Competency Category:
Competency Series:

18.1 – Lead Research Projects

Purpose & Context

Career Development Professionals (CDPs) initiate and lead research projects to further the field of career development and address current and emerging labour market challenges. Research also informs policy makers on how to tackle major local, regional and national challenges.

Effective Performance

Competent career development professionals must be able to:

  • P1. Identify challenge facing the career development field that would benefit from increased understanding
  • P2. Identify existing research
  • P3. Assess feasibility of research, considering:
    • Current state of research
    • Resources available, e.g. funding, staff, IT
    • Academic and/or governmental interest in the issue
  • P4. Set research purpose and direction, for example:
    • Effects of transitional jobs after release from prison
    • Relationship between poverty and employment
    • Implications of digital disruption on labour markets
  • P5. Write research plan, including:
    • Research objectives
    • Deliverables
    • Timeframe
    • Monitoring procedures
    • Available resources
  • P6. Set research guidelines, e.g. timescale and reporting parameters
  • P7. Assess performance, e.g. project progress against evaluation criteria:
    • Partner engagement
    • Process
    • Budget
    • Workplan
    • Timelines
  • P8. Adjust plans, methods, targets and responsibilities as necessary
  • P9. Select method of presenting findings, considering:
    • Format
    • Audience
    • Action required, if any
  • P10. Present findings

Knowledge & Understanding

Competent career development professionals must know and understand:

  • K1. Sources of information on key challenges
  • K2. Sources of funding and application processes
  • K3. Project management tools
  • K4. Research methods and methodologies

Contextual Variables

Competent career development professionals must be able to perform this competency in the following range of contexts:

Scope and breadth of research may vary according to the needs of the organization, the community it serves, and the intended audience.

Glossary & Key References

Terms

Industry-specific terms contained in the standard defined here, where applicable.

None

Information Sources and Resources for Consideration

None

Context Rating Scales

Criticality

Q: What is the consequence of a professional being unable to perform this skill according to the standard?

Moderate risk: CRITICAL

Frequency

Q: How frequent and under what conditions is this skill performed?

Circumstantially, e.g. per project, when a specific event arises

Level of Difficulty

Q: Under routine circumstances, how would you rate the level of difficulty in performing this skill?

Moderate difficulty or complexity

Time Required to Gain Proficiency

Q: What is the average length of time or number of repeated events that are minimally necessary for an individual to become proficient in performing the skill to the standard?

A competent career development professional should conduct a minimum of 10 research studies using varied research methodologies and lead a minimum of 5 research projects to be proficient.

Autonomy

Practitioners typically perform this competency without supervision, and alone.

Automation

It is unlikely that this competency will automate.

Requisite Work Aids, Tools, Equipment or Materials

None