Professional identity training for staff and teams is a novel concept and one that is at the cutting edge of new research in career development. Not only do employees need to establish performance goals and growth plans, but they need to understand how their role or job transition redefines their sense of self and who they are in a given role.

For companies who care about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), adding a professional identity training day can contribute to building belonging in the workplace, belonging to self and teams, and a more inclusive environment because employees are able to express the multitude of identities they possess and how those factor into making them uniquely suited for their job.

what is professional identity

Professional identity is how a person see themselves in their work, it’s what they call themselves in addition to a formal job title.

Identity is a noun, like Illuminator, Pathfinder, or Organizer. These types of words uniquely describe and define an individual in their work life. Specific training around how to find these words for each individual in their work and communicate them effectively creates clearer understanding for clients, coworkers, and managers.

Value of training for employees

Professional identity training seeks to answer these questions:

Who are you? How do you see yourself in your work (besides your job title)?
If you have more than one professional identity, how do you navigate that? Do you work from singularity, multiplicity, or hybridity in your work?
Why does that matter? How does your professional identity apply to your formal role and title?
What do you call your professional identity so others can see you the way you want to be seen?

Employees are more than their job titles, yet they’re often not seen as more. Job titles become the “definer” of how we label each other, and this causes problems of pigeon-holing and boxing people in. Then they become disengaged and feel stuck because their job title is the way others make sense of them when that’s not a fair perspective.

With the proliferation of obscure, inflated, and generic job titles in the market, it’s hard to differentiate or understand who people are in their work. Professional identity language is your chance to name yourself. It allows people to come up with authentic and accurate titles that truly represent who they are no matter where they work or what title they were given.

Because people tend to only ask, “What do you do?” and never ask, “What is your professional identity?” or “How do you see yourself in your job?” most employees have no idea how to answer the professional identity question, thus training is required to develop this new level of self-understanding.

RESULTS OF TRAINING

By providing professional identity training for employees, the results include:

New self-knowledge, awareness, and language about who employees truly are in their work
A stronger ability to communicate professional identity in conjunction with job title and why that matters to professional stakeholders
Team members and managers build more empathy and understanding on how to work better together
Growth and professional development plans can be more accurately tailored around professional identity needs along with skill building and other goals
Colleagues see and value each other in new ways
Improved job satisfaction, increased motivation, and a greater sense of purpose.
By having a clear understanding of their role, employees can also make more informed decisions, which can lead to better performance and increased productivity.

Understanding hybrid professional identity in the workplace

An important layer of professional identity training is that every employee possesses one of three types of professional identity: singularity, multiplicity, or hybridity. It is critical for each person to understand which type they are and why because it helps them acknowledge their individual work preferences as well as how to work better together as a team.

Hybrid professional identity refers to the integration of multiple work identities that an individual holds in their professional life. This can encompass a range of different areas, including one's primary occupation, side hustles, volunteering roles, and other areas of professional development. The concept of a hybrid professional identity acknowledges that individuals are no longer limited to a linear career path. Instead, they combine and blend multiple areas of expertise to create a unique, multi-dimensional professional identity.

It is different than being a jack-of-all-trades because hybridity encompasses integration and intersectionality whereas being a jack-of-all-trades (or multiplicity) is about segmentation and separation of multiple identities.

Hybrids tend to be the silo busters and inter-departmental connectors in an organization. They connect dots others don’t see and help build convergence between different areas of the business, client experience, or product development process.

Value for the organization

Professional identity training can help to build a strong and cohesive team. It can also lead to better collaboration, improved communication, and a stronger sense of company culture. Furthermore, investing in professional identity training can help to attract and retain top talent, as employees are more likely to stay with an organization that invests in their professional development.

Reasons professional identity training matters

Professional identity training can bring a multitude of benefits to both employees and organizations. In today’s rapidly changing business landscape, professional identity training can help:

companies stay competitive and adapt to new challenges
help before/after a merger or restructure better identify where and how talent fits or what new positions are emerging that need to be accounted for
equip employees with the necessary career development skills and knowledge to achieve professional growth goals
adapt to fluctuating market needs and trends, especially when new fields and industries emerge that defy traditional titles and positions
help organizations stay ahead of the curve by building empathy with employees on how they see themselves/ want to be seen within a constantly changing world and company culture

Professional identity training helps to develop skills, knowledge, and understanding of a person’s sense of self within their role in a company. By investing in the development of their employees, companies can improve employee satisfaction, build a stronger team, and stay competitive in today’s rapidly changing business landscape.

Interested in professional identity training

More Than My Title offers professional identity trainings and each is custom tailored to the specific needs of the team. Or email us here (info@morethanmytitle.com) for more info.

The value of professional identity training in companies