Why do you need a Personal 
    Development Plan (PDP)?
    • The world of work is constantly changing. We all need to adapt and upskill to keep up to date 
     with the latest circumstances, good practice, technology and future demands of our jobs. You 
     might also want to develop new or enhanced skills to progress your career options or 
     aspirations.
    • A Personal Development Plan is a structured way to capture what skills or behaviours you want 
     to strengthen, and to put an action plan together of how you will develop them.  
    • As a first step you need to understand yourself. Through a personal SWOT analysis you can 
     identify your own strengths and weaknesses compared to where you want to be.
    • The second step is to create some clear goals about where you are going to focus your attention 
     and what steps you need to take to achieve your development goals. 
              PDP Considerations
                                                                                •Your role and current circumstances
                                                                                •What is being discussed in you Coaching for Performance (C4P) conversations and 
                                                                                  what are your development needs at the moment?
                                                                                •Have you addressed previously identified needs? Are these still relevant and or do 
                                                                                  they need to be modified/replaced? 
                                                                                •Are you keeping update to date within your area of expertise?
                                  Personal                                      •Are there any changes to ways of working that mean you need to develop new skills 
                                 Behaviours                                       or approaches to work? 
                                                                                •Your behaviours and attitudes
                                                                                •How well do you think you meet the PACT values?
                                   Personal                                     •What feedback do you receive from colleagues/customers about your attitudes and 
                                Development                                       behaviours?
                                     Plan                                       •If you are a manager, how well do you think you meet the LEADER behaviours?
                                                                                •What feedback do you receive about your management style?
                                                                                •Your goals and ambitions
                    Job                            Personal 
                                                   Insights &                   •Are you fulfilled in your current role or would you like to be doing something 
               Performance                       Career Goals                     different?
                                                                                •What steps would help move you closer to your desired next role? 
        Understanding yourself & what 
        you want
         Knowing your                                                                                                                                      Understanding your 
         strengths helps you                                Strengths                                           Weaknesses                                 weaknesses helps you 
         to focus and work                      What sets you apart from others?                         What do you struggle with?                        to recognise where you 
         in line with what                        What are you really good at?                          What don’t you enjoy doing?                        have areas for 
         you are good at                      What skills do others recognise in you?                       What holds you back?                           development, what you 
                                                     What are you proud of?                     Where do you lack confidence or experience?                can improve or where 
                                         What do your colleagues say your strengths are?       What feedback have you received about areas of              you need support , or 
          Strengths +                                                                                          development?                                possibly things to avoid
                                              What do your friends value about you?                       Where can you improve?
          Opportunities                                                               SWOT 
          = Potential 
          career goals                                    Opportunities            Analysis                        Threats                                   Weaknesses + 
                                                     What is available to you?                   Are there any general threats to be aware of?               Threats =  
                                                How can you play to your strengths?           If your weaknesses are unaddressed, what problems              Mitigation or 
                                                    What would you love to do?                                 could they cause?
                                             How can you minimise your weaknesses?                What setbacks can you potentially foresee?                 development 
                                                  Where do you see your growth?               What obstacles have others had to overcome to get              strategies needed  
                                           What do you see yourself doing in the future?                   to where you wish to be?                          to make sure these 
                                                                                                Do you have the support you need to succeed?                 don’t become 
                                                                                                                                                             obstacles for your 
                                                                                                                                                             future
               How are you going to achieve your 
               goals?
                 There are a number of ways to make progress with your goals depending on what you want to achieve and how soon you intend to 
                 reach your goal. You may wish to consider:
                   •    Peer support/knowledge sharing                                            •   Skills practice
                   •    Skills research via Learning Hub, Mindtools, Skills Booster               •   Networking
                   •    Live or pre recorded Webinars                                             •   Shadowing
                   •    Articles, books, Podcasts, Ted talks                                      •   Line manager support/ coaching
                   •    Action learning                                                           •   Coaching from coaching pool
                   •    Getting involved in new or different projects                             •   Identify a mentor
                                                                                                  •   Formal training like Apprenticeships or courses 
                   Other things to help
                        Our extensive range of on-line management training resources and videos on the Learning Hub
                        The Coaching Pool – the opportunity for you to find your own coach
                        Apprenticeships – formal training programmes to help you to become a better in a variety of areas – with the bonus of a 
                         qualification!
                        Specific training courses aligned to your role – some of which may be managed locally within your service area
                        Being a Buckinghamshire Manager training and resources for managers
              Your Personal Development Plan 
              Template
              Development Goal              Actions Required             Support &                     Success Measures              Target Date
              What is it you want to        Break your goal into         Resources                     What does success look        When do you need or 
              learn/ develop?               manageable steps or          What support or resources  like and how will you            want to put this into 
                                            actions                      do you want to use?           know when you  have           practice?
                                                                                                       achieved this goal?