Thomas Schambach and J. Ellis Blanton set out to understand why, if professional development is so important to their own careers and corporate performance, don’t more developers do it. They studied quite a few from several organizations and discovered, well, what I expected:
- “…the participants apparently feel their work environments do not adequately link professional competence and performance to financial rewards and promotional outcomes.”
- “This study suggests that professional development affects professional performance through its contribution to enhanced professional knowledge.”
- corporate executives “have to understand the conflicting pressures on IT professionals ad institute programs that mitigate the potential barriers to their professional development.”
- “Since people with strong growth needs are stimulated by personal accomplishment, learning, and mastering a continuous variety of challenging tasks, such people seem well suited for the continuing challenge of professional IT development.”
People with higher modes (end complexity) are more motivate to learn and succeed. Um, wow?
Thomas Schambach and J. Ellis Blanton (2002), “The Professional Development Challenge for IT Professionals”, Communications of the ACM, 45(4):83-87 (April 2002)
Image Credit: “He… buried his face in the hot pillow”. Magazine illustration by Walter Appleton Clark, 1905. Via Library of Congress collection.
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