My Development Plan gives Airmen access to career information, mentorship Published Feb. 23, 2010 By Master Sgt. Russell P. Petcoff Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Airmen soon will have a new, Web-based tool to track their career and work with a mentor from throughout the Air Force, according to Dan Sitterly, the director of Force Development for the deputy chief of staff for Manpower, Personnel and Services. My Development Plan, which is made up of My Civilian Development Plan, My Enlisted Development Plan, and My Officer Development Plan, is a Web-based resource for total force Airmen to access information on their career field, education and training from one site. Airmen can begin accessing these resources March 1 from the Air Force Portal. "It will provide instant access to your records, career field specific information, and even allow you to communicate with your peers, all on one Web site," Mr. Sitterly said. "It's designed to be a comprehensive career development tool for every Airman." According to Lt. Col. Ken Marentette, a My Development Plan project officer, the system allows users to take more control over their careers while offering ease-of-use capability. "This tool allows you to take charge of your career development by offering a central Web resource for education, training, and experience-related information and opportunities for Airmen and civilians to cross-talk about Air Force issues and lessons learned," Colonel Marentette said. "We catered My Development Plan to each user offering career-field specific resources (where applicable) and member-specific data for each user," Colonel Marentette said. "You no longer have to remember several different Web sites to find the information you need." However, My Development Plan does not replace the Air Force Form 3849, PME/AFIT/RTFB/Officer Worksheet or the Airman Development Plan; Airmen will still use these documents to communicate their educational and assignment goals to their development and assignment teams, the colonel said. My Development Plan is a tool for Airmen to use throughout their careers. "MyCDP, MyEDP, and MyODP are designed to be resources to help Airmen make informed decisions about their career," Colonel Marentette said. My Development Plan works in tandem with the Airman Development Plan, he said. "My Development Plan delivers a vital and comprehensive Web resource environment for all Airmen that can be used in conjunction with the Airmen Development Plan and similar programs," Colonel Marentette said. Airmen can use My Development Plan to facilitate the completion of their Airman Development Plan or similar documents. In addition, this tool provides a platform for social networking, where all Airmen will be able to read or participate in Air Force-wide or career field-specific forums, career planning with member-chosen mentors, and Web-based file storage. "This new program acts as a virtual mentor of sorts giving Airmen instant access to their records, career field information, and even their peers from one Web site," Colonel Marentette said. "Airman can use the forums to discuss matters with other Air Force members, civilian and military. Airmen can even sign up to have a personal mentor that can help them determine their career goals." My Development Plan gives Airmen the opportunity to have a mentor from anywhere in the Air Force to help them with their career. "A mentor is a person Airmen designate to help them set career and personal goals within My Development Plan," the colonel said. Airmen can choose to work with several mentors. Airmen and their mentors communicate with each other through the journaling feature within the tool. Mentors have read-only access to their Airman's My Development Plan records as well as being able to communicate directly. "Your mentor will be able to create journal entries or goals on your behalf, but will not be able to post to forums on your behalf or see your profile or list of mentees," Colonel Marentette said. Airmen can search for a mentor within the system through its mentor networking tool. Mentors are only available if they have a My Development Plan account. A mentor will receive a message stating someone would like for him or her to be a mentor. If a potential mentor doesn't have a My Development Plan account, the request message will also invite him or her to create one. My Development Plan offers Airmen another way to communicate with each other. Forums allow Airmen to share information, such as career advice and lessons learned, in an informal but professional environment. Forum posts are attributed to the Airman's user profile and can be edited. "This system will provide Airmen with one central location for their career development needs, now and in the future," Mr. Sitterly said.