1. Managing people and professional development Student

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Managing people and professional development
Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Course
Date

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AC 1.1
The trends and development influencing the need for professional development include
legislation, market changes, competition, and system or technology change. Technology is a key
influencer of a need for personal development. For example, with a trend that new technology
will be implemented as either a “blended option or replacement of traditional methods”, need for
personal development goes high because a person must appreciate and understand workflows,
expectations (including both functions as a part of overall user experience and performance) and
information preferences. The same case applies when there is a change in markets or product
line, a need for training becomes high because a person is required to learn more about the
features of a new product. Furthermore, a person is required to analyze the market in order to
identify its macro and microenvironmental factors that may influence the product's development.
With a change in management, the need for professional development also arises as one has to
study the personal attributes, values and cultures on the new management in order to develop a
collaborative environment and minimize workplace conflicts. With trends that the competition is
significantly changing and “new entrants or competitors” are coming up with differentiated
products or innovations, a need for development will rise because there is need of coming up
with advanced marketing strategies and innovations that will enable a company to remain
competitive in the market.
AC 1.2
Setting own values are important in professional development planning as they assist a
person to make the right decisions which are beneficial in the development of professionalism.
According to Gresch, Hasselhorn and Bögeholz (2017 p.95), a decision is a reflection of beliefs
and own values and therefore they are often directed towards a particular purpose. Therefore,

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using own values effectively deliberates a choice of focusing on what is important in developing
professionalism. For example, own values like creativity and enthusiasm motivate a person to
see every goal achievable at a particular period. Furthermore, own values will also develop
effective leadership with subordinates and maintain a learning environment that will lead to
excellent performances
Career is important when planning professional development as they help to get the
current information about the profession one wants to develop. Furthermore, through a career, a
person is able to determine future trends and therefore he or she becomes more realistic in setting
developmental goals. Furthermore, a career assists a person to focus on skills development,
learning opportunities, promotion opportunities, self –confidence and increases motivation
during the planning professional development phase.
Personal goals are important as they give a person an ability to focus on setting goals,
measure the progress of the goals and control its desires after implementation of professional
programs. Furthermore, setting achievable goals will also provide motivation when planning for
professional development.
AC 1.3
Change of the working environment has both negative and positive impacts on
professional development. Research conducted by Jackson (2017 p.833 -853) shows that when a
working environment changes, a group of employees respond to change positively while others
reject change or take long to adapt to change and regain their performance. When there is
physical move (renovation, moving to a new office, changing office) or new management or
supervisors introduced in the organization, the professional and personal development is highly
required in order for a person to respond to the new environment positively and remain

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motivated. For example, new management may mean an introduction of new organizational
culture or leadership styles (Baird and Harrison, 2017 p.311). Therefore, professional and
personal development is required in order to accept change effectively and remain productive.
Furthermore, when there is a reorganization in the organization and supervisors found
themselves in a department with many employees, professional and personal development are
highly required in this situation to support and manage workforces. Furthermore, when there is
acquisition and two departments merged meaning two IT departments, two human resources, two
finance department, professional and personal development are required as there is a change in
standards which new employers are expected to live up to.
AC 1.4
Giving and receiving feedback is important in the workplace as it helps to motivate
employees to perform better. Research conducted by Saurombe, Barkhuizen and Schutte (2017
p.1-10) shows that employees are the most treasured assets in the organization and when they
receive feedback regarding their progress, they feel being valued and part of an organization.
Therefore, employees further develop a sense of motivation that helps them to improve their
performances. For example, if Gel Company conducts appraisals, they are likely to get feedback
about the challenges employees are facing and strategizes on solutions that will regain
employee’s motivation. Therefore, giving back feedback to employees also helps to formulate
business decisions that are intended to provide motivations to the employees. Furthermore,
receiving effective feedbacks from stakeholders and clients can be used in the organization to
build better working relations that intend to improve performance. Many people often mistake
feedback and negative criticism. Feedback is constructive criticism as it helps to formulate better
decisions for improvement of organizational operations and performances.