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Reflective Report and Action Plan

Student’s Name

Institution Affiliation
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Contents

Introduction....................................................................................................................................3

Personal Audit................................................................................................................................3

Working Well With Other People................................................................................................4

Reliability and Dependability......................................................................................................6

Willingness to Learn....................................................................................................................6

Reflections on my Personal Development....................................................................................7

Current Strengths.........................................................................................................................7

Current Weaknesses.....................................................................................................................9

Gaps in Experience......................................................................................................................9

Personal Development Plan........................................................................................................10

References......................................................................................................................................12
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Reflective Report and Action Plan

Introduction

Today, many people are not willing to settle in one career for life. This is the reason why

many people are holding jobs with a variety of employers to find the best one that suits them.

Besides different employers, people are moving across different employment sectors through

their working lives to settle on what works best for them. As such, many industries are looking

for people who are flexible in their working patterns. Consequently, employees with this

knowledge are prepared to change their jobs as well as their sectors if they believe that there are

opportunities elsewhere. Because of this, people must understand the need for possessing

transferable and employability skills. Also, these skills should not be specific to a single career

path but should instead be useful across almost all employment sectors. Therefore, this essay

looks into some of the best employability skills and how they can be used in a working

environment.

Personal Audit

According to Hind and Moss (2007), besides educational prowess, employers tend to seek

other qualities from employees and especially skills and qualities a person possesses in working

well with other people. Besides the fact that I have gained a sound education in my profession

that has enabled me to work in warehouses and adhere to airfield safety protocols and airline

policies, I have other employability skills. As such, I am not in a position to fulfil challenging

new roles and apply a one-year correlated experience in the field. I have admirable employability

skills that enhance my effectiveness and these skills will be explored in the next section.

Specifically, some of the employability skills that enhance my effectiveness in my career

include the ability to get along with and working well with other people. Some of the skills
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include communication among other interpersonal skills. The other employability skill that

contributes towards my effectiveness includes the ability to be reliable and dependable. That is,

the ability to do what one says they will do and observing the deadline. The last one is the

willingness to learn new skills. These skills can either be job-specific or general. These skills

will be discussed in the next section.

Working Well With Other People

The skills required to work with other individuals are known as interpersonal skills.

According to Hind and Moss (2007), good interpersonal skills are the ones that allow one to

participate effectively as a team member and meet client’s/customer’s expectations. Specifically,

at any time in the workplace, I have always looked forward and applied negotiation skills in

making the right decisions and solving problems with workmates. Consequently, this has always

made it possible for me to work effectively with other people. After all, Hind and Moss (2007)

suggest that well-honed interpersonal skills allow workers to empathize and create rapport with

colleagues and customers, which lead to a better conducive and less stressful working

environment.

Another employability skill, still in the bracket of interpersonal skills that has always

enhanced my effectiveness in the workplace is communication skills. According to Hind and

Moss (2007), communication skills are critical in a work environment because they allow one to

transmit or receive messages accurately both to and from other people writing or speaking. In

essence, communication skills help in doing away with misunderstandings. Specifically, one

communication skills that have contributed to my effectiveness in my career is verbal

communication. According to Hind and Moss (2007), verbal communication entails the words

people use, whether in writing or face-to-face. I have always ensured a balance between writing
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and face-to-face, which vary in different jobs. After all, any business must prioritize at least one

of these types of communication. For example, as a warehouse operative, verbal communication

helped me to oversee cargo loading operations and especially in the attainment of proper weight

distribution and maintenance of safety during all facets of aircraft operations.

Another interpersonal skill that has enhanced my effectiveness over the years is non-verbal

communication skills. According to Rao (2010), non-verbal communication refers to what

people communicate without using words. For instance, this can be body language, emojis, or

tone of voice. Another critical communication skill that has enhanced my effectiveness is the

ability to listen. According to Rao (2010), the ability of a person to listen refers to how one takes

in and interpret non-verbal and verbal messages sent by colleagues including in writing. Even so,

in the workplace, as much as communication is critical, emotional intelligence helps avoid

conflicts. According to Rao (2010), emotional intelligence to a person's ability to recognize,

understand, and manage other people's emotions and use them positively towards the attainment

of desired outcomes. After all, in the workplace, work and people’s words can elicit different

emotions and this can adversely affect working relationships if one’s emotions are disregarded.

When working with people in a work environment, problems and conflicts are inevitable. As

such, Wibrow and National Centre for Vocational Education Research (2011) recommend

workers to embrace conflict resolution and meditation skills. According to Wibrow and National

Centre for Vocational Education Research (2011), these are the skills needed in resolving

disagreements positively. Also, employees should not only focus on conflicts and disagreements

of their worn but rather also those that involve other people. Closely connected to this, another

skill that has played part in enhancing my effectiveness is problem-solving and decision making.

According to Wibrow and National Centre for Vocational Education Research (2011), problem-
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solving and decision making skills are needed in working closely with others. Even though

people can solve problems and make decisions on their own, the ability to work with others and

making decisions together adds extra dimensions to a situation. The other skill that has always

played a critical role in enhancing my effectiveness in my career is the fact that I am reliable and

people can depend on me.

Reliability and Dependability

According to Wibrow and National Centre for Vocational Education Research (2011), when a

person is deemed reliable and dependable, it means that one does what they say they will do and

looking around to see what needs to be done and then doing it. Even so, Finch and Fafinski

(2014) note that doing what ones say they will do means that they have to be organized and they

can manage their time well. As such, this means that one has to know how long things take, and

the time required in doing them to the required standard. I have managed to do this throughout

my career y prioritizing what needs to be done first. Finch and Fafinski (2014) further suggest

that when a person is reliable, it means that they are trustworthy and conscientious. As such, one

should not leave work while things still need to be done. The last employability skill that has

enhanced my effectiveness is the willingness to learn.

Willingness to Learn

According to Marsh (2012), being willing to learn means that one is open to new ideas and

experiences. In essence, the person in question is always looking forward to improving their

skills and knowledge. The reason this has always enhanced effectiveness is based on the fact that

change has become constant in many organizations. As such, according to Marsh (2012), the

most valuable workers preferred by many employers are those that can embrace personal change
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and recognize that it offers more opportunities than threats. Many employers in almost all sectors

are looking forward to people who are resilient, adaptable, and flexible.

Reflections on my Personal Development

The essence of reflective thinking cannot be underestimated especially where career growth is

concerned. Different models of reflective thinking have been posited by different authors but the

aim of these models remain the same. One such model is Borton’s framework of reflective

thinking. According to Lyons (2010), the first stage in this model looks into what happens. In

this case, this could be what an employee has been doing for the last several years until the day

they decide to reflect. The next step answers the question of what. That is, while pursuing a

career, what happened as well the results? (Bottomley, Cartney & Pryjmachuk, 2019). In this

case, a warehouse operator, this could be the management of cargo and waste during flights and

what went well or wrong. In the case of loading cargo, one could ask themselves if the

arrangement was done following accurate calculations of the aircraft centre of gravity as well as

if it was done per specific flight requirements.

After what happened has been answered, the next per Borton’s Framework seeks to answer

the question, “so what.” According to Bottomley, Cartney and Pryjmachuk (2019), one should

assess the results and determine their implication. One should also ask themselves what role they

played to influence the results. The last part of the framework seeks to answer the question, “now

what?” according to Bottomley, Cartney and Pryjmachuk (2019), if the result in the previous

stage were not satisfactorily, one seeks to know what they should do differently next time to

enhance the outcome. In essence, this last step influences one to start doing things differently.

Current Strengths
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Throughout my career as a warehouse operative and receptionist, I have grown significantly. I

cannot deny that I have also encountered challenges along the way. It is also worth mentioning

that there is not a single set path toward personal growth. As such, Hind and Moss (2007) note

that personal growth is a broad term and that it is unlikely for one to find two individuals that

have followed the same routes in their career development. However, as a warehouse operator

and a receptionist, I have developed my social and communication skills. In the personal audit

section, one of my greatest employability skills is communication skills. As such, one attribute

that I can consider a strength is the fact that a team player. According to Hind and Moss (2007),

team-working refer to the ability of a person to work with others in teams and groups towards the

attainment of a single purpose or goal. The groups can either be formal or informal. I have

encountered a challenge where people in the team use different languages to communicate.

However, despite these language differences, the ability to function well in a group is a critical

skill needed in many jobs.

In the personal audit section, communication skills are also one of my greatest employability

skills. After all, without the ability to transmit and receive messages in a work environment one

can be deemed redundant, consequently leading to job loss. Looking back, as a warehouse

operator and a receptionist, the main tasks were accomplished by communicating with people. I

have come to realize that am very good in verbal communication. From my judgment and

intuition, I had developed a balance between face-to-face communication and writing. This

varied by the nature of the content of messages as well as by the task at hand. Looking back, I

am also good at non-verbal communication. Most of the times, I approached my team members

with caution to ensure that there would be no conflict based on their moods. Lastly, the two main

experiences in my career have shown me that I am a good listener. After all, Chaita (2016) notes
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that if one does not listen to others, be it, colleagues or clients, it is nearly impossible to address

issues. As a receptionist, I had to be a good listener to be able to respond to the needs of the

clients and this is a great employability skill.

Current Weaknesses

Looking back, I have some weaknesses that I intend to work on in the future to enhance my

employability skills. One of such weaknesses is the numeracy, which according to Chaita (2016),

one’s ability to use data and mathematics to demonstrate a point or to support evidence. Looking

back, and especially as a warehouse house operator, this is a critical skill that every employee

should seek to have. The other skill I need to work on is negotiation. According to Tran (2020),

negotiation, influencing and persuasion skills are those that relate to finding a mutually agreeable

solution to situations and problems, whether by persuading other people to adopt a specific

solution or identifying a better alternative by sharing ideas. Even so, throughout my experience,

there are gaps that need to be worked on.

Gaps in Experience

Throughout my experience, I have not had a case where I have worked with people from

diverse backgrounds. As such, there is a gap in how one should value diversity and difference in

career development. According to Tran (2020), valuing diversity means that one understands and

is considerate of different needs of varying individuals. In essence, there is a gap in knowing the

value of diversity and what it can bring in career development.

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Personal Development Plan

In the near future, I intend to acquire employment from one of the renowned
companies in my city. I have worked a receptionist and as a warehouse operator and I
intend to pursue even better goals in the future. First, I want to make sure that I select
an organization of my choice and be a human resource manager assistant. Working
under an experienced human resource manager will allow me to learn the mechanics
behind a successful human resource employee.
Specific

The measurable for reaching my goal as a human resource manager will be having an
excellent record in my current position. The other measurable element is my ability
to resolve conflicts in my current employment position. The reason behind this is that
in most cases, the human resource department resolves employee issues. The last
measurable element is me being shortlisted as a human resource assistant manager in
a firm of my choice and consequently being selected among the invited candidates.
Measurable

The achievability of my goal as a human resource manager is attributed to the fact

that I have the right qualifications needed. In addition, working as a warehouse
operator and a receptionist has equipped me with the needed skills and knowledge
for an effective human resource manager.

Achievable The rationale for pursuing human resource manager goal is attributed to the internal
and external factors. Concerning the internal factors, it has always been an innate
goal to be a human resource manager and this lead me to pursue an education in
human resource management. Concerning external factors, it is a requirement for a
majority of organizations to have effective and responsible human resource
managers. Without the position of human resource manager in an organization, it
Relevant means that the interests of employees will not be met. In addition, it would mean that
an organization’s resources are not used efficiently.
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The attainment of this goal must be done within 7 weeks. The breakdown of events is
done in detail.
Week1-2 Week 3-4 Week 5 Week 6-7
Working on
weaknesses
Consulting with
established
Time-Bound human resource
managers.
Application for
the position of a
human resource
manager.
Attend
interviews

Conclusion

In conclusion, the essay has presented a detailed reflective report and action plan.

Specifically, the essay has shown that employability skills should not be specific to a single

career path but should instead be useful across almost all employment sectors. From the analysis,

communication is one of the greatest employability skill because it helps people to transmit and

receive information. Without an exchange of information, it means that issues cannot be

addressed. The essay has also shown the essence of reflective thinking in that it helps people to

analyze and assess what they do well or wrong to improve in the future. Using lessons learned

from the reflective experience, one can make changes to align with the set goals and objectives.
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References

Bottomley, J., Cartney, P., & Pryjmachuk, S. (2019). Critical thinking skills for your social

work degree. St Albans: Critical Publishing.

Chaita, M. V. (2016). Developing graduate employability skills: Your pathway to

employment. Boca Raton: Universal Publishers.

Finch, E., & Fafinski, S. (2014). Employability skills for law students. Oxford, United

Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

Hind, D. W. G., & Moss, S. (2007). Employability skills. Sunderland: Business Education.

Hind, D. W. G., & Moss, S. (2007). Employability skills. Sunderland: Business Education.

Lyons, N. (2010). Handbook of reflection and reflective inquiry: Mapping a way of knowing

for professional reflective inquiry. New York: Springer.

Marsh, R. (2012). Skills for employability: Part one. Wrexham: Christal.

Rao, M. S. (2010). Soft skills: Enhancing employability: connecting campus with corporate.

New Delhi: I.K. Publishing.

Tran, L. H. N. (2020). Building soft skills for employability: Challenges and practices in

Vietnam. Abingdon, Oxon; New York, NY: Routledge, an imprint of the Taylor & Francis

Group.

Wibrow, B., & National Centre for Vocational Education Research. (2011). Employability

Skills. At a Glance. Place of publication not identified: Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse.