What is a Professional

• How will this help you grow as a professional?

Having an ePortfolio is like holding up a career mirror to show you what you’ve done and remained you of many goals that you still want to achieve. “An ePortfolio helps you expand upon the limited amount of information you can illustrate in traditional tools like your resume and cover letter” (Oberpeul, 2024). One of the best aspects of an ePortfoloio as a professional is that it’s your story, you control what you put in and what you leave out.  From a developmental perspective utilizing ePortfolios can also greatly improve one’s technological skills further facilitating professional growth.

• How does this help others in your field or career?

Every professional can benefit from utilizing an ePortfolio. “Research from the past decades indicates that ePortfolios are a growing trend as recruiters and potential employers become more knowledgeable and comfortable with electronic platforms” (Ashar, 2023).  This enables professional to maximize their ability to market themselves at the highest level. With many professional careers having a very competitive job market, professionals can constantly assess and reassess how they are progressing as it pertains to them and their peers. “Today, the current job market continues to emphasize the competitive advantage of a well-designed ePortfolio” (Asher, 2023). 

• How can this ePortfolio benefit you in the future?

As technology continues to evolve and grow, employers, much like everything else will start to lean more heavily on digital interviewing and other technological tools to vet the best employees. “As demand for eLearning programs in corporations grows, so does the need to manage the achieved knowledge. Trainees and experts both need a system to update their current and future learning needs” (Andriotis, 2017). Utilizing ePortfolios now and become more comfortable within the creation process itself will greatly add to the value corporations will place on the individuals with these types of technological and professional developmental skills. “It’s crucial to note that ePortfolios have not yet replaced resumes. But the rapidly expanding digital world suggests that ePortfolios will become common for many employers, and a resume will become part of an ePortfolio” (Ashar, 2023).

References

Andriotis, N. (2017, March 20). The 6 benefits of ePortfolios and how to create them. eFront Blog. https://www.efrontlearning.com/blog/2017/02/requirements-benefits-eportfolios-training.html

Ashar, L. J. D. (2023, June 29). EPortfolios and how they influence hiring decisions. Edge. https://apuedge.com/eportfolios-and-how-they-influence-hiring-decisions/

Oberpeul, H. (2024). Put the “pro” in professional: Create an eportfolio. Put the “Pro” in Professional: Create an ePortfolio | University of Cincinnati. https://grad.uc.edu/student-life/news/eportfolios.html