LORETTA DUNCAN-BRANTLEYAssociate Communications Manager

Microsoft Corporation

Discovering Your Path Through the Maze of Life

Discussion Framework

Profile

Who am I?

Plan

Goals and Commitments (Personal and Business)

Progress

Timeline

Which Road?

Family not willing to view a different lifestyle

Naval Academy vs. HBCU

USN Nuclear Power or children

Air Traffic Control

No passion for the job

Learning Outside of the Box

Military Police Family background with weapons increased my knowledge

Who knew? No problem with ‘hand to hand’ combat exercises

Interior CommunicationsCivilian Life

Librarian? UPS Driver Student Paralegal

Different level of learning Research Introduction to software

Welcome to Microsoft

Welcome to Corporate America

Receptionist vs. Legal Assistant vs. Admin

Time to create a career

Career Goals? What are goals

Goals are S.M.A.R.T.S – SpecificM – MeasurableA – AchievableR – Results Based (also Relevant)T – Time based

Specific

Is it clear what the intention of the commitment is?

What if you don’t have the same manager in a year, would

your new manager understand the commitment?

Could you hand your commitments to your replacement and

have them understand your job?

Measurable

Objectively, how will you (and your manager) determine if the

goal was accomplished?

What does a 3.0 or B grade for this commitment look like (not

a 4.0)?

This is where it helps to be very specific, but also the part that

is most likely to change over the year

Don’t let it change quietly

Achievable

Is it level appropriate and doable in the review period?

Do you believe you can deliver on this commitment?

Do you want to deliver on this commitment or are you saying this

because you think it’s what your manager wants to hear?

Remember you’re part of a team, what is your part of the whole?

Results Based / Relevant

Focus on the result, not the implementation

Can you connect it to your company’s goals?

Can you connect it to department’s goals?

Can you connect it to your team’s goals?

Can you connect it to your personal goals?

What is the real problem you’re trying to solve?

Time Based

Is there a specific deadline (can be “to agreed schedule”)?

Can you divide it into smaller milestones and check-points?

You should have some 3 month, 6 month, 9 month, and 12 month

commitments

Your 12 month commitments will have to be in terms of progress

towards a goal

(at Microsoft we start the review process in May, we receive our evaluation in September)

Common Mistakes

Having only commitments you’re almost done with or are only for the next month or so

Not having business related commitments

Taking on a team-wide commitment as your own

Taking a class is not a goal - Take a class on time management is

Not spending enough time with your manager on these, or expecting them to give you

the right set of commitments

Not keeping your commitments up to date every quarter

Sample Commitments

Attend <xyz> meetings every week

Plan my group’s morale events

Manage the space for my organization

Order equipment for my team

Keep my inbox below 100 unread emails

Get to work at 9:00am every day

Make my manager a better person

How to Grow your Career

First –what things are most important to you and how will your job impact those

things? Do The Research

Read Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For issue

Discover how many women are serving currently as executive officers or on the

Board of Directors of a particular company.

You can find this at http://www.hoovers.com or http://www.freeedgar.com for large companies.

For smaller, local companies, ask them to mail you a copy of their quarterly report. This indicator

tells you how a company really feels about women. If you see a vacuum, run the other way.

Then What?

Second - how does the company view women?

On a formal basis, managers will provide opportunities for visibility; explain and

interpret organizational politics; map out clear developmental goals and support

you in achieving them.

Companies which have embraced "family friendly" and diversity oriented values

will have designed an organization with the staffing philosophy and processes

and development philosophy and processes to support those values.

Finally - Additional Research

Usually management will have credible advocates with positional authority to see that key

people, are not excluded from informal networks.

Within this framework, you have to also do your part.

You must use your career goals as a framework for making choices and taking on change.

You should try to align your career goals with what you see as the opportunities within –

BE PASSIONATE!

Nail It!

Balance specificity and flexibility in career planning.

Be clear about the experiences and accomplishments you need in order

to achieve your career goals.

Be sure to share your career goals as you never know who will help you

with the next opportunity.

Both vertical (mentor) and horizontal (network) relationships have value.

Closing

Become a good student ASK QUESTIONS Share your knowledge I have created a list of organizations that I would suggest that if you find one

that holds your interest, contact them for more formal career planning information.

Create your profile Make your plan Mark your progress

Move ahead!

Tips

For each goal think about all 5 points and don’t stop until your written commitment addresses all 5

You don’t have to take the points in order, sometimes a commitment becomes SPECIFIC by clarifying the other points

It’s a very good idea to first understand the problem you’re trying to fixThe first few times you try this are the hardest, it does get easier with

practiceMake sure you have some stretch goalsDon’t stress about it too much, we all know that goals change over time

and can be fine tuned