Supervisor Guide to Creating the IDP
In alignment with UCOP Presidential Policy 50, the University supports ongoing employee development, with supervisors playing a key role in fostering growth through Individual Development Plans (IDPs). As collaborative, living documents, IDPs align individual goals with organizational needs while promoting continuous learning, stronger performance, and overall organizational success. See Professional Development Policy (UCOP) and look for PPSM "50-Professional Development").
Supporting Professional Growth and Development
Overall Goals of a Supervisor in Staff Development
Steering the IDP Process
More Resources and Information
Supporting Professional Growth and Development
IDPs are powerful tools for developing your staff and for showing your commitment to their development. Professional development encourages employees to take an active role in achieving organizational goals while strengthening UC ANR's overall capacity and effectiveness. By providing opportunities to learn and grow, supervisors help employees build skills, adapt to change, and prepare for future responsibilities.
Employees who are supported in their development often experience a greater sense of empowerment, purpose, and engagement, leading to improved performance, retention, and service to clientele.
Development is an ongoing process that begins when an employee joins UC ANR and continues throughout their career. Each employee should maintain a living Individual Development Plan (IDP) that is reviewed and updated regularly through quarterly check-ins when possible, and at minimum during the annual performance evaluation. IDPs should evolve as employees develop new skills and as organizational priorities change.
Overall Goals of a Supervisor in Staff Development
- Leverage the employee’s strengths and concentrate on one to two areas of improvement, and
- To describe how the achievement of the goals will be measured
- Coaching
- Supporting
- Encouraging
- Eliminating obstacles
- Utilizing employee input
- Providing resources and opportunities for development
- Demonstrating commitment to their growth
Supporting Employee Development
Consider how you can support your employee's growth and development by:
- Granting work time for training and development activities
- Providing clear performance goals and expectations
- Offering regular feedback and coaching
- Discussing and supporting development goals
- Assisting with the creation of an Individual Development Plan (IDP)
- Helping establish realistic timelines and milestones
- Assigning projects that apply new knowledge and skills
- Revising development plans as needs and goals evolve
- Recognizing and acknowledging progress and accomplishments
Avoid creating a long list of development activities. Most workplace learning occurs through experience on the job rather than in a classroom. Effective IDPs typically combine learning by doing, learning from others, formal training, and self-directed learning.
Consider sharing the following development resources and opportunities:
- On-the-job learning opportunities, such as new responsibilities, stretch assignments, job shadowing, and cross-training
- UC Learning Center e-learning modules and instructor-led courses
- Career development resources available through Books 24x7
- LinkedIn Learning courses available to UC ANR employees
- Confidential career counseling services offered through UC campus professional development programs
- Career management and professional development workshops
- Volunteer leadership opportunities, including service on committees or the ANR Staff Assembly
- Mentoring and coaching relationships
At the conclusion of your discussion, establish a target date for the employee to submit their IDP. Encourage them to review the IDP resources and sample forms available on this page, and emphasize that the plan will be developed collaboratively and refined over time. See Employee's Guide to Creating an IDP (ANR webpage).
Steering the IDP Process
Step 1: Preplanning
Unless the employee has already initiated the IDP process, schedule a planning meeting with them. Explain that the planning meeting will focus on discussing their skill strengths, skill gaps, and professional development goals.
Ask the employee to prepare by reading the Individual Development Plan (IDP) information and completing and submitting the self-assessment worksheet to you at least one week before the meeting date. The self-assessment worksheet prompts the employee to explore values, interests, skills, and personality, and provides you with insight into their goals. If the employee is experienced with the IDP process, they may skip to Step 3 and begin drafting the IDP.
Review the employee's self-assessment worksheet responses to learn more about their professional goals, career issues, and ideas for development. Consider:
- What goals, skills, and professional opportunities interest the employee?
- Do these interests and goals support the goals and needs of the organization?
- What short- and long-term steps are needed to achieve these goals?
- Is there funding support for educational opportunities?
- Are there on-the-job training opportunities, such as new responsibilities, special projects to broaden skills, job shadowing, or cross-training?
Assess the employee's skill level using their self-assessment, work record, and your observations. Consider:
- Attitude: Mindset, outlook, perspective, and approach
- Ability: Special aptitudes for accomplishing certain things or learning new things
- Soft skills: How they work with other people
- Technical ability: Whether they have the skills needed to complete the job
Step 2: Meet with the Employee
Hold the planning meeting with the employee. Remind them that the discussion will focus on their skill strengths, skill gaps, and professional development goals, and that the next step after the meeting will be for them to begin drafting the first version of the IDP.
Discuss:
- Employee strengths, skill gaps, goals, interests, and organizational needs
- Professional development resources and options
For professional development to succeed, the employee's interests and goals should be tailored to support organizational needs. Ask the employee to consider the following objectives as they develop their IDP:
- UC ANR goals
- Unit goals
- Team goals
- Individual goals
Step 3: Writing the IDP
The employee completes the Individual Development Plan form and submits it to you. Once submitted, review the plan, note any recommendations, and share your feedback with the employee. Ask the employee to update the plan as needed.
When you both agree on the IDP, the employee and supervisor sign and date the form. The employee is then ready to begin the agreed-upon action steps.
While an IDP is non-binding, supervisors and managers should make every effort to ensure employees are granted time for development opportunities listed in the IDP. Consistently failing to provide time for agreed-upon educational opportunities can create skepticism and distrust and may undermine the motivating benefits of the IDP process.
Step 4: Implementing the Plan
The employee engages in the training opportunities described in the IDP and keeps a record of progress by adding dates in Sections 4 and 5 of the IDP form. Follow up with the employee after training events and provide opportunities for them to use the new skills or knowledge.
Step 5: Assessing Outcomes
Work with the employee to evaluate the effectiveness of training and development activities. Ask for feedback on their progress to help you determine:
- Where the staff member is flourishing
- How to help build on newly developed skills
- Where there is still room for growth
Log performance using expectations, dates, and the impact of training activities on development. Record observations of:
- Improved skills and knowledge and how they were used
- Progress toward objectives and goals
- Where skills and knowledge could still be applied