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August 2016

User Guide

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Introduction The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Career Path Tool (CPT) is intended to

empower FEMA employees to take their careers into their own hands—to identify what is

important, to create goals based on an understanding of personal and organizational

objectives, and to guide development toward attainment of those goals. In the end, satisfied

and productive workers help to create a more enjoyable and efficient workplace as we strive

to mitigate disasters together.

Using a six-step career development process (see Figure 1), the FEMA CPT organizes and

structures career information and provides users with resources and guidance to manage

their careers.

Figure 1. Six-step career development process

You may use this tool to view typical career paths and the ways in which they interconnect.

The tool also allows you to explore paths within specific occupations and to build a

customized career path that suits your goals, interests, and aspirations. The tool also

provides detailed career guidance for each career transition. This guidance includes brief

summaries of job responsibilities for positions of interest and the key competencies

necessary for success in that position. In addition, the guidance draws upon FEMA’s FOCUS

learning model to identify beneficial activities that are available to support professional

development (see Figure 2).

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Figure 2. FOCUS learning model

It is important to remember that this tool is a planning and developmental resource and that

following any of the advice or recommendations provided in or in conjunction with the tool

will not impact selection decisions or performance reviews. For prospective employees, the

tool can act as a portal through which one can explore the career opportunities available at

FEMA, assess the match with personal aspirations, and even begin developing proficiencies

in the sorts of competencies that are key to FEMA’s mission. For current FEMA employees,

the information obtained from this tool is a great conversation starter and can be used to

facilitate discussions about your development with a supervisor or mentor. To this end, you

are encouraged to consult with a knowledgeable supervisor or mentor to better understand

the developmental guidance gleaned from the tool relative to your personal goals,

experience, and competencies.

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Summary of Features and Capabilities This User Guide summarizes the features and capabilities of the tool and provides detailed

instructions on how to use the tool and maximize its value.

This table provides a brief summary of the current FEMA CPT capabilities.

Career Maps The Career Maps page illustrates the career paths associated with

each occupation. Note: Additional career paths will be added over

time.

Career Path

Builder*

The Career Path Builder is intended to help you define a personalized

career path:

Build a customized career path

Learn about competencies to develop

Identify beneficial developmental activities

Download, save, and print career path content for all paths in a

personalized progression

Resources The Resources page contains numerous links to helpful information

for current and prospective FEMA employees.

Help The Help page contains information regarding the FEMA CPT and how

to use and interpret the information provided by the tool.

Experience

Evaluation

The Experience Evaluation page provides users with methods to offer

feedback on the tool, including overall satisfaction ratings and

comments on the site’s functionality and utility.

* Building a career path is one of the six steps in the career development process. Support

for the other steps is accessible only to current FEMA employees. These features include:

Self-reflection activity

Career path assessment

Career goal planning activity

Support for requesting input from feedback providers

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Getting Started How to Log In

Some features of the tool are available to Guest users; however, to complete the six-step

career development process shown in Figure 1 and to unlock the full range of the tools

features, you will need to create an account. Users may log in by selecting the “Career Path

Builder” or “Log In” tabs on the main navigation menu. Selecting either link will take you to

the Log In page (see Figure 3). Note: You must have a valid FEMA email address to create

an account.

Figure 3. Log In page for FEMA users and guests

Select this

link and

follow the

instructions

on the

subsequent

Register

page to

create an

account.

Creating an account

and logging in as a

user unlocks

additional features

and functionality.

Guest users can view career

maps and career resources,

and build (but not save)

career paths.

Select the “Career Path Builder” or “Log In” tabs located on

the main navigation menu to access the Log In page.

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Register 1. To register, enter your

personal information and a unique password in the appropriate fields (see Figure 4).

2. Select the “Questions” button to open the security questions section (see Figure 4).

3. Use the available drop-down menus to choose three questions from the list of security questions and provide answers that you will be able to remember (see Figure 5). These questions will be used to verify your identity if you forget your password or need to reset it.

4. Select “Register” (see Figure 6).

Figure 4. Register/Create user account page

Figure 5. Security Questions

Figure 6. Register

Only a FEMA

address will be

accepted when

attempting to

create an

account.

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When your registration is complete, your user data will be sent to the administrator to verify

your email, and a confirmation email will be sent to you.

Remember: Check your email for this confirmation – it may go to a spam or junk

folder (if this happens, you must move the email to your inbox in order to make the

link contained in the email live and selectable). If you do not confirm your email

address using the link provided in the confirmation email, you will not be granted

access to the CPT. You will need to register again or enter the tool as a Guest.

Once you have a confirmed account, you can log in using your FEMA email address. After

logging in, you will automatically be directed to your User Dashboard, where you will have

access to all the features and capabilities of the tool.

To exit the tool, select Log Out from the navigation menu.

Note: For security purposes, the system will automatically log you out of the tool

after 20 minutes of inactivity.

If you are not ready to create an account or if you are not currently an employee with a

FEMA email address, you can enter the site as a Guest. However, you will only be granted

limited access to features within the tool (i.e., only Step 2 of the six-step career development

process). As a Guest, you can view career path resources and download and print PDF

information and forms.

User Dashboard

From the User Dashboard, you can access the pages that correspond to the six steps in the

career development process (see Figure 7).

Figure 7. Career Path Tool User Dashboard

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Below is a description of each step. Additional information for each step can be found in the

section corresponding to that step, starting on page 8.

Step 1: Reflect on Your Goals

The self-reflection activity found on the Reflect On Your Career Goals page

provides a way to identify your personal strengths, motivations, and desired job

characteristics to better understand your career interests and aspirations.

Step 2: Career Path Builder

The Career Path Builder module, beginning on the Career Path Builder home page,

allows you to explore the career options that align with your career interests and to

build a customized career path. This module features interactive elements designed

to help you learn about the competencies required for positions you are interested in

pursuing.

Note: You can also access this page from the main navigation menu.

Step 3: Career Path Assessment

Completing a self-assessment on the Career Path Assessment page allows you to:

Rate your proficiency and compare your ratings to the recommended proficiency

in the key competencies required to advance to the next position.

Identify gaps and select the competencies you would like to develop further.

Identify developmental activities for each selected competency.

Step 4: Career Goal Planning

The Career Goal Planning page provides an opportunity to develop short- and

long-term goals based on the developmental activities you have chosen and to

identify strengths and challenges you might encounter while pursuing your goals.

Step 5: Collect Career Feedback

The Request Feedback page allows you to ask for feedback about your skills,

experience, and saved career path from the feedback provider(s) of your choice.

Step 6: Pursue your Career Goals

The Pursue your Goals page helps you learn more about the next steps you can

take in the pursuit of your career path and career goals.

From the User Dashboard page, you can also view your saved career paths and monitor

feedback requests that you have made and received. Additionally, you can edit your user

profile data and access user resources (see Figure 7).

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Career Maps The Career Maps page is a good place to

start when you use the CPT. You may

access this page by selecting the “Career

Maps” tab. This page displays the career

maps currently available in the tool

associated with each functional area and

depicts typical career paths.

First, select the appropriate “career type

(i.e., Disaster or Steady State) to display a

drop-down menu of associated functional

areas. Next, select a functional area of your

choice to view the associated career map.

Figure 9 displays the career map for the

Human Resources functional area.

Note: Additional career paths will

be added over time. The CPT does

not provide an exhaustive inventory

of every career move available to

you. The career paths presented

within the tool may not be available

in every region or office.

Figure 8. Listing by functional area of career

maps that are currently available in the CPT

Figure 9. Example career map for Human Resources

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STEP 1: REFLECT ON YOUR CAREER GOALS The self-reflection activity found on the Reflect On Your Career Goals

page allows you to focus on where you are in your career and what you

currently have to offer. It guides you through the process of self-reflection by providing a

structured way to think about what motivates you, what your strengths are, and what job

characteristics are most important to you. Using this information, you can identify the

opportunities for career advancement in which you are most likely to succeed.

You can then save and/or print your self-reflection. Consider discussing the results of your

self-reflection with a mentor or coach.

Once you complete this page, be sure to select “Save.” Next, select the “Career Path Builder”

button to continue to the Career Path Builder home page.

Note: Completing the information on this page is optional. If you choose to skip this

section, you can go directly to the Career Path Builder home page by selecting the

“Career Path Builder” button at the bottom of the screen, the “Career Path Builder”

tab on the main navigation menu, the “Career Path Builder” link associated with the

user icon drop-down menu, or the “Career Path Builder” link on the User

Dashboard.

Remember: You can access the Reflect on Your Career Goals page from the drop-

down menu of the user icon or from the User Dashboard by selecting “Reflect On

Career Goals.”

STEP 2: CAREER PATH BUILDER The Career Path Builder (accessible via the main navigation menu) can be used to explore

your career options and to develop a customized career path to help guide your

development. When using the Career Path Builder, you have the option to enter as a guest

or to log in using your FEMA email address.

Users who log in with their FEMA email address will be able to save their career paths within

the system for future reference. In contrast, guest users will need to save their career paths

on their local workstations in the downloadable PDF format.

Part I — Identify Your Starting Point

Scroll to the bottom of the Career Path Builder home page until you see the options to

start building your path (see Figure 10). You may identify your current position by either (a)

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searching for your position by name or (b) browsing for your position from a provided list.

The specific mechanics of these functions are demonstrated in Figures 11, 12, and 13.

Figure 10. Drop-down options for identifying current position

Option (a): Search for Position by Name

1. Type your position title into the search field. Note that even partial text entries will return results (see Figure 11).

2. Highlight and select the appropriate position from the list of those provided (see Figure 11).

3. Select “Continue” (see Figure 11).

Figure 11. Drop-down options for identifying current

position

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Option (b): Browse Positions When using this method, you will gradually converge on your position through a series of increasingly specific selections.

1. Start by indicating your Career Type –— that is, whether your position is a Disaster role or Steady-State (see Figure 12).

2. Select your Functional Area (see Figure 13).

3. Select your Career Track (see Figure 13).

4. Select your Current Position (see Figure 13).

5. Select “Continue” (see Figure 13).

Figure 12. Browse positions 1

Figure 13. Browse positions 2

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Part II — Adding Positions to Your Personal Career Path

Build a personal career path comprised of up to four positions. As you add positions, they

will appear in a horizontal sequence across the top of the page.

Figure 14. Your current position

Related career tracks and positions will be displayed in the space below. The career tracks

and positions will be updated based on the last position you added to your path. In this

example, the Entry-Level HR Specialist (Classification) position is dictating the tracks and

positions displayed. Note that the only positions displayed are those that an individual is

likely to be able to transition directly into from the last position added to your path.

Your current position as identified in Part I. The “1” indicates

that this is the first position in the path you are building.

These are “career

tracks” that can be

transitioned into from

the last position added

to your personal career

path. In this example,

the last position added

to the career path is the

Entry-Level HR

Specialist

(Classification) position.

These boxes represent

the specific positions

within a career track that

can be transitioned into

from the last position

identified in your path.

There will always be at

least one position for any

track displayed;

sometimes there may be

more, as shown in the

Management/Program

Analyst track.

This number indicates

that you are currently

reviewing options for the

second position in your

career path. This

number updates as you

add positions. It is

possible to add up to

four positions.

Figure 15. Elements of the career builder

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Selecting a position title (i.e., a box) will open a position summary pane that provides a brief

position summary and key competencies.

Select the position title

to display a position

summary.

As shown here,

selecting

“Competencies”

displays a list of key

competencies for the

position.

Selecting the checkbox

next to a competency

will display the definition

for that competency.

Figure 16. Summary pane 1

From the summary pane, you may also add the position to your path or compare it to other

positions.

Select a

position for

comparison. Add a position to

your path.

Figure 17. Summary pane 2

Compare Positions: You may compare up to three positions simultaneously with a side-to-

side view of position summaries and key competencies (see Figure 19). You must identify at

least two positions to perform a comparison. Use the “Compare Position” button to select a

position for comparison.

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A position will then be added to the comparison queue (see Figure 18). As noted earlier, this

can be repeated up to three times.

Positions selected for comparison. Selecting

the “X” in the top corner of a box will remove

that position from the comparison list.

Clear all

positions from

the comparison

list.

View a side-to-side

comparison of the

summaries and

competencies for the

selected positions.

Figure 18. Position comparison mechanics

Figure 19. Position comparison example

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Add Positions: To add positions to your career path, select the “Add Position to Builder”

button in the summary pane (see Figure 17). Note that after doing this, the screen updates

to reflect the addition of the position to your path and any new career tracks and positions

available as next steps (see Figures 20 and 21). You can add up to three positions (not

including your current position) to a path.

These represent the position

in your path that is currently

being explored.

Position

options update

to reflect the

last position

added to your

path.

Remove position(s) from your path and revert

to a previous step in the building process by

selecting an earlier position in your path, i.e.,

selecting 1 here would remove 2, “Full-

Performance HR Specialist (Classification)”

from your plan and return you to the part of

process shown in Figure 21.

Together, these

represent the

positions you have

added to your path

thus far.

New career tracks

may emerge as

options when you

add positions.

Figure 20. Elements of the career builder 2

Figure 21. Elements of the career builder 3

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After a position is added, two new options become available at the bottom of the screen:

“Save Career Path” and “Start Over” (see Figure 22).

Figure 22. Save Career Path and Start Over options

Start Over: Selecting “Start Over” will return you to the Career Path Builder home page.

Note that if you do this without first selecting “Save Career Path,” none of the positions in

your current path will be saved.

Save Career Path: You must be logged in to save a career path. Once you

have built and saved a career path, your path will be accessible from the

Career Path Builder home page and the User Dashboard, as shown in Figures 24 and 25. A

third and fourth option, “Career Path Assessment” and “Print Career Path,” also become

available after saving a career path. As explained in subsequent sections of this Guide, the

Career Path Assessment can help you identify your developmental priorities.

Figure 23. Save Path, Start Over, Career Path Assessment, and Print options

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Print a saved

career path.

Delete a saved

career path.

Figure 24. Accessing, printing, or deleting a

saved career path from the Career Path

Builder home page

Figure 25. Accessing, printing, or deleting a

saved career path from the User Dashboard

Note: Users may create and save multiple personalized career paths. All saved career

paths are accessible via the Career Path Builder home page.

Print Career Path: Saved career paths can be printed from the Career Path

Builder home page, as shown in Figure 24, or from the User Dashboard, as

shown in Figure 25.

Delete Career Path: Saved career paths can be deleted from the Career Path

Builder home page, as shown in Figure 24, or from the User Dashboard, as

shown in Figure 25.

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STEP 3: CAREER PATH ASSESSMENT The Career Path Assessment page allows you to complete optional self-assessments to

identify your level of proficiency in competencies related to each transition within your

desired career path.

To understand how the assessment process fits into the broader career planning and

development process, it is first necessary to understand the basic elements that make up a

career path.

A career path is a sequence of positions you select and is made up of two or more positions

and one or more transitions. For instance, think about the example career path referred to

throughout this guide, which goes from Entry-Level HR Specialist (Classification) to Full-

Performance HR Specialist (Classification), from Full-Performance HR Specialist

(Classification) to HR Team Lead (Classification), and from HR Team Lead (Classification) to

Supervisory HR Specialist (see Figures 26 and 27). This hypothetical path would be made up

of four positions: Entry-Level HR Specialist (Classification), Full-Performance HR Specialist

(Classification), HR Team Lead (Classification), and Supervisory HR Specialist; and three

transitions. Therefore, in this example, you would be able to complete three separate

assessments corresponding to the three transitions within the path.

The four positions that make up the hypothetical career path described above.

These are the three transitions within the hypothetical career path described above. Users

have the opportunity to complete a separate competency assessment for each transition.

Figure 26. Components of a career path

Step 1: Navigate to the Career Path Assessment page.

You can proceed directly to the Career Path Assessment page after creating and saving a

career path by selecting the “Career Path Assessment” button at the bottom of the builder

screen (see Figure 23). Alternatively, you can select the “My Assessments” link from the

drop-down menu of the user icon (located on the far right of the main navigation menu;

shown in Figure 25), or the “My Assessments” link on the User Dashboard (see Figure 7 or

Figure 25).

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Step 2: From your list of Saved Career Paths, select the career path for which you would like

to complete an assessment (see Figure 27).

Step 3: From the drop-down menu of your selected career path, select the icon associated

with a transition for which you would like to complete an assessment (see Figure 27).

Remember: Your career path may be made up of multiple transitions, and each

assessment addresses a single transition.

Figure 27. Initiating an assessment

Step 4: Review the competency definitions and use the radio buttons to rate your

proficiency level on the set of provided competencies (see Figure 28).

During an assessment you will use a five-point scale to rate your proficiency-level on a set

of competencies. The competencies displayed in the assessment are directly tied to the

destination positions that make up the selected transition (see Figure 27). The CPT will

generate a gap report that summarizes the difference between your current proficiency level

and the recommended proficiency level for the destination position, allowing you to target

specific developmental needs.

All saved

career paths

serve as drop-

down menus

here. An

individual

career path

may be made

up of one or

more position

transitions.

You can

perform a

separate

assessment

for each

transition.

Select this icon

to begin an

assessment.

You can

conduct an

assessment

for each

transition in a

saved career

path.

Destination positions Origin positions

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Select the competency title to open a side panel window for a competency description and

a listing of competency behaviors. Select the drop-down menus for additional information

(see Figure 28).

Figure 28. Elements of an assessment

If you have additional competencies that are not listed for which you think you need

development, use the text field at the bottom of the page to document those areas (see

Figure 29).

Select a

competency

name to

open a side

panel

window, as

shown here.

Select drop-down menu headings for

more information.

Select “Competency Behaviors” for

a listing of behaviors that require or

exemplify the competency.

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Figure 29. Elements of an assessment 2

Once you complete your self-ratings, select “Save” (see Figure 29). Then, select “Next” to

continue to the following section—the gap report.

Gap Report

Gaps are determined by comparing your self-rating to the recommended proficiency for the

destination position. Use this page to identify gaps in your proficiency for each competency.

As with the assessment itself, this is an optional activity.

After you review the gaps, select the competencies that you would like to focus on developing

and then select “Save Competencies.” Finally, select “Next” to continue on to selecting

developmental activities related to your selected competencies.

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Use these

boxes to

select

competencies

you would like

to focus on

developing.

Figure 30. Gap report and competency selection

Selecting Developmental Activities

After selecting the competencies you would like to develop as part of the gap report, you

are now able to select specific developmental activities to engage in to improve those

competencies. Once you have selected developmental activities, select “Save Activities.”

After saving development activities, select “Career Goal Planning” to continue on to Step 4

in the career development process.

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Each competency

you selected as

part of the gap

report function has

drop-down menus

which contain

developmental

activities broken

out in terms of the

FOCUS learning

model.

Within each

competency, each

category of the

FOCUS model

also functions as a

drop-down menu.

Some activity

descriptions are

lengthy. To view

the full

descriptions, you

expand the text

box using the

corner tab.

Use the check

boxes to select the

developmental

activities you

would like to

pursue.

Figure 31. Selecting developmental activities

Note: It is important to remember that it is recommended that you allot different

amounts of time to different sorts of learning activities as categorized by FEMA’s

FOCUS learning model (see Figure 2).

Select the “Print” button if you would like to print a copy of the developmental activities

you selected.

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When you have completed your Career Path Assessment, consider discussing the results

you obtain from these pages with a coach or mentor to help you in your career

development.

Remember: You can access the Career Path Assessment page from the drop-down

menu of the user icon or from the User Dashboard by selecting “My Assessments.”

Note: Selecting developmental activities is optional but recommended.

STEP 4: CAREER GOAL PLANNING The Career Goal Planning page provides you a place to document your short- and long-

term career goals based on the developmental activities you chose during your Career Path

Assessment. Use the questions and prompts on this page to help identify specific goals.

Once you have finished the goal-planning activity, select the “Save” button and then the

“Request Feedback” button at the bottom of the page to continue to the next step.

Figure 32. Career Goal Planning page

Note: Completing the information on this page is optional.

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Remember: You can access the Career Goal Planning page from the drop-down

menu of the user icon or from your User Dashboard.

STEP 5: FEEDBACK Soliciting Feedback

The Request Feedback page can be reached via the User Dashboard or by selecting the

“Request Feedback" button at the bottom of the Career Goal Planning page and allows

you to ask for feedback on any one of your saved career paths. Feedback providers will be

asked to offer feedback on your selected career path and to complete a competency

assessment corresponding to the specific transition you select from within your selected

career path.

You are required to share your entire selected career path (i.e., all positions and the order of

those positions) with all individuals from whom you solicit feedback. Additionally, you are

required to solicit more detailed feedback on a specific transition within your career path.

Similar to the self-assessment process, the feedback provider will be asked to rate your

proficiency levels in the competencies associated with your selected transition. You may

only request that a feedback provider complete assessments on your behalf for transitions

on which you have already completed a self-assessment. Consequently, you must complete

an assessment for at least one of the transitions within a saved career path in order to solicit

feedback on that path.

Remember: A career path is a sequence of positions you select and is made up of

two or more positions and one or more transitions. An assessment is related to a

single transition within a larger saved career path (see Figures 26 and 27).

Note: Although you must complete a self-assessment to solicit feedback on the

associated career path, you are not required to share your self-assessment ratings

with those from whom you solicit feedback. You may choose to share or not to share

your self-ratings with a given feedback provider by using the “Allow colleague to

view your competency ratings” checkbox shown in Figure 34.

In addition to the career path, you have the option to allow the feedback provider to view

your self-reflection, self-assessment ratings, and/or your career goal planning activity (see

Figure 34). Sharing these additional items may serve as useful contextual information for the

feedback provider and improve the quality of the feedback he or she is able to give you.

You can select up to five individuals from whom to solicit feedback. You do not have to

share all information with all individuals—you can selectively grant feedback providers

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access to your competency ratings, self-reflection, and/or career goal planning activity on a

person-by-person basis.

Step 1: Select a saved career path and a transition within that path on which to solicit

feedback.

When you access the Request Feedback page, a side panel window automatically opens

from which you can select a saved career path and a specific transition with that path to

submit for feedback (see Figure 33). If you close the side panel, you can re-open it by

selecting the “Assessments” button. From the drop-down menu, use the “Select” button to

identify an assessment to solicit feedback on.

Use these

buttons to

select a career

path as well as

a specific

transition within

a career path

on which you’d

like to solicit

feedback. Only

the blue

“Select” icons

are active.

If you close the

“Select a Saved

Career Path

and Transition

for Feedback”

side panel

shown here,

use the

“Assessments”

link to re-open

the side panel,

and to view and

select

assessments on

which to seek

feedback.

Saved career

paths function as

drop-down menus

and contain

selection options

for any completed

saved assessment.

You cannot ask that a feedback provider complete an

assessment related to a transition in your career path on your

behalf until you yourself have completed a self-assessment for

the given transition. If the “Select” button is greyed out, it means

that you have not completed the assessment associated with

that transition and therefore cannot solicit feedback on it.

Figure 33. Select a career path on which to solicit feedback

Step 2: Identify what type of item(s) you would like to share with a given feedback provider

using the available checkboxes (see Figure 34). You are required to share the Career Path

and you must have completed an assessment related to that path in order to solicit

feedback (you cannot uncheck those boxes). At your discretion, you may also choose to

allow the feedback provider to view your assessment results (how you rated your proficiency

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on the given competencies), the self-reflection, and/or the career goal planning activity

sheet.

Items that you have completed and that you are capable of

receiving feedback on are designated with a green thumbs

up. You may select multiple items simultaneously.

Items that you have not completed and therefore cannot

solicit feedback on are designated with a red thumbs down.

Use the check boxes to

select items on which to

solicit feedback.

Figure 34. Select items on which to solicit feedback

Note: You can share different information with each rater. This step is repeated for

each individual rater; you are only granting permissions to one rater right now,

although, you are able to grant all raters access to the same materials if you so

choose. If this is unclear, reading Steps 3, 4, and 5 below will likely clarify the process.

Step 3: Identify an individual from whom you would like to solicit feedback.

Complete the fields with the personal information of the feedback provider you would like

to invite to review your career-path-related documents. You can use the “Search” button to

look up the name of a feedback provider who has a FEMA CPT account. Please note that the

search feature is case sensitive.

Note: If the person you identified is not a registered user, you will receive a pop-up

notification prompting you to provide their email address and the button “Add

Colleague” will appear (see Figure 35). Selecting “Add Colleague” will add this person

to the Invited Colleagues table.

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Use this button to add a registered

user’s email address automatically.

If the individual you identify is not a

registered user, you will receive a

notification and be asked to enter an

email address.

Notification that

the identified

person is not a

registered CPT

user.

Figure 35. Requesting feedback from a colleague that is not a registered user

Step 4: Add the person to the “Invited Colleagues” table and, optionally, write a

personalized message that will accompany your invitation (see Figures 36 and 37).

Once you enter the feedback provider’s email address (Step 3), use the “Add Colleague”

button to add this person to the “Invited Colleagues” table. If you would like to include a

personalized message with your invite, you must compose that in the provided field before

selecting the “Add Colleague” button.

Note: After adding an individual to the “Invited Colleagues” table, the “Send” button

will turn blue and become selectable; however, if you wish to simultaneously send

feedback requests to multiple people, you should not select “Send” until you have

added all the individuals (up to five) from whom you would like to solicit feedback.

User Guide

29

Note: Any access rights you selected using the checkboxes in Step 2, and any text

entered in the personalized message field at the time you select the “Add Colleague”

button will be associated with the identified individual.

Selecting the “Add Colleague” button

will cause the identified person to be

added to the Invited Colleagues

table, as shown in Figure 37.

Select and drag the

bottom-right corner to

enlarge the visible area

of the personalized

message field.

Figure 36. Adding an individual to the "Invited Colleagues" table

Repeat Steps 2 – 4: Do this for each person from whom you would like to solicit feedback

(see Figure 37). You may simultaneously solicit feedback from up to five individuals. In other

words, you can add up to five people to the “Invited Colleagues” table at a time. If you do

not wish to send all of your feedback requests right now, or if in the future you decide you

would like to solicit feedback from more or different individuals on this path and transition,

simply repeat the entire five-step process. Upon returning to this page, the “Invited

Colleagues” table will be blank, allowing you to invite a new set of up to five people.

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30

Remember: You may selectively grant feedback providers access to your competency ratings,

self-reflection, and/or career goal planning activity on a person-by-person basis.

The information entered in Steps 2, 3, and 4 can be customized for each colleague you invite.

Whatever information is selected or entered in these steps when you select the “Add Colleague”

button dictates who you invite, what information the individual you’re inviting has access to, and the

optional text that accompanies your feedback request. If you forget to respond or update any of

these items prior to selecting the “Add Colleague” button, you may always remove a colleague from

the table and then re-add him or her with adjusted permissions.

Colleague added to the

“Invited Colleagues” table

after you select the “Add

Colleague” button.

The

“Send”

option

becomes

available

after at

least one

colleague

has been

added.

Adding someone

to the “Invited

Colleagues” table

causes

information to be

cleared from the

identification and

message fields.

You must enter

this information

for each person

from whom you

wish to solicit

feedback.

Selecting

“Cancel” will

erase any

information

you have

entered on

this page and

return you to

the User

Dashboard.

Figure 37. Soliciting feedback: Steps 2 - 5

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31

Step 5: Send feedback request(s).

When you finish identifying colleagues from whom you would like to receive feedback,

simply select the “Send” button (see Figure 37).

Select the “Send” button to send feedback invitation(s) to all individuals in the “Invited

Colleagues” table.

Remember: You may write personalized messages and provide different types of

information to each rater—this is something that you do prior to adding an

individual to the “Invited Colleagues” table, as described in Steps 2 and 4 above.

Note: The entire five-step process can be repeated if you would like to solicit

feedback from more individuals on your currently selected path and transition or if

you would like to solicit feedback on other career paths and transitions.

View, Track the Status of, or Delete Feedback Requests You Sent

View and track the status of all feedback requests you have sent to others by selecting the

“Feedback Requests” drop-down menu located on the User Dashboard (see Figure 38).

The checkmarks

indicate that you shared

a particular type of

information with a given

feedback invitee.

If a feedback invitee declined your

feedback invitation, the “Declined” column

will display a “Yes.”

You will receive an

email notification when

a feedback invitee

completes feedback on

your behalf. When this

happens, the date that

the request was

completed will be

shown in the Feedback

Request table and the

“View” icon will appear.

Use the “View” icon to

review the feedback you

have been provided.

Selecting the

“Delete” icon will

remove the

associated

invitee from the

“Feedback

Requests” table.

Figure 38. Feedback requests: view, track, or delete feedback requests

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Delete a Feedback Request You Sent: If you select “Delete” (see Figure 38) before the invitee

completes a request, then that invitee will no longer be able to view any of your career path

materials or complete feedback on your behalf. If you select “Delete” after the invitee has

completed your feedback request, then you will no longer be able to view the feedback this

particular invitee supplied and the invitee will be removed from the “Feedback Requests”

table.

Review Feedback Someone Else Completed on Your Behalf

From the User Dashboard, select the “Feedback Requests” drop-down menu (see Figure

38), then select the “View” icon associated with a given feedback provider to navigate to the

View Rated Assessment page (see Figure 39). The “View” icon will only appear for invitees

who have completed feedback on your behalf.

Use the “Competency Ratings” drop-

down menu to view the proficiency level

ratings provided by the feedback invitee.

The “Proficiency Ratings” drop-down menu provides

a side-to-side view of your self-assessed

competency ratings, the feedback invitee’s ratings,

and the recommended proficiency levels.

The “Feedback”

drop-down menu

allows you to view

text responses the

feedback invitee

provided to a set

of career-

development-

related questions.

Select the “Print” icon to generate a complete

and print-ready PDF version of this feedback.

Figure 39. View Rated Assessment page

Note: While a feedback provider is actively engaged in completing feedback on your

behalf—the period between when the provider has accepted the feedback request

but has yet to complete and submit feedback on your behalf—the self-assessment

related to the transition for which you requested feedback will become locked. This

means that you cannot change your self-assessed competency proficiency ratings for

that transition (see Figure 40). The assessment will unlock when the invitee

completes the feedback request.

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While a feedback provider

is actively engaged in

completing feedback on

your behalf, the self-

assessment you completed

related to that transition will

become locked.

Figure 40. Locked assessment example

View, Decline, or Complete Feedback Invitations You Receive

You will be notified via email whenever you receive a feedback invitation. You may view all

feedback invitations you have received on the User Dashboard (see Figure 41).

The checks in these columns indicate what type of

information the feedback inviter shared with you.

Selecting the

“Accept” icon

will redirect you

to the Career

Path Feedback

page where you

can view the

inviter’s career

path information

and provide

feedback.

Figure 41. Feedback invitations: view, accept, or decline feedback invitations

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34

Decline Feedback Invitations: Navigate to the User Dashboard, select the “Feedback

Invitations (Requests From Others)” drop-down menu, and select the “Decline” icon

associated with a given invitation (see Figure 41). A notification will appear at the top of the

screen confirming that you declined to provide feedback (see Figure 42). The decision to

decline a feedback invitation cannot be reversed.

Note: The inviter will be able to see if you decline a feedback invitation (see Figure

38).

Selecting the “Decline” icon will

update the status of this field and

the icon will turn grey, indicating

that no further actions are

available.

Confirmation

that the

feedback

invitation

was

declined.

Figure 42. Declining a feedback invitation

Accept and Complete Feedback Invitations You Received: Navigate to the User Dashboard,

select the “Feedback Invitations (Requests From Others)” drop-down menu, and select the

“Accept” icon associated with a given invitation (see Figure 41). You will be redirected to the

Career Path Feedback page (see Figure 43). Use the available drop-down menus in the side

panel entitled “User Career Path Information” to review the inviter’s career path and any

other information he or she chose to share with you.

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35

The “User Career Path Information” side panel

automatically pops up when you navigate to the Career

Path Feedback page. You do not need to provide any

responses or fill anything out in the side panel; the side

panel merely contains the information the invitee

provided to you.

In this example,

the inviter

shared all

information

types with the

invitee. The

“Self-

Reflection,”

“Self-

Assessment,”

and “Career

Goal Planning”

drop-down

menus will only

appear if the

inviter has

granted you

access to those

materials.

Select the “Close”

icon when you have

finished reviewing the

inviter’s information

and you are ready to

provide feedback.

Figure 43. “User Career Path Information” side panel on the Career Path Feedback page

When you have finished reviewing the inviter’s information and are ready to provide

feedback, select the “Close” icon located in the top-right corner of the “User Career Path

Information” side panel (see Figure 43). On the main part of the Career Path Feedback

page, there are two drop-down menus: “Provide Feedback” and “Provide Additional

Feedback” (see Figure 44). Under the “Provide Feedback” drop-down menu you will be able

to provide proficiency ratings for competencies related to a specific transition (the transition

is selected by the inviter) within the inviter’s career path (see Figure 45). Under the “Provide

Additional Feedback” drop-down menu you will be able to provide more detailed feedback

by providing free-response answers to a number of different questions (see Figure 46).

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36

Select the “Career Path” icon to re-open the

“User Career Path Information” side panel.

Select the “Mark As

Completed” to allow

the inviter to review

the feedback you

have provided.

Figure 44. Career Path Feedback page

Note: If you have begun providing feedback but would like to finish at a later time,

you can save your progress by selecting the “Save” icons located at the bottom of

the “Provide Feedback” and “Provide Additional Feedback Sections.”

User Guide

37

Use the radio buttons and the

descriptions of the rating scale

anchors to rate the inviter’s

proficiency level for the

competencies provided.

Select “Rating

Scale” to view

descriptions for

the proficiency

levels.

Figure 46. Provide additional

feedback

Figure 45. Colleague’s assessment

When you have finished providing feedback select the “Mark As Completed” icon at the

bottom of the page (see Figure 44). Please be aware that you will not be able to make any

changes after selecting the “Mark As Complete” icon and that the inviter will be able to see

all information you have entered on this page.

Note: The feedback inviter will receive an email notification that you completed

feedback on his or her behalf and that the feedback you provided is now available

for review.

STEP 6: PURSUE YOUR GOALS The steps that you have taken to build your Career Path are the first step towards pursuing

your career goals. The Career Path you have built is a plan for where you want to go. Now

you are ready to make that path a reality.

Take the opportunity to complete or revise your Individual Development Plan (IDP) in

light of the information gained from completing, and receiving feedback on, your

saved career path

Follow up on the written feedback you already received on your saved career path

and schedule a conversation with your supervisor, mentor, or coach regarding your

career path results and your professional development goals

Look for additional developmental opportunities within and outside the office you

are currently working in

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38

Complete formal training opportunities available through FEMA’s Learning

Management System

Research formal development programs offered through FEMA’s Employee

Development Division such as the Leader Development Program or the Prism

Mentoring Program

Investigate Department of Homeland Security (DHS) educational programs

Sign up for independent study programs offered through the Emergency

Management Institute

Explore specific opportunities on USAJOBS

Finally, review and chart your progress towards your goals as listed in Step 4: Career Goal

Planning and revise as necessary in order to achieve the career path that you aspire to

achieve.

RESOURCES The Resources page (accessible via the main navigation menu) provides information that

can assist you in your career planning and development. These resources are helpful to

prospective and current employees, managers, and mentors.

Figure 47. Resources page

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39

HELP The Help page (accessible via the main navigation menu) provides resources that facilitate

effective use of the Career Path Tool. Use this page to access the User Guide, to review

Frequently Asked Questions, and to contact the help desk.

Figure 48. Help page

User Guide

40

EXPERIENCE EVALUATION Your input is critical to the success of the Career Path Tool. Please complete the Experience

Evaluation (accessible via the main navigation menu). Share your reactions and comments

to help us continue to improve the Career Path Tool.

Figure 49. Experience Evaluation page

Thank you for using the FEMA Career Path Tool!