Personal Development Planning

Key Skills Self Analysis

Graduating with a good degree is no guarantee of your dream career. You need ‘an edge’, something that sets you apart from your competition, which comes from
demonstrating not only knowledge of business, business operations but the ability to apply and use that knowledge intelligently.

As you begin your degree you are starting a new phase of personal development and personal development planning (PDP) is a strategy to maximise your learning
and understanding of your own development as managers of the future. Your time with us in the Business School offers you many opportunities to learn and grow
and the starting point is understanding your confidence levels right now. This gives you a benchmark from which you can monitor your own levels of development.

Employers are involved in the development of and approval of all our courses and tell us that, as well as the qualification and work experience they want recruits who
have well developed skills in the following areas:

 Communication (Verbal and Written)

 Problem Solving
 Ability to work well with others
 Effective use of ICT
 Numeracy
 Planning and Organising

We will be looking at PDP in more detail next week but this is an introduction.

Complete the self-assessment in each section and use your findings to develop an action plan for this term to measure the development of your skills in each area.
Your outcomes can form entries in your learning journals. (You will learn more about your journal writing in your Foundations of Business Communication Unit.)
 Where am I now? Tick the box you feel represents how you feel as you begin your degree – be as honest as you can
Skill Not Somewhat Very Evidenced By
Confident Confident Confident
Verbal Communication
(presentations group / individual)

Written Communication (report

writing/ general business
communications)

Written Communication (academic

writing / reports / essays at
University)

Problem Solving (identifying an

issue and being able to take
appropriate and relevant action)

Team working (understanding

others and how teams work, being
able to manage your own and
others performance in group work)

Using ICT – effectively and

creatively

Numeracy – how confident are you

with numbers and figures

Planning and Organising (time

management and project planning)
Personal Profile:

Name:

Why did you choose to

study Business?

Do you know what you

want to do after
graduation?

Do you work? What do you

do?

Do you have interesting

work experiences? Paid or
voluntary?

What do you enjoy doing?

Hobbies / Interests

What do you consider your

strengths / or areas for
development?