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While most students think that college training is the most challenging and most significant, career growth poses a significant challenge to students as it entails critical strategies to navigate to set the career on the right track. Questions have been raised over the practicality of college education and whether it is designed to fail students after graduation. One of the facts that many might not understand is that a college education is designed to offer background information about the industry and field of work and the rest of the work left for students to advance themselves (James et al., 2015). To foster career development and position students in a competitive edge, the University of Bolton designed the Graduate Attributes Matrix for Employment (GAME+) framework, providing essential elements to consider to improve one’s career. Using the GAME+ attributes, this paper investigates the tenets of career development graduates should have to effectively enter the job market knowing where to start and end.

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Employees strive to improve their skills and knowledge regarding their jobs to improve their careers and stand out in the job market. Personal effectiveness is one of the attributes they strive to achieve; the ability to realize one’s full potential and achieve personal goals. While it is challenging to achieve this attribute, especially in a negative work environment, individuals can set personal goals they will achieve and how to achieve them to enhance their skills. Accordingly, individuals should prioritize their personal growth goals and apply mechanisms to achieve them (Scott and Mouza, 2007). To achieve personal effectiveness, individuals can enrol for digital literacy classes to understand technological use in the workplace to enhance their performance. This can be effective, especially in a time of increased technological use in companies. Individuals with digital literacy stand out from those who do not have these skills. Employees can also develop learning agility referring to the ability to understand how to learn from experience and use the experience as an opportunity to improve performance (Leithwood and Levin, 2009). Learning agility means being able to change to different situations. It also involves developing a positive mindset. Additionally, individuals can develop project management skills to improve their effectiveness. Project management requires one to develop skills such s teamwork, and working on a tight schedule and budget (Zepeda, 2019). Students should exhibit project management skills and showcase them during recruitment and selection and demonstrate their responsiveness.

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Creativity is the core value for organizations to create a competitive edge, especially in the era of increased competition. Companies foster creativity to enable employees to develop new ideas to achieve their objectives and mission (Zepeda, 2019). While leadership styles such as the transformational model encourage employee creativity, the willingness to develop this attribute rests with the employee. As such, employees can develop creativity through design thinking which involves a critical assessment of an issue and developing innovative strategies to address it (London, 2001). Furthermore, tackling complex problems is key to developing new approaches to developing solutions. Employers prefer individuals with the ability to think creatively and provide solutions to multiple issues in the workplace as they will be the source of innovation. They should therefore demonstrate creativity and apply approaches to tackle complex challenges, a key aspect that enhances career growth.

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Influence and impact are linked to one’s ability to get things done or make others do according to one’s wishes. It is usually linked to the leadership attributes linked to decision-making and the overall role in directing teams or the organization. At the top level of management, influence and impact are the most dominant features (Mourão, 2018). Managers make decisions and delegate them to junior employees for implementation. While most people associate leadership with the overall organizational direction, it can be found at all levels. Its major role is to get things done in the right way to achieve organizational goals and mission (Rieckhoff and Larsen, 2012). To effectively influence and impact, leaders apply various leadership styles according to situations. There is no single style that fits all situations. An example of a leadership style that is commonly applied in organizations is laissez-faire where the leader delegates decision-making power to employees and lets them do what they see fit to achieve organizational goals (Giltinane, 2013). Another style leaders commonly use in organizations is the transactional style. Most leaders use this style when they want their decisions to be followed without any debate. It is most effective during emergencies or projects that require urgency (Amanchukwu et al., 2015). The leadership style, however, can demotivate employees since they have no contribution and must complete tasks as they have been shown. Individuals with great influence on organizational performance can be seen through their people management ability. For example, one can assess whether there is collaboration in the group and the role of the leader in building it. To determine the effectiveness of one’s influence, it is critical to assess team members’ feedback (Martineau and Hannum, 2004). Graduates should demonstrate their influence and impact on teams during recruitment and selection to increase hiring chances.

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Career development stems from the need to improve one’s career within the organization or outside the company. It involves building a personal brand to showcase one’s skill set and develop personal competitiveness (Patton and McMahon, 2014). Individuals enhance their career development by taking opportunities such as advancement of their courses which enhances their knowledge base. Furthermore, organizational career training and development programs offer a learning opportunity for career development. Additionally, Hirsh et al. (2013) encourage individuals to join professional bodies where they will learn by interacting with industry players as well as building a strong connections. When applying for a job opportunity, students should show the career development initiatives they have undertaken and improve their competitiveness.

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Influence and impact are key GAME+ attributes that showcase the ability of individuals to get things done. It is majorly associated with leadership or influence in a team. Through effective communication and decision-making, one can influence the direction an organization will undertake (Slotte and Tynjälä, 2003). As an employee at the local retail shop, I worked with the team to build an electronic system that could predict sales and help in decision-making. I was a member of a team led by a leader using the transactional leadership style. His decision was final and we were to work with his ideas. However, after three attempts leading to failure, I requested the leader to change his leadership style and embrace the transformational style where he would allow us to provide ideas on how to build the project. He allowed us to generate ideas and choose the most effective one to complete the project. From this scenario, I demonstrated influence and impact by encouraging the leader to adopt an effective approach to complete the project rather than working on his ideas alone. I learned that there is no perfect leadership style and that leaders should apply different approaches in different situations to enhance success. I realized that I prefer a transformational leadership style where individuals can contribute towards decision-making. This finding confirmed the results from the DISC Personality Assessment which showed my DISC type to be “drive”. Individuals with this attribute are result-oriented confident and natural leaders (Truity, 2023). They can have a significant influence on organizational decision-making, an ability that I realized I have which is critical to career growth.

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Personal effectiveness is one’s ability to achieve the highest achievement in career growth. It is crucial for career growth as it demonstrates that one is willing to become the most competent in a given area. Individuals should set goals to achieve career goals. Furthermore, by undertaking further studies, they improve their effectiveness which is crucial for career development (Merchant, 2010). I worked as a sales agent and my first experience was that I was not meant for the job. I made zero sales in my first two days. However, my team leader supported me and told me that I needed to enhance my effectiveness through continuous learning to enhance effectiveness. After undertaking some training, I started making sales and this was attributed to my effectiveness. I am a competitive risk-taker according to the DISC Personality Assessment. This implies that I am willing to go the extra mile to learn new aspects to enhance my career (Truity, 2023). Indeed, I developed a plan and prioritized on things I wanted to achieve to enhance my effectiveness. I also attended digital literacy training programs offered by the company which helped me develop digital marketing skills. Employers look at an individual’s effectiveness by assessing their work experience. Therefore, by continuous learning and curiosity, I can improve my effectiveness and become competitive in the job market.

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Creativity has become a key consideration for modern organizations facing increased competition from emerging technologies and organizations capable of introducing innovations. Creativity stems from the willingness of leaders to allow employees to engage in critical thinking and address complex issues affecting the organization (Merchant Jr, 2010). I worked as an intern in a communications company and had an opportunity to lead a team in developing security features for the company’s social media pages. Although I did not have much experience, I applied critical thinking and suggested an idea that was embraced by other team members. We were able to develop a security feature that monitored the company’s social media activity and informed the IT personnel on instances involving data breaches. I also engaged in analyzing complex projects and suggesting solutions and new ideas which boosted my creativity and readiness to learn.

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Subject knowledge and career development are intertwined in the sense when one has subject knowledge, his career development improves. Subject knowledge is essential to understanding one’s area of profession and the factors associated with it. It involves understanding a particular discipline and advances made in recent times (James et al, 2015). Individuals can demonstrate subject knowledge by applying their knowledge to solve particular issues. They can also advance their subject knowledge by studying industry journals which provide in-depth information about the subject. When applying for a job, students should improve their subject knowledge by enhancing commercial awareness in the industry (Slotte and Tynjälä, 2003). Employers are more likely to employ individuals who demonstrate subject knowledge as they show the ability to comprehend current trends and the capability to adapt to them.

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Career development is an attribute that employees strive for by engaging in training and development programs not only in the organization but also in attending courses that enhance one’s career. Other approaches to enhancing career development include registering as a member of a professional body which encourages continuous learning through seminars and conferences with experts (James et al., 2015). During my previous work, I joined a professional body and attended two of its conferences which were essential to career development. I also assessed industry publications to learn trends in the industry and what the industry required. I also learned the skills on how to overcome obstacles associated with the recruitment process. These skills were crucial to enhancing my career growth.

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When individuals have subject knowledge, they understand the industry better and can take advantage of emerging opportunities to advance their careers. By engaging in various seminars and workshops, individuals can increase subject knowledge which can lead to career growth (James et al., 2015. During the class project, I worked with a team that was interactive and open to listening to views from anyone. I demonstrated the importance of the project in building our skills to prepare for jobs outside. I had undertaken research in the subject area and attended workshops which enabled me to understand the market better. Team members were amazed by how I demonstrated subject knowledge and this motivated me. When I attended a job interview later, I demonstrated this knowledge which enabled me to secure a job. Therefore, graduates should demonstrate subject knowledge to build their competitive advantage as they show the ability to understand the market and area of interest.

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- Engage in active listening: Engaging in active listening will help one to understand other’s perspectives. This can help in decision-making about the most effective approach to team building and collaboration to enhance influence and impact (James et al., 2015. - Effective communication: Individuals should practice and develop excellent communication skills to enable them to communicate their goals and mission to team members. This skill can lead to significant influence and impact (Scott and Mouza, 2007). By attending seminars and taking leadership roles, I will build my communication skills leading to developing influence and impact attributes. - Apply transformational and democratic leadership styles: transformational and democratic leadership styles provide employees with decision-making opportunities (Scott and Mouza, 2007). This can lead to increased impact and influence as employees are more likely to collaborate in a democratic and transformational environment than in a dictatorial environment.

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- Increase self-confidence: Self-confidence is a significant attribute that can improve one’s effectiveness. It gives one the ability to rise from failure and use it as a stepping stone for career growth. - Create a network connection: Networking is essential to enhancing personal effectiveness. It enables one to interact with experts, enhancing a learning experience. One can create a network through social media platforms and attend workshops and seminars. Networking will build one’s professional development and expose them to more opportunities. - Creating a plan: Employees should generate a plan of what they want to achieve to guide them in achieving personal effectiveness.

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- Collaborating with others: I will collaborate with others to create a diverse source of ideas. Teams are more likely to encourage creativity than working as an individual. - Practice brainstorming: Brainstorming involves approaches to understand a certain aspect. It can improve creativity since it can lead to understanding the industry better and building a competitive advantage.

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I have assessed my professional development using the GAME+ framework attributes. From the literature review, GAME+ attributes including influence and impact, personal effectiveness, creativity, subject knowledge, and career development are crucial for students in building a positive rapport in their careers and building a competitive edge. Through continuous development, excellent communication skills, and creating career networks, individuals can position themselves competitively and lead to professional development.

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- Join professional bodies: This strategy will enable one to interact with professionals and learn from their experience and industry changes. - Attend workshops: Career workshops can build one’s professional development because it provides practical skills needed to develop one’s career. These skills are significant in building a positive rapport in the job market.

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- Building a strong professional network: Individuals should build a strong professional network to link with industry experts, leaders, and like-minded individuals. This can be a source of knowledge and skills leading to competence in the job market. - Further educational studies: Further education is a significant source of career development as it exposes one to people management knowledge and trends in industry.

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