Career Planning - my story!

Sudah agak lama saya tidak menulis mengenai a HR topic. HR =Human Resource. And I am a HR pratitioner. I started my career as an Engineer in 1983. However, from year one I wanted to be a HR Leader. I walked into the office of the Director of HR at my first place of employment and asked him what does it take to be a HR Director like him. I was 26 years old. Alhamdullilah, I achieved my ambition when I was 36, and was also the youngest member of the Board for the company.

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My boss, the Chairman of the company said this to me when he broke the news of my promotion, "You don't look excited?"

I replied, "With this comes responsibilities, and I am thinking on how to give my best to you and the company!"

Then I added, " I am also thinking about my next career move!"

To which he said, "Yes, you have come far....and I am sure now you can see further. Find the destination you want to be....and work on it like you have been doing!".

That said.....! I was ready to move on.

I moved to another company in search for fresh challenges and opportunities to work on global stage. That was my next ambition - to be an International player.
Alhamdullillah, by age 44 I became an expats with a reputable Anglo-Dutch company. I have since travelled on business to more than 45 countries. I have held senior positions responsible for two separate regions; Asia and Middle East & North Africa. I have lived in three different countries outside of Malaysia.

In this entry, I want to share my own experience of climbing corporate ladder. Hopefully, it can be of help to a few of my readers.


1. Step one is to know Your Interest

- I was an engineer, having graduated with a technical degree. However my interest has been humanity and working with people. My values include to give something to others; helping them and making them happy.

- I strongly suggest everyone to dive into your value system. What makes you happy? What do you want your legacy to be?

- A famous quote, "If you do somethingyou really enjoy doing - you do not have to work another day!".

2. Know you strength
- I realize that I was good with people. Emphaty comes naturally to me. I am also perceptive and cosiderate. I am a good listener. And I am considerd helpful by others. My personality makes people find me approachable. I am also analytical, and have a passion for action and results.

I have a flair for creativity. In short, I know my strentgh - creative, people insights, and relationship building.

- What are your strengths. Be comfortable in talking about them. Seek feedback from others. Verify your own perception of self. Do others see you the same way you see yourself. What is it that others know about you which you don't know. Find out, pause and reflect.

- Leverage on your strength. Find a career which make use of your strength. Change course if necessary. Your climb will be faster, if you find an area which uses your notable strength rather than trying to improve areas of your weaknesses.

3. Know your weaknesses
- I am not good with details, neither am I interested. I prefer the big picture and concepts. It does not mean that I can't write an engineering paper, I can and did. But it was not my area of natural strength. Why force it? A squre peg is not meant for a round hole!

- My point about knowing your weaknesses is to avoid falling into the trap of trying to improve them. I do not believe in being an all rounder or jack of all trade and master of none. I believe in being a master in a few areas where you are naturally strong.

- If you must go for training, choose subjects where you are strong and be even stronger. Be the best you can be. Be world class! Afterall, Tiger woods never pretended to be Pele!

4. Know what you want to be

- I was specific. I wanted to be the HR Director, and within ten years.

- You too need to take destiny into your own hands. Be very specific of what you want to be. Visualize a clear picture of what that 'position' looks and feels like.

- If you are now a project manager, and you want to be a CEO of a company. Visualize the 'CEO' you; what will your office looks like, who works for you, what car will you drive, and what will make you successful. Be very clear in your own mind. Be even clearer on 'why' do you want to be a CEO. That will bring you down to your own values. Even, take time to describe your vision to your spouse. Add, modify that picture as you gather more information and has become clearer. Make it your dreams; in waking and sleeping time. Be paranoid about it.

5. You need luck, but you also need planning !

- I spent three years as an engineer, with a six months secondment to the HQ in Dallas Texas. I collected sufficient brownie points as an engineer to earn a promotion. Then I spend four years in the operations as one of the unit heads. This gave me management experience. When I graduated with a post graduate diploma in HR management ( part time studies ), the management saw how serious I was in pursuing my ambition. I studied HR formally to have a good foundation of knowledge to support my ambition.

- I asked the HR Director to mentor and coach me as a manager. In doing so, not only did I learn from him, but I also build relationship with him. I 'exposed' myself to one of the key decision makers as far as my career was concerned.

- I kept reminding my boss and the HRD of my ambition to be in HR. When there was a vacancy, I was offered a lateral move and was appointed one of the HR section managers. I flew with the opportunity and got myself ready to be a strong candidate for a HR Director, within the firm but also in the open employment market.

- I had both technical experience and management experience, and had sufficient track records of leadership and delivery.

- I suggest that you focus on getting both TECHNICAL ( Skills ) and Management ( Leading team, planning and controls ) experiences. Have both depth and breadth in your experience portfolio.

- Involving key decision makers in your career planning is essential. Make them partly responsible for your development. I use pro-active words here instead of waiting for things to come to you or waiting for invitations to arrive. Go get them! You need their help.

7. Career Milestones

I consider the following as significant milestones in my career.

- Moving from Technical to Management.

- Completed my post graduate diploma to support my declaration of ambition.

- Zig Zagging my way up between Operational roles and Corporate or Head Office roles.

- To leave my first company and join another - different culture, different vision and values, different opportunities, all of which only made me a better professional.

- To have stayed long enough in a role but not to long! My tenure in any role has been between 3 to 5 years. Long enough to have left some legacy behind and not too long to be a blocker to others and to be complacent.

- Have your own career milestones. Plan for them and go achieve them.

8. Involve your spouse / family in decision

- At everystep, along the way I involved my wife and my children in decisions. They need to be just as excited as me in moving to new places. Plan for schools, housing, circle of friends and social activities together.

- Each person need to know and feel the benefit for them - from the move! And this is up to you !

9. Keep at it! Don't give up.
-There were challenges along the way. Office politics which try to make your life miserable. Bosses which do not share the same values as you. Colleagues who back-stabs. Lots more.

-The important this is to have your eyes on your destinations, and take the opportunity with ever obstacles to renew your resolve to get there.

-Build allies, and beievers. You need people who support you and speak well of you. You can't walk alone, not in a corporate world.

- Be prepared to take one step back, if that will enable you to move three steps forward.

- Be true to your values. Do not sell your soul for the sake of your career. Make your conscience and principles your best allies.

10. Pray!
-As much and as often as possible, pray! Believe in your heart, "Allah Kareem".

ps: To the person who requested me to write something about career, I apologize for what I have written here falls short of your expectation.

---catch up with the Bazaar Ramadan update here.