zlacker

> gets you some half-decent benefits - something to put on your self-assessment for your review cycle

How you put going to a conference on your self assessment?

> Personal improvements this year

> Went to a conference, learned a bunch of stuff on company time

> Business value added this year

> Went to a conference and got better!

Or what?

>>capabl+(OP)
Usually whoever gets to go to a conference has to do a summary session to the rest of the team, pointing out the key takeways and what should be further looked into as the upcoming internal roadmaps in technology adoption.

It is this session that can be pivoted into what one has done to help the team skill up during the current year.

>>capabl+(OP)
Pretty much. From the non-cynical perspective it shows that you took some time to increase your knowledge and skills in the area of [conference topic] which is ultimately of advantage to the company. Especially so if you can tie it into the objective and key-results of your team/division/company.

>>capabl+(OP)
It depends.

Some employers require all employees to complete a certain amount of professional development every year. You want your patent lawyers to know about the latest developments in patent law, your HR people to know about the latest developments in employment law, and so on. In this case, merely having accomplished the professional development goals you set last year counts as goals being achieved.

Don't like that? Maybe your employer is starting a big project that's going to produce business benefits but relies on a new technology. For example, if you were previously an expert in virtual machines, and you've expanded your knowledge to Docker containers so you can help on an important new project - that's an achievement even if you were paid while you trained.

Perhaps you learned something at the conference you were able to put into effect directly, making your product better. That's an achievement - you're keeping the company at the cutting edge of technology!

Perhaps your employer is facing challenges with Foo, and the world's greatest expert on Foo was speaking at the conference, and you were able to quiz them about your challenges over coffee and get some great advice.

Perhaps after the conference you gave presentations to your peers at the company, passing on your new knowledge. That's helped the company by improving everyone's skills, not just yours - as well as demonstrating cross-team impact.

Perhaps at the conference you talked to some people who were interested in joining the company, and the chance to talk to an engineer in person along with the proof you're a cutting edge company following the very latest in technology has lead to more and higher quality job applicants.

>>NeoTar+14
Brb, gonna put all the conference talks I watched on YouTube, all the articles I read and all the projects I built down on my performance review self-assessment.

Usually "increasing your skills and knowledge" is not part of performance reviews. They are about your work performance (Duh). I.e. results, not learnings.

>>Zephyr+y6
>Usually "increasing your skills and knowledge" is not part of performance reviews.

Professional development plans and activities are often a line item.

>>Zephyr+y6
It's been on a lot of mine. Typically at the beginning of the year when we set goals, I may have a goal to "learn more about X." Then at mid year/end of year review, I can say I read these books, took this online course, or attended a conference on X.

It just checks off that you did what you said you planned to do.