completing my degree has been something I have wanted ever since

dropping out of school in my early twenties. This goal aligns with my personal development

core ideology. My first BHAG is completing every course and receiving nothing less than A or

A+ grades and graduating Summa Cum Laude. It has been important to me over the last 3 years

that I hold myself to this high standard. It has not always been easy to discipline myself to read

all the materials assigned to me, follow the terms outlined in every rubric, and adhere to every

deadline particularly when I started a new job in January, 2018 which coincided with a minor

surgery only two weeks later. However, as an adult who has experienced a lot of life, I have felt

that I should be able to excel in my coursework at an above-average level. Anything less than

that would mean I did not push myself to do my best. This goal is consistent with the part of my

mission statement which states in part, “…where I feel productive, appreciated and recognized

for my contributions, and I will find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts such as

organizing and planning, caring about others, and using my natural curiosity to pursue personal

development opportunities” (Wolsieffer, 2018).

Achieving this level of performance has been challenging, but my next BHAG may be

even more difficult. My second BHAG is to attain the title of Director of Human Resources, get

the HR department of the City of San Jacinto organized and into compliance, hire a staff of one


to two HR Analysts, and develop them so that they can take over the department when I retire.

This aligns with my personal mission statement that states in part, “I am at my best when I set

my own priorities and direct my work, I will try to prevent times when I being directed by others

to do things according to their priorities and viewpoint, I will enjoy my work by finding

employment where I feel productive, appreciated and recognized for my contributions, and I will

find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts such as organizing and planning, caring

about others, and using my natural curiosity to pursue personal development opportunities”

(Wolsieffer, 2018). This BHAG also aligns with my vision for personal development. To add a

layer of difficulty, it is my goal to win over the hard-core public works guys to the point that they

prefer to talk to me about their issues and eventually vote out the union. This is a very audacious

goal but I am willing to work hard at developing these relationships because I believe the union

mentality is in conflict with the overall culture that exists with the City Staff. This is a long-term

goal and will be very difficult to achieve.

While I am still working, I plan to use the generous vacation benefits that my employer

provides to visit family, and travel with my husband. This is my third BHAG. We are currently

planning a trip to Spain in July of 2019. After that, I have a goal to visit Germany, Austria, and

Poland to research our ancestral roots and visit the villages where they came from. I plan to

track and share our travel adventures on a website like Polarsteps (https://www.polarsteps.com/).

I want to complete these international travel goals within the next five years for two reasons.

First, because my husband and I are still physically able to get around. As I look at my

elderly parents, I realize this will not always be the case. When I am aged to the point of losing

mobility, I want to have no regrets. I do not want to feel like I wish I had done something back

when I was younger. Secondly, I know that my husband will be more comfortable with traveling

https://www.polarsteps.com/


while we have an income rather than once I retire and we do not have a regular paycheck.

Although he has done a remarkable job of planning our finances for the future, large

expenditures during retirement will make him anxious. I am committed to working at the

minimum of five more years, but it is likely it could be longer. The longer I work and bring in a

paycheck, the more financially secure we will be in retirement because we are delaying the time

in which we will begin to deplete our retirement funds. This third BHAG is reflected in my

mission statement when I say, “1) I will find enjoyment in my personal life through spending

time with family laughing, eating, drinking, and entertaining one another, 2) I will research my

family's ancestry, travel the world, and take amazing photographs, and journal the adventures,

and, 3) My life's journey is to be happy just spending time with my husband, being successful

professionally, and caring for my parents and my children” (Wolsieffer, 2018).

My fourth BHAG, is consistent with the first three lines of my mission statement, “I am

at my best when I set my own priorities and direct my work,” “I will try to prevent times when I

being directed by others to do things according to their priorities and viewpoint,” and “I will

enjoy my work by finding employment where I feel productive, appreciated and recognized for

my contributions” (Wolsieffer, 2018). BHAG #4 is to retire from my position and find a way in

which I can use my knowledge and experience in human resources to give back to the

profession. Some of my ideas on how to do this includes mentoring younger HR professionals.

I will do this through teaching professional HR certification examination preparation classes with

HRCI or SHRM. I have also considered getting my Master’s Degree in Human Resources and

teaching HR classes at the local community college, and I have thought of establishing an online

blog and writing about HR lessons learned for the benefit of younger, less-experienced HR

professionals. I plan to stay in my current job until I am fully-vested in the California Public


Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) pension plan. I will be approximately 61 years old

when that happens; still young enough to be relevant and contribute to the profession. I expect to

pursue this BHAG for as long as I have the energy to stay engaged. This aligns with my desire

to give back to a profession that has served me well throughout my life; providing for me and my

children when I was a single mother without a college education. I am grateful for having found

my life’s passion and hope to inspire others to do the same. In my mission statement I state, “I

will be a person who my children, grandchildren and my husband will say she is an inspiration to

us. She was a great mom under difficult circumstances, and pursued life on her terms”

(Wolsieffer, 2018). My most important future contribution to others will be providing guidance,

support and love to my husband, children, and grandchildren. When I am no longer interested in

dabbling in HR matters, I believe I will want to spend my time achieving my final BHAG.

My fifth, final, and most audacious BHAG is to simply retire, relax, and enjoy life. This

will include playing golf with my husband, reading, watching movies, blogging my travels

online and sharing them with family and friends, and researching our ancestry. My husband and

I live in a Sun City that hosts various clubs. At some point, I plan to join some of those clubs.

Most interesting to me are the golf, wine, paper crafts, desert gardening, line dancing, and travel

clubs. I think I might also enjoy the writer’s club where they commit to writing a page a day for

a year. I want to buy a bike and ride it around the neighborhood once in a while. It’s been a

very long time since I last rode a bike. I also plan to take walks with my husband regularly, and

I might even learn to play pickle ball. Whatever I attempt to do, my goal will be to get my

husband out of the house more, and simply enjoy life. Knowing that I have a plan for the future

makes me happy.


Section 2: Career Vision

Harrington & Hall (2007) define protean career as “…the individual is in charge of his or

her career, is responsible for defining roles, boundaries, and balance, needs to navigate through

many changes over the lifespan, and is the ultimate judge of his or her own success” (p. 11). The

term was coined by Douglas T. Hall, “Tim has called this concept of individually driven career

management the protean career. Proteus was a god in Greek mythology who could change forms

to adapt to threats” (Harrington and Hall, 2007, p. ix). The way in which I see my career

evolving begins with an organizational mindset and ends with a protean mindset.

My current role at the City of San Jacinto involves restoring order and regulatory

compliance to the HR Department in which I have been entrusted. It has been long-neglected

and my organizational strengths are a natural fit for this task. This relates to two of my life

themes, “I am self-sufficient, confident, and I am most productive when left along to pursue my

own priorities” and “Planning, organizing, and working hard are persistent characteristics

resulting in my quality work product” (Wolsieffer, 2018).

In addition, drawing on my education in Organizational Leadership from ASU, as stated

in my first BHAG, I will bring added value to the organization. I have already begun discussing

a strategic planning workshop with the City Manager. In OGL 355, I conducted a SWOT

analysis on the U.S. Postal Service, I have a clear vision of how to apply private business

strategic planning concepts to a public agency. I believe I have his support on this initiative

because he specifically hired me to bring fresh ideas to the City. I believe my success will

translate into a promotion to HR Director for the City of San Jacinto, my second BHAG.


My organizational mindset continues as I discuss my financial plans. I am currently

earning the highest annual salary that I have ever earned in my career. A promotion will increase

my salary even higher. This ambition to be promoted and increase my compensation relates

directly to one of the themes in my life story. “I am a highly-motivated, driven person who

thrives on achievement and accomplishment, and values acknowledgment from others”

(Wolsieffer, 2018). A higher salary allows my husband and me to reserve our retirement funds

therefore maximizing the return on our investments. “Financial security and maintaining a high

standard of living is important to me” (Wolsieffer, 2018). It also allows me to send money to my

mother to help pay her bills. My brother recently informed me that she is having a surgery on

April 27, 2018 to restore her hearing but will need a hearing aid which is not covered by her

insurance. It will give me great pleasure to be able to help pay for this so we can talk over the

phone easily once again. This relates closely to one of my life themes, “Working to benefit

others, whether that is my family or those outside of my immediate circle is important and

satisfying to me” (Wolsieffer, 2018).

Chapter Seven in our textbook paid great attention to how human resources needs to have

a greater impact on creating a work-life balance in the workplace. I agree with this yet never

considered how I might have this type of impact upon the workplace culture. The staff that

works at the City of San Jacinto is very congenial. There is truly a family-feel to the culture.

We work a 4x10 workweek so that employees can spend more time with family. However, there

exists a threat to this bliss. The City Manager, my boss, is a workaholic and it is in my nature to

be the same. Harrington & Hall (2007) state, “Organizational leaders recognize the

complementary importance of work and life priorities for the success of the business and

integrate this approach to build a supportive work environment” (p. 175). It will be a challenge


for me to help him gain more balance and not to get drawn into his excessiveness. However, this

is the type of transformational work that I want to be doing; and less transactional work.

As my department grows, I anticipate the need to hire 1-2 staff members. As a good

employee, I want to retire leaving the department in good working order. This way of thinking

relates well to another one of my life themes, “Exercising sound judgement; making ethical

decisions which are typically risk adverse describes how I think most of the time” (Wolsieffer,

2018). Also, teaching and mentoring my team transitions nicely into what I would like to do

once I retire.

What I have described so far, organizing the HR Department, strategic planning, my

compensation, work-life balance, and expanding the HR team are all organizational in nature.

Beginning with my retirement from the City, my second career, or semi-retirement, will be very

protean. After five years working for the City, I will be vested in the CalPERS pension, and I

will eventually retire and begin my second career as a mentor/teacher/blogger. After anchoring

myself to human resources so strongly throughout my life, I do not think I could just retire and

walk away from the profession. Therefore, my second career, or semi-retirement, will be a

process of weaning myself away from a profession that I have loved. This career will be on my

own terms; much more protean. I say that because I will work my own hours and be able to

build in a lot of flexibility. While I have shown great adaptability in my career by obtaining HR

certifications when I could not afford a college education as a single mother, my fourth BHAG

will be an even greater display of a protean career and is consistent with two life themes;

“Human Resources is my passion; it maximizes all of my skillsets” and “I am self-sufficient,

confident, and I am most productive when left alone to pursue my own priorities” (Wolsieffer,

2018).


Working for myself, whether paid or unpaid, would be impossible had I not completed

my education. That is why my first BHAG is so important to achieve. I doubt that I would carry

much credibility with only a few professional certifications. If I wanted to speak at a HR

association chapter breakfast or write a blog, my educational background will be in question.

Therefore, my life theme, “I value education and personal development” (Wolsieffer, 2018) is

fitting here. I am also aware that if I want to teach at the local community college, I may need to

get a Master’s degree. I have already looked into ASU’s Legal Studies, MLS, Management, MS,

and their MBA programs. I have also looked at the online programs offered by Penn State,

Drexel, Nova Southeastern University, Gonzaga, and NYU. There are two concerns with this

endeavor. First, it will reduce our retirement funds, unless I utilize the tuition reimbursement

program offered by the City of San Jacinto. However, their benefit severely restricts the schools

that I can attend. The other concern is the time that I would invest in studying which means I am

not spending time with my husband. He has been very supportive of getting my undergraduate

degree but it would take quite a sales job to get him to support another one. Therefore, a

Master’s degree is a contingent element on my Ten-Year Career Project Plan.

Currently, my husband and I have what Harrington & Hall, (2007) describe as an

accommodating relationship. Whereby “One of you is high in career involvement and lower in

home involvement, whereas the other is low in career involvement and higher in home

involvement. You complement each other in your involvements. One assumes primary

responsibility for the home, and the other assumes primary responsibility for being the

breadwinner (i.e., for doing career work)” (p. 138). I think that once I reach age 60 I am going to

want to slow down and enjoy being at home. I plan to spend approximately two years in my

second career, semi-retirement phase, weaning myself off of HR-related work and giving back to


the profession. However, I would like to get back to cooking, enjoying our pool and spa, and

just puttering about the house. My life themes that support this are; “I would enjoy traveling

more and pursuing more of my leisure interests, hobbies and practicing my faith,” “I possess an

exuberant personality and maintain an attitude of joyfulness and thankfulness” and “My husband

Jim is my rock, the romantic love of my life, and nurturing my marriage is of great important and

critical to my happiness” (Wolsieffer, 2018). I can see myself playing more golf now that we

live in the golf mecca of the world; the Palm Springs area. Also, we chose to live in a retirement

community that provides many active adult activities. Finally, since September, 2017, I have

lost 42 pounds. I would like to continue to lose weight and workout regularly to increase my

muscle tone. This will help my body to sustain a longer and healthier life. The end of my

mission statement sums up the overall philosophy by which I will live in my 60’s.

“I will stop procrastinating and start working on:

Taking better care of my physical health

Working less and enjoying life more

Spending more time with my loved ones

I will strive to incorporate the following attributes into my life:

Commitment and loyalty

Continue to lose weight and increase muscle tone

Read, spend more time in prayer, and keep a thankfulness journal

Relax more, worry less, and laugh more

Spend time with friends and family” (Wolsieffer, 2018)


Section 3: Long-Term Strategy

My long-term strategy starts with achieving BHAG #1 Graduate from ASU with nothing

less than A’s and A+’s. Given what I might want to do after retirement, I will need, at a

minimum, a Bachelor’s degree. Given my current level of work, I am confident that I will meet

this goal. A significant milestone to this goal is April 27, 2018, when Term B ends, and of

course May 11, 2018 when I attend convocation on campus. I expect to feel exhilarated on this

day because it has taken 38 years to achieve this goal.

Over the next five years, I will achieve BHAGs #2 and #3. The strategy for BHAG #2

Obtain the job title of HR Director is more complicated. During the first 90 days in my job I

have gone after the “low-lying fruit,” quick wins that I knew I could execute well and quickly.

Soon, however, all that will be left are the bigger, more time-consuming projects. To prepare

him for this, I have started sending him weekly updates on the projects that I am working on. In

this manner, he can keep track of what I am doing and the progress being made. Also, I have

announced during staff meetings that my priorities are; 1) get the City’s HR Department into

regulatory compliance to avoid fines, penalties, and lawsuits, 2) implement some HR best

practices that are good for the City but not necessarily mandated, 3) focus on growth and

modernization. So far, this approach has been well-supported by the management team and my

boss. It will take six to twelve months to get regulatory compliance matters addressed. Along

the way I will implement some HR best practices but I do not foresee being able to do many of

these until 2019. I will feel tremendous satisfaction when I get the HR Department into good

working order.

I expect that when we begin our 2019-2020 fiscal year budgeting, I may be able to

request approval for an HR Analyst. Obtaining new funding is difficult to do, however we have


been using a contractor for recruiting. If I am able to replace the contractor with a HR Analyst

for the same amount of money, I should be able to get it approved. Budgeting occurs in April,

therefore in April, 2019 I will submit this request. This will be a significant milestone for me

because having another person on staff will change how works gets done on a daily basis. I want

to bring in a HR Analyst who will be responsible for recruiting, pre-employment screening and

onboarding. This will relieve me of a lot of transactional work that I do currently, freeing me up

to engage in more transformational work. The HR2020 assessment I took through IPMA

revealed that I have more work to do in this area. I will feel more accomplished professionally

when I am doing transformational work rather than transactional work. By the end of 2019 I

plan to have compliance issues under control allowing me to focus on training a new person and

engaging in activities that will take the City to higher levels of functioning. Also, if I have

another person on the HR team, I can travel with my husband knowing that there is someone

who can manage the day-to-day operations of the HR Department in my absence.

The strategy behind achieving BHAG #3 International Travel will occur fairly easily

because my husband enjoys planning our vacations. However, I also want to be involved with

the planning therefore with my Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays coming open once I graduate,

I’ll have the time to research interesting places to visit, check out hotel websites, and read

reviews left by travelers who have already been to the places we would like to visit. I also love

to read a few books set in the locations where we travel. For example, when my husband and I

visited Sante Fe, New Mexico I read two fictional stories, The German Bride by Joanna Hershon

and American Ghost: A Family’s Haunted Past in the Desert Southwest by Hannah Nordhaus.

Even though they are fiction, I found it fun to read a story set in the location that I was exploring

for the first time.


The trip to Spain will be planned first. I will research some books that I find interesting.

My daughter enjoys buying me books for Christmas so I will add these to my holiday wish list.

When considering air travel, it will likely involve several flights, perhaps even an overnight

flight. April/May 2019 will be a key milestone since this is approximately when we will

purchase tickets. Once we have determined the best location in which to land, we can plan

activities, reserve a car, consider a few restaurants although sometimes I like to pick those out

when we are there, and reserve hotel rooms. I have utilized websites such as Trip Advisor in the

past and have had some good results.

The trip to Germany/Austria/Poland will involve more research into our ancestry to

determine the areas we want to visit. I want to obtain a good app that translates English into

German and learn how to use it properly. Having traveled to Italy before, I know the frustration

of trying to communicate in a foreign country. This pre-planning will likely take months to

execute. I will begin the process in the fall of 2019 using the Ancestry.com website where I have

already started our family trees; completion of our trees is a milestone for this goal. As I learn

more about the villages where our family came from, the plans for the vacation will evolve.

Other milestones will be talking with my parents about the stories they recall hearing as kids. I

have an idea to record them and upload the audio files if that is possible. I think future

generations would enjoy listening to a great-grandmother telling a story of her youth. Also, I

have already collected many of the photographs that my parents have given to me. I would like

to scan and upload them into my family trees. These steps are milestones to preparing for the

visit to “the old country” as my grandparents used to call it. I would like to end the vacation in

New York City where we can spend some time on Ellis Island where my grandmother arrived

from Austria on a ship at the age of 19. I get a thrill just thinking about seeing her “old country”


and being on Ellis Island, viewing her “new country” for the very first time. All of this pre-

planning will take several months. I anticipate that our trip will likely occur in 2022.

In 2023, my career changes in some new and interesting ways. For someone who is as

driven professionally as I am, there needs to be a weaning process. This is how I foresee myself

leaning into retirement. BHAG #4 Stop Working a Regular Job and Give Back to the HR

Profession will likely evolve slowly over time. At some point my husband and I will agree on a

retirement date based partly on finances and my degree of satisfaction with work. I need to stay

with the City long enough to be fully-vested in the CalPERS pension plan which I anticipate will

occur around Q4 of 2023. This is a significant milestone in my career because once I know the

date of my retirement, I can begin actively talking about my plans for semi-retirement with my

network. I have several ideas of things I might want to do, however I believe what comes from

my interactions with my network will determine exactly how my protean career will evolve.

Finally, at the end of 2025, BHAG #5 Retire, Relax, and Enjoy Life will be the focus. I

have decided upon a charming milestone to kick-off the beginning of this phase of my life. I will

buy myself a bike. This symbolic gesture represents leisure and relaxation. I have already

picked out the make and model that I want. This act will mark the official beginning of BHAG

#5.


I am such a driven person that I could easily just keep working every day until I die. Thankfully

my husband highly values leisure time and will not allow me to do this to myself. I anticipate

that the time I spend giving back to my profession will feel like I am winding down from my

years as a HR professional. As that occurs, I believe that I will feel less and less interested in HR

stuff. I expect that there will be some new laws passed and I will eventually tire of trying to

keep current. At this point, I will be ready to spend my days engaging in fun with others who are

like-minded and of the same age as I am. That is where the Sun City clubs will come in handy. I

will still have interactions with people but the activity will be something fun and interesting, and

not related to HR work. The milestones for this goal will be each time I participate in a leisure

activity, a club gathering, etc. I expect that those will become greater in number, and the

professional activities will slow down.


Section 4: The 1 to 2 Year Plan

David Thomas states, “Goal commitment refers to how strongly an individual is attached

to a goal, as well as how determined and enthusiastic they are about the goal. Goal commitment

reflects an individual’s endorsement of a goal” (para. 8). I feel highly committed to these goals

and will pursue them regardless of the outcome. I have reviewed each of my BHAGs in light of

the SMART goals criteria and I believe that my BHAGs are specific, measurable, attainable,

realistic, and time bound. “Persistence is also related to goal choice, and is generally defined as

the extent to which an employee will continue to choose pursuit of the goal in light of

distractions or competing priorities” (Thomas, 2001, para. 8). My inclination to be driven and

motivated insures that I will reach the BHAGs that I have established for myself. Below is my

SMART Goal analysis of my five BHAGs:

Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic/ Relevant

Time Bound

BHAG #1

Graduate

from ASU

w/all A’s or

A+’s

Do not give up

any possible

points; read

rubrics closely;

meet deadlines

The grades I

receive from

my

professors is

how I will

measure this

goal

I have

received all

A’s or A+’s in

17 of the 19

courses so far;

this goal is

attainable

It is

relevant to

me because

I feel that I

have to

prove

something

to myself

Must be

completed

before

April 27,

2018

BHAG #2

Obtain title

of HR

Director and

See Public

Works vote

out the

union

This promotion is

somewhat within

my boss’s control,

however I can

commit to doing

those things that

likely will lead to

a promotion; I will

engage in regular

contact with

public works

employees so that

they will feel

I currently

hold a

Manager

title; a

promotion

will involve a

title change

and a pay

increase;

when the

public works

employees

engages in

My boss

knows how

the current

condition of

the HR

Department.

He is also

attune to what

a HR

professional

should be

capable of

accomplishing

When I was

hired my

boss talked

about the

potential to

move up

and

specifically

mentioned a

Director

title

therefore

I have five

years to

reach both

goals. I

plan to

retire from

this job in

2023.


comfortable

coming to me with

their concerns.

voting on the

topic of

removing the

SEIU.

and will be

able to assess

the progress I

have made.

Although

difficult and

out of my

control, it is

within the

realm of

possibility that

the union be

voted out.

this goal is

realistic.

It is

possible to

vote out a

union. Our

group is

small & the

SEIU does

not receive

much in the

way of dues

from our

group.

BHAG #3

International

Travel and

Research

my

Ancestry

Traveling to

Spain, and then to

Germany, Austria

and Poland is

specific

This goal will

be

measurable

by the dollars

we spend to

get ourselves

to Europe,

photos I take

and journals I

keep.

We have the

financial

means to

afford these

trips.

Provided we

do not

experience

any health

issues that

might prevent

us from going,

I believe this

is attainable.

We have

vacationed

in Europe in

the past

visiting

Rome and

London for

example,

therefore

this goal is

realistic.

We will

visit Spain

in July,

2019.

We will

visit

Germany,

Austria

and

Poland in

2022,

before I

retire from

the

workforce.

BHAG #4

Give back to

the HR

profession

There are specific

things I can do to

make this goal

happen, however I

have found that

sometimes

opportunities

present

themselves. I will

cultivate those

opportunities by

networking and

telling others of

my desire to

teach/mentor/blog.

When I no

longer work

for a

paycheck but

instead I

work for the

sheer

pleasure of

giving back,

that will be

the measure-

ment of this

goal. Once I

no longer

enjoy doing

It is highly

attainable to

make guest

speeches in

community

settings, to

mentor other

HR

professionals

whom I have

contact with

through

SHRM

chapter

meetings and

Given my

love for all

things HR,

this is very

realistic. I

have

already

begun

mentoring

lots of

people who

call me now

looking for

HR advice.

This will

occur

gradually

but will

begin no

later than

the end of

2023 or

the

beginning

of 2024.


this, it will be

the

determining

factor to

ending semi-

retirement

and go into

full

retirement.

former co-

workers.

BHAG #5

Retire,

Relax &

Enjoy Life

Buy and ride my

bike. Take walks

with my husband.

Play golf. Join

clubs. Use the

pool & spa

regularly.

The

measurement

of this goal

will be the

steady

depletion of

our

retirement

funds and

increased

levels of

community

involvement.

It is highly

attainable.

We have

saved and

invested

money

sufficient

enough to last

until we die.

My husband is

a good money

manager and

is frugal with

our spending.

Based on

my

husband’s

projections,

retiring to

leisure

activities is

highly

realistic.

The

transition

from HR-

related

activities

to leisure

activities

will be a

gradual

weaning

but I

expect that

I will

transition

fully by

2026 when

I am 64

years old.

After viewing my BHAGs through the SMART Goals criteria, I put together a detailed

Career Project Plan. This ten-year, strategic plan is organized into a quarterly timeline in which I

laid out every step that I need to accomplish to attain my BHAGs and features several significant

milestones. The next 1-2 years, 2018-19, contains the greatest amount of detail because I know

now exactly what needs to be accomplished. The plan becomes more generalized as it extends

out three to five years from now. To be able to create such a document I needed to use Microsoft

Excel, however I pasted a screen shot of 2018-2019 of my Career Project Plan below. The actual

spreadsheet will be submitted along with this paper.


Conclusion

In this paper I have summarized in detail, my core ideology, a career plan, and the big,

hairy, audacious goals (BHAGs) that I have established for myself over the next ten years. Some

of them are very realistic such as graduating with a college degree, and some are extremely

audacious, such as developing such great relationships with my public works guys that they vote

out the union. Throughout the paper I have pointed out how my five BHAGs align with my core

ideology. I have provided specific excerpts of my vision, mission, and life themes as support for

my goals. I have described how I foresee my career life evolving over the next ten years from an

organizational perspective to a protean second career to retirement. I evaluated each of my

BHAGs according to SMART Goal criteria (Thomas, 2001) insuring that they are specific,

measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound. Finally, I presented a detailed, Ten-Year


Career Project Plan that includes a quarterly timeline, step-by-step information, important

milestones, and marks the completion of my BHAGs. These two documents have been

memorialized on my e-portfolio which in totality captures my “core purpose and the essence of

my soul” (Scholar, 2018).

References

Collins, J. (2018). BHAG. Retrieved from https://www.jimcollins.com/media_topics/

media.html#*bhag.

Harrington, B., & Hall, D.T. (2007). Career management & work-life integration: Using self-

assessment to navigate contemporary careers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications,

Inc.

Scholar, B. (2018). Module 6: Pro-Seminar II. Arizona State University.

Thomas, D.A. (2001). Applying Goal Theory Based Performance Management Techniques To

Improve Employee Motivation And Performance. Retrieved from

https://myasucourses.asu.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-17204173-dt-content-rid-

117031029_1/courses/2018SpringB-X-OGL482-24238-

26397/Goals%20HP%20Article%20R2.pdf

Wolsieffer, D. (2018). Retrieved from https://denisewolsieffer.weebly.com/pro-seminar-ii.html.

Module 6 Career Plan OGL 482 Pro-Seminar II Denise Wolsieffer … · 2020. 2. 4. · MODULE 6...

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