An Investigation into the Factors that Contribute to Career Progression

SECTION B
Researcher Name:	Elena Raducioiu
Student ID:	320316
Academic year:	2021-2022
Tutor/ Supervisor:	Victoria Prince
Programme
Research Area	An Investigation into the factors that contribute to career progression

Abstract

The dissertation focuses on the factors that constitute career progression among individuals in the working sphere. First chapter of the dissertation deals with the establishment of the aims, objectives and questions that lead to the support of the choice of the topic. The second chapter has a detailed analysis of the literature review regarding the chosen topic. It reflects the several attributes of the topic and observes the gap present in the literature review. Primary data for the research could be gathered from a sample size of 24. Google forms were distributed over Facebook for the collection of first-hand data and secondary data was collected from trustworthy articles, books and websites for underrating the research phenomenon. The research findings implicate that most of the participants agreed that organisations give opportunities for career progression and that they are satisfied with the opportunities that they receive. Most of them think they have the potential to develop their full potential. Secondary research has revealed that evaluating the performance of the participants, valuable feedback, training and development opportunities and monitoring the employees are practices for effective career progression.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my tutor for supporting my choice of research and providing encouragement for the fulfilment of the same.

1. Introduction

Research Title

The title of the research is ‘An Investigation into the factors that contribute to career progression’

Research Background

Career progression is the inculcation of the professional skills that help individuals to succeed in higherspheres of the role and meet the respectiveobjectives effectively (Tantawy, 2020). It is incorporated with the usage of the resources and knowledge of an individual insolving the challenges and gaining success irrespective of the occurring hurdles. Career progression is importantto earn a professional reputation and have multiple job options that can securestronger references for the same. Several factors are important to assess the career progress of an individual and drive the instincts to attain success. The interest of an individual while switching job roles can be helpful to engage and drive the achievement of success in the working spheres. Identification of the skills of an individualcan be helpful to compliment the talents and gain attributes for personalised career progressions (Rios et al., 2020). Trainingis the imperative sphere of the working environment that can drive the productivityand profitability of the individuals.

The attitude of the employees has a direct impact on thedevelopment of productivity spheres of the same in a working sphere. A positive Attitude can help employees to gain potential career growth whereas a negativesphereleads to the attribution of higherstress levels. The culmination of the above-stated factors plays an important role in shaping the advancement plans that can boost the productivity of the employees. Mentorship and continuous training can be effective to boost the growth of the employees and mitigating the arising issues with ease. Career progression is important to lead the employees in embracing effective teamwork and seeking growth. Acceptance of feedbackandthe presence of higherengagement levels can be helpful to cater for the career progressions spheres.

Aims

The aim of the research is to evaluate the factors that contribute to the progression of the career of individuals.

Objectives

The objectives of the research are formatted below.

• To explore staff awareness about the availability of career progression opportunities

• To identify what mentorship, training and CPD opportunities are available to support career progression

• To identify if staff have accessed mentorship, training and CPD opportunities and if so how have they contributed to career progression

Research Questions

The potentialquestions that have been projected from the research are as follows.

• What is the present awareness among staff regarding the availing of the career progression opportunities?

• Are mentorship, training and CPD opportunities available to the employees that supportcareerprogression?

• Has the staffs accessed mentorship, training and CPD opportunities and how have they contributed to the career progression attributes?

Rationale for the Study

Careerprogressionisthe journey of the individual in aworkplace that demonstrates the mobilityattributedthrough a systematic sphere (Hirayama and Fernando, 2018). It can be summarised as the necessary steps taken by an individualthat helps them in the impartment of their respective careersvia finding and mitigating new challenges in the workplace. Career progression can be represented with the presence of responsibility, success and satisfactionvia maintaining loyalty to the attributed job sphere. It can incorporate pay rise, added responsibilities and can result in the successful entrepreneurial journey of an individual. Career progression is important in a workingsphere to reduce the employee turnover rates and increment the promotional avenues to boost the productivity of the same (Hambly and Bomford, 2018). Moreover, employees are cratered with a huge boost of morale and motivation via the attribution of career progression and enabletheorganisations to reduce the costrequired for the managerial recruitments. It has immense importance tothe new workers and the employers and is attributedto numerous challenges and obstaclesthat can boost the respectiveengagement and connection of the day-to-day work and activities.

Numerousorganisations are engrossed in developing professional plans that can help employees to attain monetarygains and certificationopportunities. The attributed awareness among the employeesrelated to the development of their respective careers is nominal in modern times and areconfined within the sphere of changing jobs to cater for success. However, the implementation of proper mentorship, training and CPD programs can helpemployees to cater theirattributed development effectively. Mentoring can be effective to boost the leadership skills of the employees and helping them receivecareerguidance (Sibiya, 2019). Formal mentorshipis effective to improve the extensionknowledge and skills of the employees and help with the advancement of their respective experiences.

Training forms an important attribute to acquire the essential skills that are required to get success on the long-termgoals and enlarge the skill sets effectively (Ogar and Atanda, 2021). Several organisations indulge in providing the employees with proper development spheres to inculcate creative thinking and managing people. Continuing ProfessionalDevelopment (CPD) can be associated with the activity tracking and documentation of the attributed skills, experiences and knowledgegained by individuals (Owen et al., 2020). It is effective to maintain and improve the knowledge, competence and expertise of the individuals that cater to the development of the personal and professionalattributes effectively. The topic has been chosen by the researchers to tests and analyses the importance of awareness among employees regarding the careerprogressionattributesorganised via several companies and discuss the benefits of the same.

Structural Overview

In this research project, a detailed analysis will be performed on the literature attribute of the chosen topic. The nextpartwill deal with the extensive analysis of the methodology that will be used by the researchers to conduct the analysis. Findingsof the research will form the next sphere of the dissertation and will include the clearest interpretation of the evaluatedinformation. Next, a detailed discussion and interpretation of the findingswill be evaluated to assess the review of the methods included. Lastly, the dissertationconcludes with a conclusion and recommendationsthat can help in the development of careerprogressionattributes.

2. Literature Review

Introduction

Literature review as stated by Paul and Criado (2020),can be identified as the academic writing piece that demonstrates knowledge and understanding of a given topic and leads to the critical evolution of the same. It provides the readers with a detailed overview of the given topic and increments the knowledge levels. Career progression can be identified as the necessary steps initiated by an individual to gain advancement of compensation, skills and titles to gain attributes success as stated by Kobus-Olawale et al. (2021). In this literature review, a detailed analysis will be performed on the concept, opportunities, theoretical and the role of numerous spheres leading to career progression in companies.

Concept of Career Progression

Career progression is the potential sphere that leads to the increment of the productivity and portabilitylevels of an individual. The concept of career progression originates from the ideology of promotion of individuals in the working sphere those results in the advancement of the position and challengesaccording to Mugaa et al. (2018). In the professional sphere, one can indulge in understanding the importance of the envisioning of the goals and attribution ofnecessarystrategies that can be helpful for the achievement of the same. Career progression terms the severalfactorsthat can be related to the determination and catering of the professionalambitions and goals. It can be beneficial to determine and improve the skill sets and lead to the mitigation of the arising hindrances in the working spheres. Career progression is extremely important to preventmediocrity and job dissatisfactions that can decrement the overall productivity of the employees. According toGustafsson et al. (2018), career progression can be helpful to cater numerousopportunities that can help in goal setting and managing responsibilities and upgrading the livelihoodstandards.

Several challenges are incorporated with the attribution of career advancement and can be mitigated via the application of numerous strategies. According to the reports published by Indeed (2021), the development of confidenceamong the employees can be effective to solve and tackling the advancement barriers. Often the absence of challenges and lack of interest of the employees degrade their interests in gaining information about the progression opportunities. Career progression can be accomplished via the proper definition of the end goals and creating an appropriate timeline that can be diverted in achieving the same. It plays an important role to regale the employee satisfaction and retention rates in an organisation via the decrement of the turnover limits.

Opportunities for Career Progression

Career development helps in the restoration of employee motivation, efficiency via the providence of ample opportunities according to Szabó-Bálint (2019). It can help an individual to reach multiple dimensions of professionalismvia the attribution of networking andcontinuous advancement. Opportunities can help the employees to attain leadership responsibilities and increment their respectiveannual incomeeffectively. Several opportunities can be beneficial to boost the performance of the employees and cater advancement to render their personal and professional skills efficiently. Networking events as evaluated byMeyer et al. (2021), can allow professionals to care for and maintain long-lasting relationships and attribute unique job opportunities. Industry training courses have an impeccable influence on the businessdecisions in context to the performance of the employees in the company. It can be beneficial to include and attribute knowledge of the industry and the market and the present capabilities of individuals to establish the required virtues to gain success in the personal and organisational attributes.

Mentorships can help in the providence of detailedinsightsabout the development of one’s career and encourage individuals to challenge them. Mentors according toDashper (2018), can help in the attribution of value, successes and personality development to reflectprofessionaladvancement. Internships can help individuals to explore the different job opportunitiespresent in the industry and assess the importance of the same in regulatingdurability in the long run. Performance reviews can be incorporated with the attribution of the weakness and the growthopportunities of an individual in context to the feedbackpresented by the managers or others. The promotion of proper training and development among the employees in severalorganisations have catered to the development and fulfilment of the employeegoals and supported the maintenance of the work-life balance. Opportunities are important to structure the personal and social attributes of the individual and help them to gain success in their respective fields and competencies.

Theoretical Perspective of Career Progression

The inculcation of several theories can lead to ample development in the career sphere and lead to the attribution of enormous growth. Frank Parsons’ Trait and Factor Theory is the identification of the marchingcharactertraitsnamely skills, personality and values that can lead to the modification of ideal job factors of work and pay stated byYunus et al., (2018). It operates under the measurement of the individualtalents, skills and attributes requirements by jobs to maintain equilibrium between both spheres. The model attributesthreesteps that aim at the basement of job satisfaction and success in the long term goal orientation described by Refugia (2021). A detailed study of the individual along with the survey of the respective occupation and lastly matching the same with the attributes can help in the popper assessment of the development stages. The higher levels of fitting and durability of the employee in context to the personal skills and jobs can help in the attainment of the higher sphere of satisfaction and success. It helps in the perseveranceof the idea thatrelatestheachievementandgrowthopportunities in a job are based on the skill, personality and value of the individual.

The GROW model is based on the development of a coaching framework that deals with meetings, conversations and leadershipdecisions that unlock the possibilities and potential of growth of an individual. GROW model stands as an acronym for Goal, Reality, Options and Will of the individuals and attributes tremendous development in the personal and professional spheres as noted byRestu (2020). The Goal attribute of the theory sheds light on the identification of the aspirations that led to the attainment of success via the higher level of energy and motivation among individuals. Reality assesses the current situations and the existential gap between the attributed objectives and the same. Options lead to the culmination of the imaginative and logical attributes that can lead to the accomplishment of breakthrough insight of success according to the reports of Pountney et al., (2021). Lastly, itwill lead to the inculcation of specific actions and timeframes that can help with the maintenance of accountability and reporting of the specified personal and professional goals. It can help in the promotion of confidence and self-motivational spheres within the individuals but can hamper the performance orientation of the same.

Role of Mentoring, Training and CPD in Career Progression

The attributes of mentoring, training and CPD play an important role in assessing and regulating necessary strategiesthatcan lead to the overall career progression. Mentoringas discussed by Dashper (2019), can lead to continuous development attribute among the professionals and mentors and can prove support to the attainmentofsuccess and growth. Mentors arethe trusted advisors that help in the providence of support for the development of new competencies and can navigate unstable environments. They are attributed to the production of challenging ideas that can help in the mitigationofhindrancesand illuminateinnovationvia attributioncommunication skills. Mentoring can help individuals to gainbenefit from the professionalnetwork and overcomeobstaclesvia the identification of the developmental objectives. The culmination of mentoring activities can help individuals to seek success in a broader perspective and develop several skills.

Trainingcan be attributed to the overall development of an individualwiththe implementation of upskilling programs that leads to the development of the competencies. Curtis and Lovett (2021) stated that training can be inculcated with the development of new areas of expertise that can be effective to gain personal and professional development effectively. In modern times, training is evolved within the workingspheres to grow the experience and knowledgelevelsand cater development through online learning points. It can be effective to acquire knowledge and competencies that can lead to the daily execution of the tasks and promote a faster and more efficient pace to gain the respective goals. Implementation of propertraining can be beneficial for the working individuals to develop and increment their respective productivity and profitabilitylevels and attainexceptional success.

CPD helps in the attribution of formalandinformal success via the implementation of initial training for the individuals. Srinivasacharlu (2019) described Continuing ProfessionalDevelopment (CPD) refers to the processing of tracking and the documentation of the knowledge and skills thatincrement the experience of individuals. It allowsindividuals to cater careerprogression to regulate the achievement of job securities and higher salariedattributes. CPD enhances the abilityof individuals to cater development and improve the existing expertise to get development. The main features of CPD are related to the identification of the needs of the individual and planning of the development activities to cater for growth. It allows an individual to reflect and develop personallearning criteria and apply the same to attributecareer progressions.

Strategies used by organisations for Career Progression

Career progression can help in the permutation of effective spheresthat can lead to the overall development of an individual catering to personal and professional development. Career progression strategies are effective to develop skillvaries and integrate the diverse work experiences that can help on the overallimprovement of one’s professional spheres according to Pham and Saito (2020). These strategies can be helpful to incrementengagement in the organisational sector anddrive the profitability and productivity rates of the same. The attainment of competencies in the current employee sphere can help organisations to make effective decisions and rate the presentperformance of the employees. Attribution of proper focus on the development of theexistingcapabilities can improve the employability chances of an individual in the future prospectus. Development of new skillsvia the attribution of mentoring processes can help in the enhancement of one’s performance in the subsequent strata of the working peripheral as remarked by Shen et al. (2019). The proper introduction and inculcation of image, reputation and suitabilitysphere can be effective to attribute several rewards. It can help in the development of trust of the employers in anindividualvia catering the past performances, experiences and accomplishments effectively.

Self-reflection can be recognised to be extremely effective to shed light on the personal levels and the work balance and help in assessing the right roles for the same. Moreover,Carey et al. (2020)stated that the setting of short term goals can be effective to cater impeccable success and gain success in the achievement of respective triumph. Short term goals are extremely important to evaluate the position in the career ladder and set the next step and develop timelines for the accomplishment of the respective attributes. Career coachingis effective to train individuals about the necessary skills that can cater for success and lend focus on the soft skilling spheres thatled to the development of creative thinking and rational decision making. Several career coaches as demonstrated by López-Flores et al. (2021), can help to attain a sharp focus on the prospects and possibilities and cater phenomenal development. The development of a strong network can be effective to get the attributed job and maintain professional specifications in the enormous connected world. Maintenance and nurturing of the larger network spheres can be useful to reach out to the individualwith comparable jobs and gain the attention of the companies in respect to the industry trends. Lastly, the presence of long term vision and the idea of solidification of the same can cater to career progression among individuals and help themto attain success and fulfil their objectives.

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework holds account of the different themes of the literature review.

Figure 1: Conceptual Framework

(Created By the learner)

Literature Gap

The literature review failed to highlight the necessary strategies that can be effective to cater to personal and professional development among individuals in the digital sphere. It failed to assess the recommendations that can be effective to cater career progression via maintaining the equilibrium of personal and professional lives of individuals. Moreover, Industry-specific data was not reflected in the literature review.

3. Methodology

This methodology chapter will discuss the methods that have been followed for the purpose of data collection in the research. It will inform about the research approach and philosophy that was involved in the research. Additionally, the ways the data for the research has been analysed will be documented in this chapter along with the ethical values that this research has abided by will be mentioned.

Research Philosophy

Research philosophy is a large area and there are different types of research philosophy. It can be classified into four major types: pragmatism, realism, interpretivism, and positivism. Among them, positivism and interpretivism are mostly used for the purpose of research. In this particular research, a positivism philosophy was included as it is objective and based on the principle that there must not be an irrationaljudgement of science that is value-free. Positivism research philosophy adheres to the fact that any factual knowledge gathered from the measurement of an observation can be trusted. It depends on observations that are quantifiable and can be statistically analysed (research-methodology, 2022). A positivism philosophy however is completely different from that of interpretivism philosophyand involves subjective methods over objective ones in research conduction. An interpretivism research philosophy makes an assumption that language, shared meanings, consciousness and similar other social constructions can enable access to reality. Emphasis is on a qualitative rather than quantitative analysis in an interpretivism philosophy. It allows gaining a deeper understanding of the phenomenon but is a complex method when compared to positivism philosophy (Pham, 2018). A great room for bias is linked to the interpretivism research philosophy, as it is subjective in nature. Additionally, this positivism was considered over interpretivism research philosophy as data here is impacted by the personal opinion of the participants and thus generalising the findings is extremely difficult.

Research Approach

Inductive and deductive approaches are the major classification of the types of research approaches. This research has involved identifying the factors contributing to career progression have considered a deductive research approach. A deductive research approach includes the formulation of hypotheses regarding the research outcomes and conducting the research. However, in the end, rejection or acceptance of the hypothesis might be the consequence. The method of reasoning in this research begins from general toward specific. Additionally, using a deductive approach provides the opportunity to explain the impact a variable has on others. The inductive research approach involves observing a phenomenon at the beginning which is followed by the formulation of theories in the end. An inductive research approach is the polar opposite of the deductive approach and specific to general is the type of reasoning involved here (Woiceshyn and Daellenbach, 2018). Although an inductive research approach encourages divergent thinking for the solution of the research problem it might lead to wrong conclusions if the prior observations are incorrect. Lastly, the major reason for following a deductive approach is the high level of objectivity associated with the same.

Research design

A descriptive research design was used for the identification of factors that contribute to the professional development of the employees. In a descriptive research design, the researcher's aim is to gather information to explain the phenomenon, population, and situation or event being explored. A research problem can be understood in-depth using a descriptive design and behaviour can be determined in a natural setting by adhering to this design. It provides the chance of integrating two types of data collection qualitative as well as quantitative. An accurate situational profile can be obtained with the application of a descriptive reach design (Rahi, 2017).This research design is advantageous over an exploratory design, which is considered to have vague needs for data. An exploratory research design only intends to explore the questions of research without making any conclusive statements about the same. More explorations of a phenomenon generate information that is qualitative in nature and thus are subjects of bias in a study. As the number of advantagesassociated with the descriptive research designis greater, it was involved in the study conduction.

Research Method

In order to conduct the research, a mono method was adhered to where only a quantitative research strategy was involved for the primary data collection of the research. A mixed-method is one that involves using quantitative and qualitative methodology. A mono method of research is a simpler one when compared to the mixed method, which is high in complexity and leads to unnecessary confusion within the research. Additionally, a mixed-method selection could have increased the amount of time consumed in data collection and interpretation of the same accordingly.

Research Strategy

The research strategy selected for this research was a survey, rather an online survey was done using Google Forms. An online survey helps eliminate the probability of the research participants giving socially desirable replies or responses to the research questions asked. Moreover, the collection of a large number of data is possible quickly through the method of survey (Nayak, and Narayan, 2019). Thus, when there are time constraints this survey strategy can be effectively collected using an online survey. For the primary data collection, an interview method was not taken into consideration because it can incorporate bias within research. Additionally, conducting an interview is more time consuming when compared to the survey method of data collection. Verifying the truthfulness of the responses is also difficult in case of an interview and the same might lead to unpredictable outcomes thus hampering the overall research. Online surveys are low cost and overall more convenient than interviews. Google forms have been used for the online survey over Facebook as it reduces paper-pencil work, the possibility of shuffling questionsis possible and leads to the automatic formulation of graphs based on theresponse collected (Sazonova et al., 2018).

Facebook was selected as the online platform for the distribution of the surveyquestionnaire in this research. The major cause behind the selection of Facebook as the channel as most people across the world have a Facebook account and therefore can be easily accessed through this platform. According to Statista (2022), Facebook is the market leader among the social networking sites that has surpassed a billion accounts being registered. Globally, Facebook has over 2.89 billion active users of the application curly every month. With the assumption that selectingFacebook can provide the researcher with a large number of responses, this was chosen as the most potential platform for collecting data online.

Data Collection Method

Primary data for the research has helped the collection of current responses of the participants in understanding the research phenomenon. With primary data collection,first-hand information can be gathered and therefore consideration of this method was involved. A quantitative method was followed for the collection of primary data, where mathematics and statistics are involved in gathering and analysing the obtained information (Basias and Pollalis, 2018). Followinga quantitative research approach in collecting data is beneficial for it is objective and ensures that the data can be generalised to the population being studied. It is less subjective when compared to qualitative methods of data collection like interviews.In a qualitative method of data collection, subjective constructs like human emotions and feelings are considered which can disrupt the research findings by increasing the levels of bias (Rahman, 2020).

Secondary data was also collected for the underrating of factors that contribute to the progression of the career of individuals. In the secondary method of data, collection information about the research phenomenon is gathered from articles, books websites, newspapers, and magazinesthat are published either long back or recently. In the present case recent articles, magazines and websites were considered for the collection of secondary data which could be freely accessed from the internet. As the information gathered for secondary data collection has followed exploring trustworthysourcesavailable from googlescholarand authentic websites it can be assumed that it has enhanced the validity and reliability of the research (research methodology, 2022). Qualitative secondary data was gathered for the purpose of understanding the phenomenon as it helps develop greater insight into the research.

Data Analysis

The primary data for the research was interpreted using a frequency distribution analysis method. In this analysis method, the data of the research is represented in a tabulated form which has a well-organised outlook. Graphs are also used for representing the data of the research. One flexible approach to analysing the secondary qualitative data of the research is a thematic analysis method (Braun and Clarke, 2019). In this method qualitative themes of the research are identified which is followed by analysing them. This method is referred to as flexible as it can be applied to quantitative findings even after being considered more effective for analysing qualitative data. A holistic understanding of the phenomenon being explored is also possible due to the use of this research analysis technique. Another method of analysis of qualitative data is the comparative analysis method. In a comparative analysis, the similarities and differences that exist between the different findings of a research are identified andcompared with one another. An issue can be betterunderstood with the application of a comparative method of analysis (indeed, 2021). However, it might be difficult to compare the findings if they are drastically different leading to poor research outcomes can result. Therefore, thematic analysis was conducted for the obtained secondary data of the research.

Sample size and sampling technique

An online survey questionnaire of the research was distributed to a sample size of 40 employees through the popular social media channel, Facebook. However, only 24 responses could be gathered from the administration of the survey. A simple random technique was used where every member of the population is given an equal opportunity to be included as a research participant. Consideration of this sampling method is a consequence of the link it has with providing a fair and appropriate representation of the population. It is additionally a bias-free sampling technique when compared to non-probability methods of sampling. A purposive sampling that involves sample selection based on the sole judgement of the researcher was not involved as it has the probability of incorporation of bias within the sample selection method.

Ethical Considerations

Ethics in research implies that the reach has followed human moral principles and has abided by fair practices that in no way have harmed the society or the participants involved (Bos, 2020). Following ethical principles in research helps maintain honesty and prohibits any instance of fabricating the responses of the participants in the research outcome. Most importantly, the researcher has protected the collected data of the research by abiding by the Data Protection Act. At the start of the questionnaire was attached a consent form which involved them that their participation will be voluntary and on agreeing to the same they participated in the rest of the research. Confidentiality of the collected data was maintained and others did not have any access to the same. This research has involved maintaining high levels of objective standards and no unfair methods of data manipulation were done.

Chapter Summary

The chapter on methodology leads to the conclusion that a positivist research philosophy and deductive research approach were included for understanding the factors that support the continuous professional development o employees. The research design followed here was a descriptive one for it allows describing a phenomenon in detail. Primary quantitative data was collected for the research using a survey strategy. Online survey questionnaires with Google forms were distributed to the research participants over Facebook, which is the most popular social media site that people across the globe are engaged in.

Although 40 questionnaires were distributed 24 data could be obtained for the research. The sample in the research was selected using a random probability method of sampling. Secondary qualitative data was collected from authentic published books, texts, websites and articles for enhancing the validity of the research. Thematicanalysis and frequency distribution analysis for secondary and primary data collection were respectively done. Finally, it can be stated that the research has made use of objective methods and ethically fair practices were involved in data administration, maintenance and protection.

4. Findings

1. Do you agree to the above declaration statement?

Figure 2: Declaration Agreement

Analysis: The table above represents that all the participants of the research agreed to the declaration and proceeded with giving data.

2. Age

Figure 3: Age

Analysis: Among the 24 respondents 25% each were from the age groups of 18-24, 25-34, 35-44 and 45-54. No participants could be included belonging to the age ranges above 54.

3. Sex

Figure 4: Sex

Analysis:From the pie chart it is evident that 50% of the participants were female and 37.5% were male with the rest 12.5% of the participants preferred not to mention their gender.

4. What is the highest level of qualification you hold?

Figure 5: Qualification

Analysis: The graph above implies that 33.33% of the participants of the research possessed a degree equivalent to masters while the other. 20.8% each receive no formal education and possessed GCSE, NVQ 2 equivalent degree. Rest either had an honours degree or AS level NVQ 3 equivalent qualification.

5. What is your annual income?

Figure 6: Annual income

Analysis: The majority of the participants is 33.3% were found to have an annual income of £0-£9,999. The next common range for annual income was £10000-£19999.

6. Do you know what Continuing Professional Development(CPD)means?

Figure 7: CPD awareness

Analysis: 58.3% of the participants of research participants were aware of the concept of CPD and 41.7% mentioned that they do not have an idea about the concept of CPD.

Satisfaction

7. Are you satisfied in your current position?

Figure 8: Satisfaction

Analysis:The figure represents that 83.3% of the respondents were satisfied with their current positions however 16.7% of them were not satisfied.

8. Why are you not satisfied with your current position?

Figure 9: Dissatisfaction reason

Analysis: Salary was the major reason behind employee dissatisfaction as stated by 50% of the participants of the research. 25% each stated that poor work-life balance and absence of career progression is the cause behind their dissatisfaction. However, only 4 participants responded to this question.

CPD

9. Does your organisation support you in training and CPD opportunities?

Figure 10: CPD support

Analysis: 70.8% of the research sample mentioned that organisations support their training and opportunities for CPD. 29.2% stated responded no to the same question.

10. Did you complete an induction programme with your current organisation?

Analysis: Among the research participants, 79.2% of them stated that they have completed the induction process with their current organisation.

11. Which of the following have you accessed?

Figure 12: Opportunity accessed

Analysis: 62.5% of the sample of the research had accessed internal training courses while 37% had accessed external training courses. 29.2% of them mentioned they accessed CPD and Network.

12. Have these opportunities helped your career progression within the organisation?

Figure 13: Opportunity is helpful

Analysis:It is believed by 79.2% of individuals that are the majority that opportunities provided to them has helped in their career progression.

13. Are you satisfied with the opportunities provided by the organisation for your professional growth?

Figure 14: Growth opportunity satisfaction.

Analysis: 33.3% of the respondents agreed and 25% strongly agreed that were satisfied with the opportunities that are provided by their organisation for the career growth and progression of the employees.

14. Is your promotion and careerpath clear to you?

Figure 15: Career Path clear or not

Analysis:The promotion and career path are clear to 75% of the respondents but not clear to 25% of them.

15.Do you feel that your manager has clearly defined your rolesand responsibilities and how they contribute to the success of the organisation?

Figure 16: Roles and Responsibilities

Analysis: According to 79.2% of the participants, their managers have clearly defined their roles and responsibilities and the ways they contribute to organizational success. 20.8% of the sample mentioned that their managers have not adequately defined their goals.

16. I understand the criteria I must meet to be promoted

Figure 17: Promotion criteria

Analysis:Criteria to be met for being promoted are understood by 25% of the participants as motioned by their strong agreement to the same. Others were also found to agree that they understand the promotion criteria. 25% remained neutral and 4.2% resemble the disagreement trend.

17. I can predict my future career path in this organisation by observing other people's experiences

Figure 18: Prediction ability

Analysis: Prediction of future career paths could be predicted by 95.8% of the participants through their observation regarding experiences of other people.

18. I am satisfied with my chances for promotion

Figure 19: Satisfaction Chances for promotion

Analysis:70.8% of the participants in this research were satisfied with the probability of their promotion. Not all were satisfied with their probability of promotion and 29.2% of the sample comprised of such individuals.

19. Does your organisation support you in exploring your professional interests and goals?

Figure 20: Organisational support

Analysis: 91.7% of the participants were of the opinion that their organisation support them in exploring their goals and interest but the rest mentioned No.

20. I have the opportunity to develop to my full potential

Figure 21: Development potential

Analysis: It was mentioned by 83.3% of the participants that they have an opportunity for developing their full potential. The rest 16.7% stated that they do not have the opportunity for developing their full potential.

21. Does your company provide high standards of training?

Figure 22: Training standards

Analysis: A trend of agreement and strong agreement was evident with respect to whether the companies provide the employees with high training standards.

22. My company puts a high value on employee satisfaction

Figure 23: Employee Satisfaction

Analysis: As per 33.33% of the participant’s strong agreement was observed with the fact their organisation values employee satisfaction.

Secondary Data

Themes	Findings	Article name	Author name and year
Concept of Career progression	The process of simply climbing the work-life ladder can be referred to as career progression. It involved getting the most out ofone’s career, moving forward or being promoted. It can be designed as gradual progress towards better jobs along with staying in the current roles and responsibilities as well.	Professional Career Progression - How To Get Ahead	Pushfar, (2022).
	Career growth or progression refers to advancement in one’s career as a result of training, development advancement and opportunities for promotion. Careergrowthopportunities are a base for employee and organisational relationships. Career development opportunities allow fulfilling own needs and that of the organisation.	Effects of career growth on employees performance: A study of non-academic staff of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike Abia State, Nigeria	Dialoke, and Nkechi, (2017).
Mentorship, CPD and training opportunities for career progression.	Offering online courses for career advancement, accepting and giving feedback to the employees of the organisation. Career progression can be supported by the organisations through payment for educational courses and arranging the same based on employee aspirations. Training programmes and development opportunities are varied ways for the career growth of the workforce.	Council Post: 10 Ways Managers Can Support Employee Career Growth, Forbes.	Forbes, (2021).
	Evaluation of the employee performance or appraisal, training and developmentprogrammes for removing any skill gap that exists can be beneficial learning opportunities in the career progression of the workforce in any organisation. Expertise can be developed through these CPD methods and monitoring the performance of the employees	Challenges facing continuing professional development (CPD) of academic staff of the colleges of education in Ghana	Yaqub, et al. (2020).

Table 1: Secondary Data Findings

(Source: Created by the learner)

Secondary Data Analysis:

Theme 1: Concept of Career progression

The initial theme of the research has involved evaluating the concept of career progression and growth. Secondary data of the research reveals that climbing up the ladder of work-life is considered a career progression (Pushfar, 2022). Bring promoted, moving forward and getting out most of one’s career for being successful can be considered a crucial part of career progression. Working life can be steered up in a particular direction as a result of career progression. Dialoke, and Nkechi, (2017) mentioned advancement in one’s career due to the availability of training and development. Career progression or growth opportunities ensure the well-being of both an individual employee and the organisation. Moreover, career progression opportunities tend toserve as the base for effective relationships between the organisation and employees.

Theme 2:Mentorship, CPD and training opportunities for career progression.

Forbes (2021) opined that offering online career progression courses, accepting and giving feedback to the employees care promising ways for career growth of the workforce. Other important practices that can be involved according to them are organisations arranging for educational courses based on employees’ aspirations and training opportunities. On the other hand, Yaqub, et al. (2020), mentioned that appraising the performance of the employees and timely evaluation for the same along with training to eliminate skill gaps are beneficial methods ensuring carer progression. As a result of these CPD practices expertise among the staff can be developed along with appropriate monitoring of the performance of the workforce.

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Appendices

Survey Questionnaire.