Professional development coordinators are mostly hired by educational institutes, but many are hired in the corporate world as well. The job of a professional development coordinator includes performing needs assessments to determine the professional development training needs of each employee group, and then assisting in creating and implementing strong PD programs.
Working as a professional development coordinator will require you to possess a degree in education or human resources, depending on which area you have chosen to work in. Additional requirements to work as a professional development coordinator includes knowledge of learning assessment techniques and practices, curriculum development and instructional design practices, ability to effectively use organizational and planning skills, capability of maintaining confidentiality, and demonstrated expertise in developing programs to meet identified training and development needs. Also, you will need to possess a highly analytic mind and great communication skills.
The work of a professional development coordinator is quite challenging. Maintaining confidentiality of sensitive information and keeping up with current trends and programs involved in professional development, is absolutely necessary in this work. So, if you have a formal degree, some experience in working in a professional development category and possess exceptional communication and program developing skills, you may be interested in the list of job duties that a PD coordinator performs on a typical work day:
Professional Development Coordinator Job Description and Duties
• Determine professional development requirements of each staff group and offer advice and guidance on suitable opportunities
• Consult with existing professional development teams and management to determine current and anticipated PD needs
• Establish learning objectives and goals for each group and develop training outlines and timelines
• Utilize knowledge of specified training needs to determine appropriate instructional methods for both large and small groups
• Select and develop appropriate training materials including handouts, handbooks and demonstration models
• Employ interactive training and transfer techniques to ensure the viability and success of each professional development and training program
• Encourage participation in staff development initiatives and activities by effectively marketing them
• Schedule training sessions and develop registration procedures, along with ensuring that the facility is properly set up and staff members are notified
• Design and present professional development sessions and programs to staff groups by ensuring that specific areas such as leadership development and instructional best practices are covered
• Use tools such as questionnaires, surveys and discussions to perform evaluation and assessment work
• Coordinate and record the evaluation of efficacy of professional development programs and use the information to guide further planning for workshops and PD programs