Once in the C-suite, conduct a career audit to determine your next steps.

In your move up the career ladder to talent development executive, you likely spent time answering the question, “What’s next?” What was the next assignment, next role, or next company to aid your advancement? Upon reaching the C-suite, you’ve probably started asking, “What now?” A career audit can help you find the answer.

Do you still have the right skills?

The underpinning objective of a career audit is to reflect on where you are in your career. Do your current role and company provide you with the challenges and excitement you seek? Do you have the right skills to meet the demands of your daily tasks? Are there opportunities for personal development, and does your workload allow for continued learning?

Simply stated, a career audit documents your short- and long-term career goals, noting the skills required to meet those objectives. It also officially assesses your achievements, capabilities, strengths, and skills gaps. Enter your personal skills assessment.

This is a simple document that clearly lays out all the capabilities you presently have and how advanced those skills are. It also documents new skills you need and any emerging knowledge areas you should pursue. Keep in mind that the talent development know-how that helped you land the corner office may not be the same skills you need to stay there. At the senior level, chances are business acumen, people management, and leadership weigh heavier than talent development expertise. What’s more, technology-related skills you acquired last year may be obsolete next year. It’s no longer good enough to learn about new tech as it emerges—you need to anticipate and prepare for change.

To know whether you still have the right abilities, start by writing down all the skills and knowledge you need to perform your role effectively and efficiently. This should include leadership skills like creative thinking and communication, general business acumen and function-related competencies like budgeting, and a wide array of abilities specific to talent development, from instructional design and training administration to performance consulting and change management. Remember to include knowledge areas or technology that may be on the horizon—such as blockchain, virtual reality, and budding trends in neuroscience—or on your periphery, such as HR- and IT-related tasks and know-how. Next, honestly rate each skill and area of expertise from 1 (low) to 10 (high) in terms of your strength and experience level. Be critical; you may want to ask a trusted individual to review and adjust your scores as needed.

You’ve likely conducted this type of review periodically throughout your career. Remember: Just because you’ve reached the executive level doesn’t mean you can quit taking stock of your skills. At every stage of your career, equip yourself with the information that a skills assessment can uncover so that you can plot development opportunities and fill critical gaps.

Should you pursue a specific credential?

Talent development is not like other functions within your business. The path to the senior level is rarely linear, and there is a wide array of roles—such as instructional designer, training administrator, HR manager, subject matter expert—leading to the profession’s highest ranks. Credentials can play a major role in distinguishing you from your talent development colleagues, as well as in demonstrating your equality with other C-level individuals.

Deciding whether to use credentials is easy; deciding which credentials to pursue is harder to do. Is an industry-specific certification enough? Do you need a formal diploma such as an MBA? Will certificate programs on key knowledge areas be important? The answer is probably yes to all of the above to some extent. To help you chart your credentialing plans, let’s look at the different options and why you need them.

Certificates are typically awarded based on completing training on specific subject matter. You’re likely most familiar with certificate programs for your IT colleagues, but they also have a place in talent development. While certificate programs are typically short term and do not assess how well you learn or can apply that material, there are some exceptions, such as university-sponsored certificate programs or the Association for Talent Development’s Master Series.

Talent development know-how that helped you land the corner office may not be the same skills you need to stay there.

While certificates likely helped open doors along your career path, don’t make the mistake of thinking they no longer have a part to play among the senior ranks. For example, rapid technology advancements will necessitate certificate courses that explore trends like augmented reality and wearables, as well as regular refresher courses in industry standards like virtual classroom technology. Also, although members of your team will be the go-to individuals for certain tasks, they should be able to come to you for guidance. As such, you need to be current on the latest tools and techniques if you want to give the best advice. For example, as talent development relies more on artificial intelligence, you may want to seek out a certificate on data mining.

Certifications enable you to display the all-important letters after your name that attest to your competence in a specific field of study. They are issued by an independent, industry-certified body following some sort of competency assessment. The process is typically rigorous and involves a recertification process to ensure that you are maintaining your skills over time. ATD’s Certified Professional in Learning and Performance (CPLP) is one example.

“The certifying body is, in effect, giving you a stamp of approval,” explains Sue Kaiden, project manager of credentialing for ATD’s Certification Institute. “A certification is proof that you know what you’re doing. It provides external validation that you have the skills needed to succeed.”

You’re in the business of learning, so it’s important to demonstrate to your team and fellow leaders that you take your own learning and course of study seriously. According to Kaiden, a certificate can be just what you need if you’re starting to feel “a bit stale” and “give you greater confidence that you are a subject matter expert.”

Degrees, handed out by educational institutions, signify that someone has completed a course of study in a specific subject. These range from associate’s degrees through doctoral diplomas. If you want to know whether you need a new degree, look at the other executive team members. For example, if other senior leaders in the C-suite all have master’s degrees, you likely need one too. That can take the form of an MBA or something core to the talent development profession, such as a master’s in organizational development.

Do you need to boost your personal wellness?

By some estimates, the average worker will spend approximately 90,000 hours at the office during his lifetime. Making your time there pleasurable and personally gratifying cannot be overstated.

Wellness is subjective, but don’t downplay the impact of physical, mental, and emotional health challenges on work productivity and performance. According to the American Institute of Stress, 60 percent of employee absences can be traced to psychological problems due to job stress. Is there anything you need to change to feel less stressed and more satisfied within your role?

Although you are on your own path to personal wellness at work, there are some common elements among all workers. Assess your wellness by determining how much you agree or disagree with the following statements:

• I am happy with my career and job choice.

• I look forward to work.

• My job responsibilities and duties are consistent with my values.

• My job gives me personal satisfaction and stimulation.

• I am happy with my professional and personal growth opportunities.

• My job enables me to make a difference in the world.

Be honest in your assessment. If you agree highly with these statements but still feel unhappy, it may be time to re-evaluate your work arrangement. This includes environmental factors such as the number of hours you work each week, the length of your daily commute, and your workspace design. After you pinpoint problems, your solution could be as simple as discussing flexible work hours with colleagues and staff. Likewise, if you find that your personal health and relationships are suffering, consider practicing mindfulness and meditation. These will not only help you become more focused, but they also can lower the effects of stress.

If, however, you disagree with most of those statements, re-evaluate your situation altogether. Struggles with your professional wellness can stem from core issues like your company’s culture or individual elements such as job design, relationships with co-workers, and a sense of fairness. In these situations, the good news is that your executive-level role and expertise in talent development put you in a better position than most. Take advantage of your knowledge on these subjects to broach HR and other organizational leaders on how to tackle these problems.

If you’re not ready to move on to a new opportunity but want to find more meaning at your current situation, try finding ways to give back to colleagues. For instance, mentoring a newbie and leading her through job success could be one of the most amazing things you can do with your time at work. Your wellness at work will come from doing work that stimulates and satisfies you and that you care about.

Ryann K. Ellis is a writer/editor for ATD. Contact her at [email protected].

Read more from CTDO magazine: Essential talent development content for C-suite leaders.