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Antoinette Oglethorpe author of the COMPASS Journal blog, wearing a black shirt and blue jeans, sits smiling on a white sofa with magazines and papers spread out in front of her in a bright, minimalist room.

The Compass Journal: Navigating Careers & Leadership

Fresh thinking for forward-focused organisations

Explore practical insights, thought leadership, and real-world stories on career development, leadership, and the evolving world of work. Each article is designed to spark ideas and support you in creating a culture where people and performance thrive.

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Blog: Career Conversations

Two people sit at a table in a bright office, smiling and talking whilst looking at a laptop. Papers and a notebook are spread out in front of them as they share career conversation tips beneath a large hanging lamp.

8 Proven Career Conversations Tips for Employee Career Growth

Are you confident about having carer conversations? Discover 8 career conversations tips, in this blog, to help them go well and develop your people. Who do you talk to about your career? Think about some of the big decisions you’ve made over the years.  I’m guessing that during those periods you will have benefitted from

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A man and a woman in business attire walk and talk in a bright, modern office corridor with large windows and metal railings, engaging in effective career conversations.

13 Characteristics of Highly Effective Career Conversations

It’s a sad fact that people can often identify memorably bad career conversations more easily than effective career conversations. I still remember one particular career conversation — not because it was good, but because it was so bad it’s almost funny in hindsight. It was the end of a fairly lukewarm performance appraisal. My manager

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Three people sit at a table in a modern, open-plan office with large windows, wooden cubicles, and ceiling lights, discussing career management and mentoring challenges. The space is bright and organised with mirrored panels featuring white graphic designs.

7 Career Management and Mentoring Challenges to Overcome in 2023

As we enter the third year since the pandemic started, we are seeing that the changes caused by COVID-19 are having a lasting impact in the workplace. In 2023, organisations will be more diverse, distributed and virtual than ever before. Organisations need to adapt to this changing world of work while addressing other challenges. Those

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Two people in white, polka-dotted tops sit at a table with documents and notebooks, discussing and writing notes together in a bright office setting as they explore the essential skills and qualities of managers.

9 Skills and Qualities of Managers Who Have Effective Career Conversations

I’ve written a lot about career conversations over the years. That’s no surprise reallysince it’s my area of specialism. Elsewhere on the blog, you can read about WhyCareer Conversations are Important, 5 Benefits of Great Career Conversations and13 Characteristics of Effective Career Conversations. But what about the skills andqualities that managers need to have these

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Two people sit facing each other at a small round table with laptops open, collaborating on their career goals in a modern office space with large glass windows revealing an urban cityscape in the background.

How to Align Your Career Goals with the Needs of the Organisation

In my last blog post, I said that you need to focus on yourself and your ambitions and you need to get to know the REAL you. But, it’s not all about you. To successfully manage your career, you also need to think about the organisation and the industry in which you operate. Aligning your

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A cup of coffee, a gold wristwatch, binder clips, and an open diary with a pen rest on a light-coloured wooden desk create a focused workspace—perfect for sharing your goals and planning your morning intentions.

3 Steps to Sharing Your Goals and Aspirations with Your Manager

In today’s busy world, it’s hard to find time for career conversations. And it’s hard toknow where to start – it can be a bit daunting to talk to your manager about what you want from your career. But it’s important you do. The “career conversation” gives you the opportunity to express your career goals,help

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A man and a woman sit opposite each other at a small table with a laptop and mugs, laughing and having a great career conversation in a lively, casual modern café setting.

5 Tips for Holding a Great Career Conversation with your Manager

In our most recent blog posts, we have been looking at having career conversations with your managers.  The first of the series looked at Creating the Right Environment for a Comfortable Career Conversation with your Manager. The second looked at How to be Well-Prepared for a Career Conversation with your Manager. In this blog post,

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An open blank notebook lies on an old map, surrounded by a camera, magnifying glass, pencil, and coffee—creating a vintage travel planning scene that suggests being well-prepared for a career conversation or new adventure.

How to be Well-Prepared for a Career Conversation with your Manager

In our last blog post we talked about Creating the Right Environment for a Comfortable Career Conversation with your Manager.  Now you’ve got that planned, today we want to focus on how to be well-prepared for a career conversation with your manager. Reflect on Your Journey So Far Preparing effectively for that conversation should start

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Three people sit at a white table with Antoinette Oglethorpe's Career Compass workbook open, glasses of water, pens, and a coffee cup; one person reads a magazine titled

Creating the right environment for a comfortable career conversation

In today’s busy world, it’s hard to find time for career conversations.  And it’s hard to know where to start – it can be a bit daunting talking to your manager about what you want from your career. So, in this blog post I want to provide some practical strategies that employees can use to

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