Have you thought about Job Shadowing?
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This method of learning is increasingly being used by organisations and is a valuable way of developing your skills. It is also a great way of gaining career advancement as it can get you exposure to interesting and useful people in the organisation.
So if you’re thinking about doing job shadowing, here are key points to bear in mind:
Shadowing is one of the easiest ways to understand roles you are interested in, and gain a wider perspective that makes you more effective in what you do. Become really skilled at shadowing, and it will also open doors and build relationships that can help your career.
So if you’re thinking about doing job shadowing, here are key points to bear in mind:
- Think carefully about who and why. “I want to shadow the CEO because one day I want to be one” is unlikely to impress. More impressive is “I want to shadow the Ops Director to see how my work fits strategically into bigger picture, and to understand the wider stakeholders” or “I want to shadow my manager to understand the range of demands made in a managerial role”. When requesting a chance to shadow, you’ll be more likely to succeed if you have concrete learning objectives. Also, don’t limit yourself to senior team members, you may find a lot of benefit in shadowing a peer, an internal customer, a PA, or someone from another organisation (professional colleague, supplier or client).
- Think carefully about when and how long. Try to pick a time when they’re doing some interesting work, but aren’t too busy to talk to you about what they are doing, or dealing with confidential issues so you get left out. Some shadowers I know have picked the wrong day and just spent hours waiting outside the office of the person they’re shadowing. Can they or their PA suggest a good day to shadow? Again, having clear learning objectives will help. Additionally, give consideration to how long you want to shadow them for – you could ask for anything from 20 minutes to shadow something specific, through to an hour, a day or even a week depending on the outcome you’re trying to achieve.
- Think carefully about the objectives. The person being shadowed may not be open or experienced at being “watched”, so be completely open and transparent about what it is you’re trying to learn. And be sure to share your objectives with them before the event so they are in the best position to help you.
- Make lots of notes. Mention to them that while you’re shadowing them you’ll be making notes. But bear in mind that they may be worried about what you’re writing down and where those notes are going to end up. Be clear that you won’t be capturing confidential information and that they’re just for your own use. If someone is particularly concerned, offer to share your notes with them.
And when you’re capturing notes:
- Don’t just write down your impressions. Trying to form an overall impression in the moment means that you often miss the detail. Instead, write down what they did and said. Then later on you can reflect – why did they summarise at that point? Why did they crack a joke, or call a coffee break, or end a meeting early? These are useful things to discuss.
- Write down any questions that occur to you. Ask them at a suitable time later on.
- Make sure you’re not intrusive. They are bringing you in, but understand that they can’t predict what their day is going to be like. Be discreet and helpful. If there are things that are obviously confidential or difficult for the individual, don’t wait for them to ask – proactively offer to leave for a short period of time. They will really appreciate it. And sometimes you’ll find you can help with little things – making a photocopy, or calling a cab.
- Reflect and play back. Make sure you reflect on what you’ve learnt soon after the event. In fact, book in reflection time in your diary for immediately afterwards. After 48 hours 50% of what you’ve heard will be lost, unless you spend time summarising your findings and reflections. Draw a mind map, brain dump your observations; make a checklist that you can use in your work. And if you get the chance, play this thinking back to the person you shadowed. They can enrich your thinking, correct any mistakes – and often they themselves can get some real insight from your external perspective.
- Make sure you thank them. Take the time to show your appreciation – and be specific! Say what you learned and why it was helpful. Tell them if you use something you learned from the day, and its positive impact. Overall, try to leave your host with a positive experience of being shadowed. This will give others the opportunity to come in and shadow. It will also mean your host speaks positively about you to others!
Shadowing is one of the easiest ways to understand roles you are interested in, and gain a wider perspective that makes you more effective in what you do. Become really skilled at shadowing, and it will also open doors and build relationships that can help your career.