Career conversations and development plans at work (paths, promotion readiness, upskilling)

A ready-made course you customise for your organisation, with a live session deck and two surveys. You only add the 13 details that are specific to your organisation.

Length
35 min
Lessons
6 lessons
Frequency
Each development-review cycle
Last reviewed
21 Oct 2026
Promotion readiness and skills gaps
What would you do?

An employee asks, "Will I be promoted this year?"

Try it: this is one of 19 interactive activities in the course.

What's included

Three pieces that work together

Copy once, get everything. Learners prepare on their own, you answer questions live, and the surveys tell you what stuck.

Self-paced course

Short lessons with real workplace scenarios, not walls of text.

  • 6 lessons, about 35 minutes
  • Process, scenario, tabs, sorting activity and quizzes

Live session deck

An AhaSlides presentation to run after the course, in person or online.

  • 10 slides
  • Quiz, word cloud, poll, scale slides
  • A closing slide for your contacts

Two surveys

Find out what landed, and whether people use it on the job.

  • Post-course feedback, about 2 minutes
  • 30-day check-in
  • Anonymous by default
  • Results feed your next refresher

Learning objectives

At the end of this course, learners can

Each objective and the lesson that covers it.

IDObjectiveSourceWhere it's covered
TO 171.0Achieve ≥ 80% on the final assessment-Whole course
SO 171.1Explain how a career conversation differs from an appraisal and why it is held separately + your infoBest practiceWhole course
SO 171.2Read the organisation's career paths and level expectations and place your own role against them + your infoOrganisation's career frameworkWhole course
SO 171.3Write a development goal that is specific, evidence-based and within the employee's control, and turn a skills gap into development actionsBest practiceWhole course
SO 171.4Hold a promotion-readiness conversation honestly without promising an outcome + your infoBest practiceWhole course
SO 171.5Choose upskilling options and agree a review date with the employee + your infoBest practiceWhole course

Your part: what a template can't do for you

  • Your workplace details: fill in the 13 highlighted fields so the course describes your own policies, contacts and locations.
  • Records: record completion in your own LMS or record system.

Course outline

6 lessons, about 35 minutes

Minutes per lesson are an estimate, shared out by page count.

ContentInteractiveVideoYou customise
1

Why a career conversation is not an appraisal

3 pages

7 min
Before you beginNoteList
Two meetings, one calendar slotTextImage
What was missing?ChecklistKey factQuiz
2

Career paths, levels and what is expected

3 pages

6 min
Reading the frameworkTabsYour infoNote
Where am I?Sorting activity
CheckFlashcardsMatching quiz
3

Writing a development plan

3 pages

6 min
Five stepsProcess
A good development goalAccordionNote
Is this a development goal?Sorting activityQuiz
4

Promotion readiness and skills gaps

3 pages

6 min
An honest readiness conversationTimeline
Match the gap to the actionFlashcards
CheckScenarioQuiz
5

Grey areas, upskilling and speaking up

3 pages

6 min
Grey areasScenarioYour info
Upskilling optionsTabsYour infoTable
Who to askProcessYour infoYour infoYour infoNote
6

Your plan and final assessment

2 pages

4 min
Your next stepsProcessYour info
PracticeQuizKey factNoteButtonYour info

Live deck and surveys

10 slides to run live, two surveys to close the loop

Pink slides are interactive. Both surveys are anonymous; pink questions are written for this course.

ContentTitle, agenda, "this is a conversation about the future, not a rating
Word cloudOne word for what you want from your next two years at work
PollWhen did you last have a conversation about your development?
ContentAppraisal versus career conversation in two columns; the five steps of a development plan
QuizA good development goal is… "Be better" · "Get promoted this year" · "Present at one team meeting by June" ✔ · "Make my manager happy
QuizAn employee asks, "Will I be promoted this year?" Best answer? "Yes" · "Here is how decisions are made, here is the evidence, here are actions" ✔ · "Ask HR" · "No
Content · customiseCustomise: our career framework" with {{CAREER_FRAMEWORK_LINK}}, {{DEVELOPMENT_PLAN_TEMPLATE_LINK}}, {{LEARNING_CATALOGUE_LINK}}, {{HELP_CONTACT}}
ScaleHow confident are you holding or preparing for a career conversation?
Open-ended / Q&AOne question about careers here
Content · customiseClosing {{HELP_CONTACT}}, {{SURVEY_2_URL}}, {{COURSE_URL}}
Post-course feedback: 11 questions, about 2 min
  1. Overall rating 5 stars
  2. Relevant, realistic, right length, helpful activities agree/disagree grid
  3. What was most useful? multi-select
  4. Confidence before this course, and now 1-5 scale
  5. Which part is still unclear? multiple choice
  6. How clear are you about what you can and cannot promise in a career conversation? 1-5 scale
  7. Which course should come next? ranking
  8. I feel I can raise my career goals with my manager. 1-5 scale
  9. One thing we should change or add open text
  10. Would you recommend this course? NPS
30-day check-in
  1. Have you used what you learned since the course? multiple choice
  2. How confident are you today? Compare with day 1 1-5 scale
  3. Do you know where to find the career framework and the development plan template? yes / no / not sure
  4. A moment where the training helped, or where you weren't sure open text
  5. Which topics should the next refresher focus on? ranking

Results show whether people use the training on the job, not just whether they finished it.

Make it yours

13 fields to fill in, and you're ready

Everything else is done. These are the details only your organisation knows; each one is highlighted inside the course.

  • The organisation's career paths, levels and expectations{{CAREER_FRAMEWORK_LINK}}
  • The organisation's development plan template, if any{{DEVELOPMENT_PLAN_TEMPLATE_LINK}}
  • Where employees can find courses and development options{{LEARNING_CATALOGUE_LINK}}
  • What the organisation can and cannot fund{{DEVELOPMENT_BUDGET_GUIDANCE}}
  • Help contact{{HELP_CONTACT}}
  • Policy link{{POLICY_LINK}}
Show all 13 fields
  • Escalation route{{ESCALATION_ROUTE}}
  • Next course link{{NEXT_COURSE_LINK}}
  • LMS or record system{{LMS_OR_RECORD_SYSTEM}}
  • Survey 1 URL{{SURVEY_1_URL}}
  • Survey 2 URL{{SURVEY_2_URL}}
  • Course URL{{COURSE_URL}}
  • Live session URL{{LIVE_SESSION_URL}}

FAQ

Common questions

Can I run career conversations and development plans at work (paths, promotion readiness, upskilling) training online?

Yes. The course is self-paced and online, and the live deck lets you add a live session in the room or online.

How often is this training needed?

Each development-review cycle, when a career framework is launched, and for new managers before their first career conversation.

Who needs this training?

Employees, managers holding career conversations, HR business partners and talent teams; run by talent management, HR and L&D.

What records should I keep?

Record completion in your own LMS or record system, so you can show who finished the course and when.

Can I edit the content?

Yes, everything. Change the wording, swap scenarios for ones from your workplace, add your logo, or remove parts that don't apply.

Ready to run it?

Open the live deck to see how the session runs alongside the course and both surveys.