Career Pathing Implementation Guide
Welcome to the Beta Cohort! Use this guided, end-to-end implementation hub to configure your admin frameworks, onboard learners, enable managers, and track skill growth across your organization.
Overview & Business Case
Build an integrated developmental experience across your organization. By connecting skills, learning content, career tracks, and manager validations, you can create clear growth paths for every role.
Did you know: Employees are 82% more likely to stay with an organization that offers clear career pathing and growth visibility.
Source: Gartner & Bridge ResearchThe Bridge Developmental Experience Flow
Career Pathing connects the entire talent ecosystem into a single guided workflow:
- Step 1: Identify Skills & Map Jobs — Define skills and assign expected proficiency levels per job role.
- Step 2: Add & Tag Content — Associate courses, programs, and live trainings to skills and proficiency levels.
- Step 3: Engage Learners — Deliver personalized skill match scores and content recommendations.
- Step 4: Create Development Plans — Build near-term development goals and long-term career visions.
- Step 5: Validate Skills Growth — Managers evaluate and confirm demonstrated proficiency progress.
- Step 6: Insights & Analytics — Review company-wide and team-level skill gap reports.
| Stage | Primary Role | Key Output |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Setup | Admin / Author | Job Skill Matrix & Career Tracks |
| 2. Engage | Learner | Skill Gap Report & 80% Skill Match |
| 3. Validate | Manager | Validated Skills Assessment |
| 4. Measure | Executive / L&D | Workforce Skill Gap Dashboard |
Admin Framework Setup
Configure skills, define standardized proficiency matrices, construct career tracks, and tag learning content with required skill levels.
Tag learning content with both skills and proficiency levels (e.g., Beginner, Advanced) to deliver targeted course recommendations in the Learning Library.
1. Mapping Skills & Job Titles
Admins map skills directly to job roles, assign custom proficiency expectations (Novice, Competent, Advanced, Expert), and define what each level looks like in practice.
| Skill Name | Role Requirement | Target Level |
|---|---|---|
| Account Management | Customer Success Manager | Competent |
| Account Management | Senior CS Manager | Advanced |
| Account Management | VP Customer Success | Expert |
2. Designing Career Tracks
Construct progression paths across job tiers (e.g., CS Manager → Senior CS Manager → Director → SVP) and specify the target proficiency level required for each skill in the track.
3. Tagging Content with Proficiency Levels
Authors and Admins can assign skills and proficiency levels to Courses, Programs, and Live Trainings to power personalized learning paths.
Admin Setup Documentation:
Learner Experience & Paths
Empower learners to update their skill profiles, explore future roles, build short-term development plans, and discover targeted training.
Encourage learners to check the "Recommended Skills" in their Skill Gap Report—these represent the top 3 skills closest to target proficiency where small gains yield the highest increase in overall Skill Match.
1. Updating Skill Profiles
Learners log proficiency self-assessments across three distinct lists: Skills You Have, Skills You Want to Develop, and Skills You Can Help With.
| Target Role | Skill Match Score | Gaps Identified |
|---|---|---|
| Senior Product Designer | 80% Match | 4 Skills Below Target Level |
| Senior Product Manager | 90% Match | 2 Skills Below Target Level |
2. Exploring Future Roles & Skill Gap Reports
Employees can explore target job roles in the Skills Community to see their overall Skill Match (%), identified skill gaps, and exact target proficiency requirements.
3. Near-Term Development Plans & Career Vision
Learners can choose up to 3 focus skills, attach learning goals and tasks, and map their long-term trajectory within Career Vision.
Learner Experience Documentation:
How Do I Check My Current Skill Levels? (Career Pathing Beta)
Learn how to view proficiency levels, compare current skills to future target roles, and access your Skill Gap Report in the Skills Community.
How to Find Content by Skill Level or Experience
Learn how to filter the Learning Library by skill and proficiency level to find targeted training aligned with your current capabilities and goals.
Manager Validation & Analytics
Bridge manager validations with executive analytics to confirm skill progression and monitor workforce readiness across departments.
Use the Workforce Skill Gap and Skill Proficiency Progress Distribution reports in Skills Analytics to distinguish between unassigned skills and skills needing further proficiency growth.
1. Manager Validation & Assessment
Managers can review demonstrated employee skill levels, confirm proficiency scores, and complete formal skill validations.
| Employee | Skill | Reported Level | Validation Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sammy Jones | Communication | Advanced | Validated ✓ |
| Sammy Jones | Presentation | Competent | Pending Review |
2. Executive Analytics & Skill Dashboards
Admins and executive sponsors can view enterprise-wide metrics via Skills Analytics, including Profile Completeness, Content Skill Gaps, and Skill Proficiency Progress Distributions.
Validation & Reporting Documentation:
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick reference for common questions about Career Pathing setup, Skill Match calculations, and reporting capabilities.
What is a Proficiency Level?
A proficiency level represents an individual's current ability in a skill. Your organization defines the specific levels and descriptions used throughout the Skills Community.
How is Skill Match Calculated?
Skill Match is the percentage of required skills for a role that you have achieved at or above the expected proficiency level set by your administrator.
What is the difference between Below Target and Skill Gaps?
Below Target means an employee has reported the required skill but has not yet reached the expected proficiency level. Skill Gap means no employee in the selection has reported the required skill.
Do I have to assign proficiency levels to skills when authoring?
No. Skills can still be tagged without a proficiency level. However, assigning proficiency levels provides better context and enables more accurate learning recommendations.
Can different skills in the same course have different proficiency levels?
Yes. Each associated skill can have its own level (e.g., Communication: Intermediate, Leadership: Beginner).
Why are some skills marked as Validated?
A validated skill indicates that a manager has reviewed and confirmed the employee's reported proficiency level.