Self-assessment of skills and competences

Professional Identity
and Practice

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
CPD for stakeholder groups along with merits......................................................................1
Skill and competency wanted by owner.................................................................................3
Significance of CPD..............................................................................................................3
Significance of CPD...............................................................................................................4
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................1
Assessment of skill, ability and competency for the designation of Marketing Manager.....1
Critique of learning theories associated with professional and personal enhancement.........3
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................4
Development plan in context with selected organisation.......................................................4
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................6
Job interview for Thomas cook group....................................................................................6
Strength and weakness of interview process..........................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Professional identify is termed as, those individuals who have particular form of identify
with certain skills, competencies and knowledge. With having number of skills and capabilities
professional individual aim towards making significant increase in productivity of organisation.
In simple terms, professional identify is mainly defined as an individual who have some certain
sort of special identity, experiences, values, beliefs and attributes as to stand in society. Present
report has been conducted on Travelodge Hotels Limited. Organisation operates their functions
in hospitality industrial sector and was formed in the year 1985. With having headquarter in
Thame, England, UK Travelodge have more than 500 hotels through which they effectively
serve their customers in best effective manner. Present report discuss requirement of
professionals in an organisation along with the importance of business plan development. In
addition with this, report includes merits and effectiveness of ongoing professional development
in addition with traits that are required in professional. Lastly, job interview and development
plan is specified in present report.
TASK 1
CPD for stakeholder groups along with merits
Company Overview:
Travelodge offer their services in hospitality sector while having it’s headquarter in
Thames, England, UK. Company was founded in the year 1985 and provide hotel facilitates to
their customers. It has been analysed that Travelodge top management recruit candidates those
who have effective potential, capabilities and education and seek best effective form of
experience with hospitality industry. With the help of selecting potentially capable employees
Travelodge can effectively able to serve their customers (Bainbridge, 2016). This will lead
company to ensure their high profitability as well as profitability in best effective manner.
Benefits from ongoing professional development
It has been signifies that ongoing professional development session effectively aid
employees to significantly increase their skill, capabilities and efficiency in best effective
manner and further perform their operations in well defined manner (Key benefits of ongoing
professional development. 2019). In order to significantly increase workers performance
Travelodge implement continuous based professional development session on regular basis in
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order to gain large base of profitability from their performance. Mentioned below significant
benefits of ongoing professional development is being defined below:
It helps to increase efficiency:
Professional development effectively aid employees to increase their efficiency by
increasing their level of knowledge and skills. In addition with this, it has been signified that
with the help of professional development workers can not only able to developed them
professionally but they can also increase their efficiency in personal level. This will significantly
lead organisation to make an increase in their profitability and productivity.
Encourage staff:
Ongoing professional development benefit Travelodge workforce to have understanding
of different types of new measures through which they can significantly able to gain large base
of opportunities. In addition with this, ongoing development also aid organisation to encourage
their employees and significantly perform their work with more hard work and enthusiasms. This
significantly allow organisation to satisfy needs and requirements of customers in best effective
manner while ensuring high profitability turnover.
Develop confidence:
With providing ongoing professional development training Travelodge can able to
develop a sense of confidence among their work force. As due to regular training employees can
effectively able to share their views and perception and can further able to increase their level of
performance. Within Travelodge ongoing training has been provided to employees in order to
make them adaptive to numerous situations and aid them to take right and quick decision.
Aids while undertaking risks:
By offering ongoing training professional development secession manager of Travelodge
train their employees with the fact that, in order to ensure high growth risk acts as key essential
factor and it is one of the most important part of professional life. With the help of these training
sessions manager effectively motivates their employees to undertake risk, as this will
significantly help them to attain business success. With the help of this, company can effectively
able to ensure high profitability.
As per the above discussion, it has been analysed that ongoing professional development
effectively benefits business organisation stakeholders in many different ways. In addition with
this, these professional development training sessions also benefit organisation to significantly
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increase their employees knowledge and skill efficiency that further lead organisation to gain
mire significant advancements.
Skill and competency wanted by owner
It is essential for an organisation to effectively increase their efficiency of their business
as to increase it profitability earning level. In order to effectively ensure organisation high
growth efficiency Travelodge manager recruit potentially skilled and capable employees those
who with their high knowledge can effectively able to satisfy large base of customers. In addition
with this, skilled a talented employees can able to seek loyalty from customers and can further
ensure their long term existence in organisation. In Travelodge services that are being conducted
by employees are mainly related to room cleaning, food services, amenities and room services.
Manager of Travelodge have high expectation from the skilled employees that are being hired by
them in order to increase overall number of their customer base. Mentioned below there are some
certain form of competencies and skills that manager expect from employees of Travelodge:
Willingness to learn:
Managers of Travelodge have expectation from their employees as they wants their
workforce to have positive response towards continuous learning approach. This will not only
going to benefit organisation to increase overall work efficiency of company but also aid
employees to make significant improvement in their performance. This will lead organisation to
significantly increase their profitability and productivity.
Capability to solve problems:
At next, employer of Travelodge also expects that hired employee’s should be capable of
solving problems at their own level without getting confused. This capability of employees will
directly contribute in developing positive working environment where employees collaboratively
work with each other in effective manner
Affirmative and good behaviour:
Significance of CPD
Affirmative and good behaviour:
This is also one of the main expectations of travelodge manager. In this they expect from
their hired employees to possess positive form of behaviour. This will ensure less number of
conflicts within workplace that simultaneously increase productivity of employees in best
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effective manner and also aid organisation to improve efficiency of their productivity and
profitability.
Significance of CPD
Ongoing professional development acts as a one of the most efficient practice that
significantly benefit business organisation to make improvement in performance of their
employees while ensuring high profitability (Teunissen, 2015). Ongoing professional
development benefit employees to make development in their skills and knowledge as per
according to time and job role requirement. It has been analysed that continuous training session
simultaneously lead towards increasing employee’s motivation and performance and further aid
them to operate their role in more hardworking manner. In relation with Travelodge ongoing
professional development effectively in ensures organisation sustainability within workplace and
further aids them to gain more competitive advantage within Marketplace. With the help of this
company can also ensure high productivity of their workforce that automatically increase
organisational overall market share holding.
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TASK 2
Assessment of skill, ability and competency for the designation of Marketing Manager
It is very essential for a business individual to have appropriate knowledge and skills so
that they can tackle their workplace issues and perform organisational work in an optimal
manner. Skills are referred to the positive quality which allows an individual to perform their
organisational activities and operations in utmost efficiency. Skills allows a person to understand
new concepts in an easier and comfortable manner. In case of competencies, these aspects helps
in identifying if an individual can accomplish their goals and targets in a timely manner or not. In
case of Travelodge, it can be summarised that to be a manager at respective firm, an individual
needs to have certain skills and competencies so that issues at workplace can be identified and
resolved in a productive manner. In order to became a marketing manager in Travelodge, a
person is needed to have specific competencies and skills which can differentiate them from
other people working there. In this context, manager at Travelodge has conducted a skill audit in
which all the competencies and skills which are available in that individual are discussed. This
skill audit will help in identifying if a person is eligible for a specific job or not. Skill audit in
context with marketing manager at Travelodge is stated below:
No. Skills and competencies that are
needed to became
marketing manager
Own Scores Scores given by other
individuals
1. Communication skills ( oral and
listening skills)
8 9
2. Formulating plan and prioritising
work
6 7
3. Capable to gain attention of
maximum customers and tourists
7 6
4. Problem resolving skills 8 8
5. Interpersonal skills 7 9

Critique of learning theories associated with professional and personal enhancement
There exist different kind of learning approaches and theories which can be used by the
manager in Travelodge so that development and training activities of staff can be organised in a
proper manner. Other than this, these learning theories will benefits the firm in resolving their
basis and complex issues in a simplified manner (Grubenmann and Meckel 2017.). Main
advantage associated with these approaches and theories are that they benefits in improving
overall profits and productivity of company in an appropriate manner. In this context, some of
the learning theories and learning approaches are stated below:
 Behaviourism: In accordance with this learning approach, change at workplace benefits
in attracting the new behaviour or employees and other individual in an organisation.
This states that if employees of a company will adopt a new behaviour then this will
benefits in incorporating change within an organisation. In context with Travelodge,
company is emphasising on introducing new technology at their workplace so that
interest of customers in the services of hotel can be maximised. In order to use and
acknowledge the merits of new technology, workers of Travelodge are needed to use
behaviour approach. By this, employees can easily implement a new change of using
advanced technology for work purpose in a positive manner.
 Cognitive: In accordance to this theory, a person can identify and learn appropriately by
reading the thoughts of the learner (Teunissen, 2015). This implies that learning activities
can be performed efficiently by acknowledging the actual mind state of learners. In
context with Travelodge, employees can read and understand the mind of their managers
at the time of training. By this, it will be easy for manager to train them and overall
objective behind training will be achieved.
 Social learning: This approach states that a person can easily learn by observing the
actions and activities of others (Keyko and et. al., 2016). In case of Travelodge,
employees of company can observe the working pattern of manager and learn new
concepts on regular basis. Also, by observing their co-workers and their mistakes, an
employee can learn those aspects which can be avoided while performing organisational
work. This will helps in improving the working potential of employees at Travelodge so
that high revenues and profits can be earned.
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TASK 3
Development plan in context with selected organisation
A development plan is referred as a document which assists a business firm in growing
and gaining competitive advantage against rivals by improving their working procedures. It is the
duty of manager in a firm to formulate this plan so that organisational planning can be performed
in a systematic manner. In case of Travelodge, manager of company takes training and
development sessions so that organisational conflicts can be reduced and employees can perform
their work efficiently. In context to Travelodge, a development plan is formulated so that skills
of an individual can be improved.
Skills Measurable Activities need to
be undertaken
Resources Attainable
goals
Time
period
Willingness
to learn
Interest of
employees in
learning can be
acknowledge
and measured
with their
performance in
the past year.
Improvements
in present year
will show their
willingness to
learn new
concepts.
Manager is
company is
needed to provide
training to
workers at regular
interval so that
they can learn
new concepts
regularly.
Company can
hire an expertise
which can teach
employees about
new and
simplified way
of performing
complex task.
Also, digital
media, books and
online articles
can be used by
manager to teach
employees about
new concepts.
It will helps in
improving
working
capability of
employees
due to which
attainment of
goals and
targets will be
easy.
2 months
Capability
to solve
problems
It can be
measured by
analysing the
In this context,
company is
needed to prepare
To solve
organisational
problems,
Goal in this
context is to
check if the
1 month
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total problems
solved within
specific time.
an appropriate
time based plan so
that all the issues
and problems can
be resolved in
accordance to
their priority.
appropriate skills
and
competencies in
employers is
required.
employees of
company are
capable to
solve
organisational
problems by
themselves or
not.
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TASK 4
Job interview for Thomas cook group
During the time of applying for a job role in Travelodge it has been acknowledged by me
that, there are some sort of competencies as well as skills that has been possessed by me with the
help of which I can effectively able to execute my roles and responsibilities in best effective
manner During the process of interview there were number of question that has been asked by
manager. In interview all the questions were related with my job role and professional
experiences. With my knowledge and skills I impressed interviewer and manager. At the time of
interview it has been analysed by me that internship effectively benefit me to gain this
opportunity and perform interview in more effective manner as per compared to other
candidates. According to my point of view it is essential for an individual to have adequate form
of knowledge as well as skills related with the job they have applied for. As soon as I got
information related with vacancy in Travelodge I started to begin preparations for the interview
process. This effectively benefits me to face the interview. In addition with help off my skills I
faced the interview process without been nerves. The knowledge and skills that have been
possessed by me effectively benefit me to gain this job opportunity in order to accelerate my
career. By appropriately responding to the question that has been asked by interviewer allow me
to get selected for the job post of marketing manager.
Strength and weakness of interview process
In relation with interview process this is been determined that there are some certain form
of strength and weakness that has been possessed by me:
Strength: It has been evaluated by me that interview process effectively benefits increase
my skills and knowledge as they are the crucial factor towards attaining success in any field. In
addition with this has been analysed that during the process of interview I smartly answered all
the question and raise queries among interviewer that impressed him. The whole process of
interview provided me the lifetime experience. In addition with this it has also been evaluated by
me that training effectively benefits me to clear interview process in feasible and smart manner.
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Weakness:
It has been analysed by me that due to lack of mathematical skills and general knowledge
there was certain problems that has been faced by me during interview. In addition with this it
has been evaluated by me that during the interview process I was under confident and sometime
got panic that made me uncomfortable. But with the help of my skill and knowledge I
effectively cope up my weakness with confidence.
CONCLUSION
As per the above mentioned report, it has been concluded that professional development
effectively benefits an individual to gain more successful advancements. In addition with this it
has been determined that ongoing professional development aid individuals to make
improvement in their competencies, knowledge, skills and work efficiency with the help of
which they can effectively able to make enhancement in their career growth. There are different
types of learning theories that can be undertaken by an organisation as to offer training and
development programs to their employees. Further it has been evaluated that with the help of
interview process organisation can effectively able to recruit best suitable candidate for the job
role within organisation. With the help of ongoing professional development organisation can
effectively able to enhance capabilities of their employees that allows them to overcome
challenges in the effective manner and enhance organisational growth and profitability in a
defined way.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journal
Bainbridge, A., 2016. On Becoming an Education Professional: A Psychosocial Exploration of
Developing an Education Professional Practice. Springer.
Barbour, J. B. and Lammers, J. C., 2015. Measuring professional identity: A review of the
literature and a multilevel confirmatory factor analysis of professional identity
constructs. Journal of Professions and Organization. 2(1). pp.38-60.
Brat, M., and et. al., 2016. Promoting professional counselor advocacy through professional
identity development efforts in counselor education. Journal of Counselor Leadership
and Advocacy. 3(1). pp.62-70.
Grubenmann, S. and Meckel, M., 2017. Journalists’ Professional Identity: A resource to cope
with change in the industry?. Journalism Studies. 18(6). pp.732-748.
Keyko, K., and et. al., 2016. Work engagement in professional nursing practice: A systematic
review. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 61. pp.142-164.
Oliver, D. A. V. I. D., 2015. Identity work as a strategic practice. Cambridge handbook of
strategy as practice. 2. pp.331-344.
Tarvydas, V. M. and Hartley, M. T. eds., 2017. The professional practice of rehabilitation
counseling. Springer Publishing Company.
Teunissen, P. W., 2015. Experience, trajectories, and reifications: an emerging framework of
practice-based learning in healthcare workplaces. Advances in Health Sciences
Education. 20(4). pp.843-856.
Walther, J., Miller, S. E. and Sochacka, N. W., 2017. A model of empathy in engineering as a
core skill, practice orientation, and professional way of being. Journal of Engineering
Education. 106(1). pp.123-148.
Woo, H., Storlie, C. A. and Baltrinic, E. R., 2016. Perceptions of professional identity
development from counselor educators in leadership positions. Counselor Education
and Supervision. 55(4). pp.278-293.
Online
Key benefits of ongoing professional development. 2019. [Online]. Available
Through<https://www.kaplanfinancial.com/resources/pdc/5-benefits-of-professional-
development/>.
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