Introduction

Development Initiatives are one to three outcomes that you and your supervisor will focus on for job activities, professional development, and eventually, for evaluation. You’ll be evaluated on performance of the activities in your Job Description and Goals as well, but Development Initiatives will get particular focus.

Like the Job Description, Development Initiatives need to tie into the college’s needs and goals. Unlike the goals, Development Initiatives focus on broad-based personal and professional development. They can be based on the position’s goals, on specific professional development activities you will be doing (e.g.: earning a technical certification), job skills you’d like to improve (for instance, budgeting), or on other elements of working at Highline (for instance, a desire to get involved in multicultural activities).

Development Initiatives include Measures of Success. These are measurable, data-driven ways of establishing whether you have succeeded in achieving your Development Initiatives. These are also diagnostic tools; they will help you determine whether you are succeeding, but should also help you identify what changes might help.

A Plan of Action is an integral part of each of your Development Initiatives. The plan will help you and your supervisor identify what resources or other job related changes will be required to complete your initiatives. It is the set of steps you will take to achieve the Initiative, plus interim benchmarks to help you measure progress.

Development Initiatives are the most flexible part of EAPAS. This makes them very powerful and useful, but also can make them a challenge to understand and implement. Samples of EAPAS Development Initiatives are available in the Tool Kit and Sample Forms document in the folder you received at training, and on the EAPAS web site.

It is helpful to develop your Job Description and Development Initiatives in tandem, as the Development Initiatives can leverage your duties and goals. Creating your Development Initiatives will take a significant amount of time and will involve multiple discussions with your supervisor. Data from the EAPAS Pilot Group indicate it will take as much as 30 hours over a three to four week period to develop your Job Description and Development Initiatives. It is important that you schedule discussions and deadlines in advance with your supervisor, and make the time to meet those deadlines.

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Definitions and Format

A Development Initiative:

This is a statement about an area of special interest that you and your supervisor will focus on during the 36-month EAPAS cycle. A single initiative may be formed as a related set of one year efforts (e.g., learn how to do a budget), or one or two larger, three year projects (e.g., develop the expertise to take on a higher-level position at the college).

A Development Initiative can be based on any number of needs identified by you and your supervisor, including your Current Position Goals, needed job skills, eventual career goals, or other areas of importance to both you and the college.

Some suggested sources are:

• Educational plans, such as pursuing additional degrees or certificates that will enhance and further your role at the college.
• Professional and/or technical development/training, such as attending skills workshops or conferences to enhance the knowledge base needed in your position.
• Involvement in the College Community, such as participating in a campus governance committee or advising a student organization.
• Community service/outreach, such as serving on a community board or service organization as a representative of the college.
• Department strategic initiatives, which can address needed changes or development in your work unit, especially to assist with meeting the college Strategic Plan.
• Your current position goals (from the Job Description), especially if achieving them will require significant Professional Development on your part.
  

A Development Initiative takes the form of a short outcome statement which clearly and succinctly describes behaviors, skills, and other measurable qualities you’ll be capable of at the end of the three years. See the examples for details.

A Measure of Success:

This is a measurable, data-driven way or ways for you to monitor your progress and eventual success on a Development Initiative. Measures should answer the question “Was this initiative successful? Did it do what I hoped it would do?” At this point in the process, you need to decide what methods (surveys, 360 degree review, certification test, etc.) will be used to assess the Development Initiative.

A Measure of Success will usually require data-gathering throughout the three-year EAPAS cycle. Each Initiative must have one or more measures in order to be effectively evaluated.

Measures of Success are written in outcomes language. They should be written so that the results are observable or quantifiable. They are often complex behaviors, and should be something that others can see and identify. They should specifically describe how you and others will be able to recognize successful accomplishment of the Initiative.

A Plan of Action:

The plan identifies specific steps you will take for achieving your Measures of Success. This plan can also identify support and resources needed for success. Resources might include funding for conferences or training activities. Support might include release time, changes in the amount time estimates for core functions, schedule adjustments, or other changes.

A Plan of Action can be written in outline or short paragraph form, and should provide as much detail as is available. To create the plan, start with a statement of the end goal, then list the steps you think will be required to reach that goal. Add intermediate benchmarks that will help you determine that you are making progress toward the goal. The plan does not have to be complete or final, but should give a good outline to how you expect to proceed.

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