We all sense there is dramatic change around us. And many of us see the potential opportunity. The frustration comes from not being sure about what to do, how to plan for it, and how to make it work for you. And this is true for individuals and organizations.

These concepts in many ways summarize the new world of work. Individual responsibility. Change occurring so fast that even leadership has difficulty keeping pace.

And most of us are being asked to respond to these dramatic changes with little guidance or experience.

SSP has developed, and then refined working with several clients - including Motorola, Morningstar, Sears, and Sara Lee - a basic framework and model for understanding and achieving career success in this new work world. The model, called the Q5 Framework ®, is simple, deep and flexible. Basic tenants include:

• Each individual is responsible for understanding the reality of his or her "current state". Understanding means having as clear as possible knowledge about four areas: personal needs, personal offer (value proposition), the organization's needs, and the organization's offer (value proposition) to the individual personally.
  
  
• Clear understanding of each area results in natural comparisons and questions...such as, "Is my offer aligned with my needs? Is my offer aligned with the organization's needs? What are the organization's needs? Is the organization's offer giving me what I need? What should change if I am not satisfied? Who can I talk with about it? How can I get more information about opportunity within the company? What are my needs? What are my skills? And on and on.
  
  
• In addition to having an understanding of a definition of each of these four quadrants, it is also the individual's responsibility to balance each quadrant through action. Action includes discussion, planning, researching, changing behavior - all focused on creating a living, aligned, "grid" that ensures success for both the individual and the organization.
  
  
• To support individual action, the model also provides coaches/mentors with a tool to more freely and effectively engage in open dialogue about each of the quadrants, and about the individual's plan for success.
  
  
• The framework can be very easily customized to mesh with existing or planned organization initiatives. Its also often provides a context for both HR practitioners and employees to understand and more fully leverage company initiatives.
  
  
• Delivery is multi-media - through workshops, individual coaching, workbooks and/or web site. Internal sponsors must be senior leadership, and employees (such as a project team) who can help ensure fit with culture and organization realities.
  
  

Organization change, career management, executive coaching and performance improvement all most effectively start with each individual within the company. The key question is how. We now have an answer.

For more information, contact . Or view a few sample pages from our web site that utilizes the Q5 Framework.