Career Ladders and Lattices

Once upon a time in the workplace, the only direction was up. Now, lateral career moves have become commonplace as people’s careers grow and change.

Today, organizations with progressive talent management strategies provide defined career paths for people to accommodate the changing needs of employees.

Ladders are career paths consisting of the series of progressively higher positions that can be attained in one's working career, to be climbed toward greater responsibility and financial success. Ideally, each rung of the ladder has training requirements for moving to the next rung. The training prepares employees for the tasks, assignments, and projects they will work on once they reach the next level of the career ladder.

Lattices are career paths that move among various functions, allowing people to grow and often explore different jobs within an organization without having to leave that group. Employees benefit as they aren’t pigeonholed in a function they may not enjoy. Additionally, the company benefits as the employee becomes well-rounded and better able to understand the company’s big picture. Companies with lattices also benefit from lower employee turnover and better talent attraction.

An integral part of EDSI's Career Ladders and Lattices services involve creating a Skills Balance Sheet, a process which identifies clear links and progression of internal job opportunities, where they exist today and where they could potentially exist when developed.

Advantages of identifying Career Ladders and Lattices are:

  • Increased productivity
  • Increased staff versatility
  • Improved morale
  • Improved work quality
  • Enhanced employee satisfaction
  • Reduced turnover
  • Promotes professional growth and job enhancement

A career development path, whether ladder or lattice, provides employees with an ongoing mechanism to enhance their skills and knowledge that can lead to upskilling, promotions and transfers to other positions. Implementing career paths can also impact the organization as a whole by improving productivity, morale, and career satisfaction.

EDSI also identifies common entry and exit points for various Career Ladders and Lattices within your organization and teaches how to successfully promote from within and "backfill" at the levels where recruitment is most easily accomplished.

Want to learn more about career pathway tools?

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