Planning Your Career in Business - Professional Portfolio

This professional portfolio covers personal statement, CV, self-assessment, and action plan for skill development for work experience placement in marketing profession in Prospect Soft ltd. It includes a personal SWOT analysis to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for career advancement.

BMAF008-20
Planning Your Career
in Business

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................................3
SECTION A.........................................................................................................................................3
What the Portfolio contains...............................................................................................................3
SECTION B.........................................................................................................................................5
Personal Statement in support of the application for work experience placement in Prospect soft ltd.
........................................................................................................................................................... 5
Detailed CV for the post of Marketing Assistant for a Volunteer/ work experience placement in
Prospect Soft ltd................................................................................................................................6
SECTION C.........................................................................................................................................7
Self-assessment reflecting skill gaps (SWOT Analysis inclusive).....................................................7
Action plan for skill development reflecting SMART objectives......................................................9
CONCLUSION..................................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..................................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Planning for career is imperative in the life of every student for career advancement.
It helps the students or individuals in being aware of various career opportunities so as to be
highly competitive by having a strong career plan to get a respectable and top position in the
future organization as an employment (Pordelan and Hosseinian, 2022). The career plan
provides clarity in selecting the right profession and facilitates in setting the priorities right.
Personal and professional development provides way for the individuals for evaluating their
own skills and abilities taking into consideration their aim of life and setting goals so as to
achieve those goals and maximize the true potential for professional advancement and career
enhancement. Skill development is very crucial for the individuals so as to enhance their
professional as well as academic skills that will help in framing an effective CV to get a high
post in the desired organization (Zhong and Liu, 2022). The following project will cover a
Professional portfolio that will consist of personal statement, application for work experience
placement with a CV. It will also cover the self-assessment reflecting skill gaps through
personal SWOT Analysis. Further the project will also provide an action plan that will be
tailored towards the skill development of an individual by way of SMART objectives.
SECTION A
What the Portfolio contains
The following portfolio will cover the personal statement and CV of an individual for
the purpose of getting work experience placement in a top organization to get experience as a
marketing professional. The portfolio is aimed at developing an action plan to improve the
required skills of the individuals for career advancement by identifying the strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats for the individuals in the desired area of career growth.
By identifying the weaknesses through a personal SWOT analysis, an action plan is prepared
to improve those weaknesses (Punch and Duncan, 2022). The portfolio will reflect the CV of
the individual to get the post of marketing professional in an organization to enhance career
in the marketing field and get the job opportunities abroad. The personal statement of the
individuals will contain the basic details and required skills for getting the post of marketing
professional as a work experience placement. It will cover the professional profile of the
individual along with the career objectives. The CV is being presented to the organization so
as to provide them with essential information of the individual’s basic details, qualifications,

Skills, knowledge, expertise, experience and other relevant details so as to be eligible for the
applied post in the company (Sum and et. al., 2022).
Through the following portfolio, an individual will be reflecting the personal as well
as professional skills, knowledge and expertise in the field of marketing in his desired
organization where he /she wants to get work experience placement. The individual is
offering the personal statement or personal profile to summarize the abilities and skills to be
offered to the employer regarding the job that the individuals is applying for. The CV of the
individual will include the life experience and accomplishments of the individual. So, the
Portfolio is going to cover the CV, personal statement, personal SWOT analysis and an action
plan for applying for the post of marketing manager to get a work experience placement
(McKown, 2021). The following is my own personal reflection regarding the offer of
personal statement and CV in Prospect Soft ltd. for getting work experience placement in
marketing profession in UK as I am aware of the fact that marketing managers are in
demand in UK as its economic recovery creates demand for people with marketing skills.
I have chosen this profession as I know that the marketing manager is a role that is
suitable for any industry sector like financial services and consumer goods, motor and
technology etc. (Gorbunova, Gluzman and Osadchaya, 2021). I have recently completed my
masters in the field of marketing and have earned a college degree in digital marketing as
well. I have practiced my marketing skills by creating mock campaigns also. Now after the
completion of my studies, I want to apply for the work placements i.e. the programmers of
structured work experience that also form a part of degree. So, I want to apply in Prospect
Soft ltd. that undertakes marketing placement and provides marketing internships for the
individuals aspiring to make career in the profession of marketing on an international basis.
The company has an effective marketing team that will encourage me in showing my creative
side to the big companies and I will be allocated with the tasks like creating info graphics etc.
and as a Marketing Assistant I will get the opportunity to get involved in a variety of projects
such as delivery of direct and digital marketing communications. It will add further to my
skills and ensure career advancement in the field of marketing. As I want to enhance my
career in business i.e. in the area of marketing, I will be able to develop a strong
understanding of business to business marketing and will be able to enhance my skills in both
the inbound as well as outbound marketing. That’s why, I have applied in this company so as
to get through knowledge of practical marketing tactics by engaging in the marketing

activities with the effective marketing team that will also support my further placement in a
reputed multinational organization based on the skills I learnt there and the experience I got.
This portfolio will be reflecting my personal statement and CV for applying for work
placement in Prospect Soft ltd. it will also cover my personal SWOT analysis to reflect on my
strengths and weaknesses and an action plan to improve the weaknesses identified through
the analysis.
SECTION B
Personal Statement in support of the application for work experience placement in Prospect
soft ltd.
A hard working and diligent individual currently looking to get work experience at the role of
marketing manager in your organization prospect soft limited. My skill set includes excellent
communication and listening skills around with my strength of working well extremely in a
team environment with the ability to work confidently when given independent opportunities.
When I was a child I was always creative and looking for inspiration from exciting new
experiences end opportunity’s I got us a student to express my creativity help me discover my
passion for marketing. With your organization I want to be able to provide my services as a
marketing manager and deliver creative as well as profitable strategies which can help your
organization achieve better marketing results.
Add developed interest in the field of marketing because I believe that it’s an exciting and
stimulating area of work. From the knowledge I’ve gained at my university I understand that
the marketing professor requires individuals with good interpersonal skills who are dedicated
quick thinking robust diplomatic articulate and have a competitive flair. I see myself as an
individual with all of these qualities because I have utilized each of these skills during
different points of my personal life as well as academic career which have helped me attain
specific objectives (Guo and et. al., 2021). For example I can demonstrate that I have
effective interpersonal skills as well as diplomatic abilities because during the team activities
of my higher education journey I was the one responsible for resolving conflicts and
elevating the team spirit of my group.
I am also dedicated towards marketing and development of creative and original ideas
because I understand the significance and role of marketing department in helping an
enterprise achieve success. I have also developed effective critical thinking and analytical
skills because of my academic which helped me utilise different theoretical models as well as

tools to improve my critical and logical thinking. I also participated in different activities
which required me to express my artistic and creative attributes which were done
commendably. Among those development of digital portfolios as well as my personal affinity
towards creative fields such as graphic design and sketching showcases my creative passion. I
believe that I am the most skilled individual for the job of marketing manager at your
organization because I have the skills fashion as well as mindset for working in a competitive
and stressful environment while also delivering high quality results for the marketing team.
I have great appreciation for marketing teams the corporate world who work tirelessly
towards achieving target objectives so that the company is able to get higher profits and
achieve its strategic vision. I am looking forward to start an exciting journey in the world of
marketing where I can learn from the best with the creative and innovative companies such as
prospect soft limited. I will ensure that I’m able to continuously improve my skills and
deliver timely results for the stakeholders if I am able to get the work experience placement at
your enterprise.
Detailed CV for the post of Marketing Assistant for a Volunteer/ work experience placement
in Prospect Soft ltd.
A well prepared and well documented CV helps the individuals in getting high job
roles in any organization. It allows the individuals to summarize their education, skills and
experience and thereby facilitates in offering the abilities to the potential employers. CV is
also required for being appointed as an intern or volunteer in the work placement experience
offering organization as is provided hereunder (Kurian, 2022). I am providing my own CY
for applying as a Marketing Assistant in Prospect Soft Ltd to get the work placement
experience –
Curriculum Vitae
Marketing Assistant
An action-oriented marketing specialist with 3 months experience in digital and event
marketing finding for a position at Prospects Soft Ltd. for work experience placement where I
will be able to use my teamwork skills, innovation skills and digital marketing skills. I had
completed 3 months digital marketing internship at Maverick Tech. I have a master degree in
business management in the area of marketing.
Career objective

To get a marketing role that will allow to achieve the sales goals and continued learning in
the field of marketing. Seeking for a role of marketing that will use my leadership skills for
ensuring growth of the organization that will exceed expectations and goals of sales.
Education
Masters in Marketing from Durham University, England;
Having a degree in advertising and communications from Durham University
Learnt marketing analytics and Salesforce sales operations
Personal information
Name – XYZ
Contact info – (020) 56756
Additional Skills
Proficiency in marketing software programs like Salesforce
Excellence in CMS platforms and word press
Efficiency in marketing analytics tools like Google analytics, SEMrush.
Relevant courses
Marketing Research
Advertising and sales promotion
Salesforce management
Declaration
I hereby declare that the above information is true to the best of my knowledge.
SECTION C
Self-assessment reflecting skill gaps (SWOT Analysis inclusive)
A personal SWOT Analysis refers to the personal evaluation of the own skills of
individuals so as to identify the personal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats
(Hefny, 2021). It helps the students in grabbing the opportunities in their related field to
ensure career growth and advancement. To be able to fit for the desired job role of marketing

manager, I am providing my personal SWOT analysis so as to identify the weaknesses and
improve them through an appropriate action plan (Beausoleil, 2022). Here is my personal
SWOT Analysis –
Strengths
 Innovation – I have strong creative
skills as I am fond of reading various
business magazines, articles,
newspapers and other books of
scholars regarding marketing
management and business
management by which I am able to
develop my innovation skills.
 Teamwork – As I have executed
many projects in the university with
the team members, I have been able
to collaborate with the team
members and able to develop
teamwork skills.
 Leadership skills – Due to the
effective team collaboration, I am
able to improve my leadership skills
as well.
Weaknesses
 Time management – Due to
attending various seminars,
conferences, programmers in the
university while attending my
assignments of different professors
and preparation of presentation
projects as well, I am not able to
effectively manage my time.
 Communication – I feel lack of
confidence while giving presentation
in the university or while speaking
in any conference due to the weak
communication skills, so I need to
improve the communication skills as
well to communicate with different
clients for effective marketing in this
field.
 Technical skills – I am not as much
effective at the technical skills as a
marketing professional must be. I
sometimes feel issues in
understanding the digital marketing
tactics due to my weak technical and
soft skills.
 Investment skills – I am also weak at
investment skills that I require to
arrange funds to stay abroad for
further skill development to get
posted in a top organization.

Apart from the above specific skills, I also
need to make improvements in the skills
like such as management skills, organization
skills and problem-solving skills.
Opportunities
 IT skills – I have opportunity in the
marketing field to improve my IT
skills as I will be tasked with digital
marketing work by which I would be
able to get a thorough understanding
of IT by the help of marketing team
at the work experience placement
company.
 Maintaining public relations –
During my work placement
programmer, I will be tasked with
communicating with the customers
through digital communication that
will provide opportunity to improve
interaction and maintain public
relations through social media etc.
that will help me in my profession.
Threats
 Competition – As every individual is
preparing for getting a god position
in the company and developing
skills and expertise in different fields
and in marketing as well, it poses a
threat of competition to me to get a
desired job role in the desired
organization.
 Challenges in foreign markets –
Marketing managers often have to
face the challenges in the foreign
markets due to the changed
marketing conditions there and have
to put more efforts to create
marketing campaigns abroad to
promote the brand of the company.
Action plan for skill development reflecting SMART objectives
An action plan refers to the list of tasks that an individual needs to perform or
complete with the planned deadline to attain the particular objective that the action plan is
prepared for (Supriyasilp and et. al., 2021). Taking into consideration the SWOT Analysis,
the action plan is prepared to set an improvement criteria for improving the weaknesses
identified in the SWOT analysis. SMART action plan integrates five characteristics of a goal
i.e. Specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based (Sharma and Bumb, 2021).
Here, I am providing my own action plan to improve the above identified weaknesses –
Skills that need to
be improved
Measurable Attainable Relevant Time based
(Deadline)

(Specific)
Time management
skills
To improve these skills, I
will have to attend the
seminars and conferences
virtually so that I will be
able to manage the time
for other activities. During
the internship, I will
conduct most marketing
activities in virtual manner
so as to have time for
improving other skills as
well.
To learn the time
management skills, I will
ensure their attainability
by comparing the present
schedule with the
schedule set in the action
plan and measure the
results by identifying the
deviations.
High 3 months
Communication
skills
For improving the
communication skills, I
will improve myself by
listening well and avoiding
the interruptions. I will
communicate with the
customers through digital
marketing communications
to improve my
communication skills to
deal with the international
clients.
I will check the
attainability of
improvements in
communication skills by
getting feedback from the
marketing team where I
will be getting internship
in the field of marketing.
High 6 months
Technical skills I will improve my
technical skills by taking
coaching from a
recognized IT institute and
will learn the different
courses of marketing like
digital marketing,
marketing analyst,
customer relationship
I will measure the
attainability of technical
skills by taking feedback
from the IT tutor on my
ability to manage the IT
tactics.
High 1 year

management etc.
Investment skills I will learn the investment
skills by taking
consultancy from the
financial analyst or CA or
tax consultant do as to get
opportunity to invest in a
particular fund in order to
yield funds to get
accommodation
management abroad.
I will measure the
attainability of
improvement in
investment skills by
measuring the involves
yielded by a particular
investment and by
learning investment
tactics from the financial
analyst or CA.
Low 3 months
Management skills I will learn the
management skills by
referring to the books of
scholars on management
skills. Apart from this, I
will take support of the
social media such as You
tube to watch the videos
on how to improve the
communication skills. I
will also read blogs to
improve the management
skills for marketing as well
as other activities’
management while my
work placement
experience in the future
organization.
These can be attainable
by measuring their
performance through
comparing the won
performance with that set
for improvement and by
referring to the books of
scholars. These are
attainable within 2
months if followed
appropriately according
to the models and
business frameworks set
by the management
theorists and authors.
Moderate 2 months
Problem-solving
skills
I can improve the
problem-solving skills by
solving various case
studies of marketing on
marketing scenarios of
I will measure the
improvement and
attainability of problem
solving skills by getting
feedback from the top
High 5 months

different clients in the
organization where I will
be getting m internship.
During the internship, I
will come across different
clients and their marketing
issues that I will be tasked
to handle due to which I
will be able to improve my
problem-solving skills.
marketing executives and
from the effective
marketing team in the
organization that I will
be taking internship
from.
CONCLUSION
It can be analyzed from the above project that career planning has a major role ion
career advancement of any individual. The individuals are required to consider the
development of both personal as well as professional skills so as to ensure career growth.
They need to consider the improvements in various skills to get a high job role in the desired
organization. For personal and professional improvement, individuals are required to conduct
a personal SWOT analysis so as to identify the strengths and weaknesses and the areas of
opportunities. They must improve the weaknesses identified in the personal SWOT analysis
by preparing an effective action plan taking into consideration the SMART objectives.

REFERENCES
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