Revitalizing Career Development at the Blue Med Group

Abstract

The Global Learning and Leadership Development team at the Blue Med Group (pseudonym), a medical technology company that employs approximately 95,000 staff members in more than 150 countries, sought our help in reviewing their online career development portal’s effectiveness. Our research examined how the Blue Med Group’s current online career development portal impacts its employees’ professional development, engagement, recognition, retention, and internal upward mobility, and how, if at all, employees’ outcomes vary based on gender, country of work, and functional area to provide recommendations for the company to alter their career development portal to meet the needs of their employees globally. We framed our research within Patton and McMahon’s (2007) Systems Theory Framework of Career Development and focused on five key elements of career development. We discovered that the career development portal had a positive effect on employees’ outcomes, and employees’ outcomes differed significantly based on their country of work but did not vary based on their gender or functional area. Based on our research and findings, we provide specific, practical recommendations that the organization can implement to increase professional development, employee engagement, recognition, retention, and career planning, pathing, and internal upward mobility. Organizations can use these recommendations to provide exceptional career development for their employees to grow their careers and support their connectedness, meaning-making, agency, reflection, and learning, benefiting employees worldwide and positively impacting managers, customers, and other stakeholders as well.