Introduction It is now generally acknowledged that education and training is a continuing and lifelong process. It is also increasingly clear that education can take many forms, not all them traditional. No longer can a person’s development be associated exclusively with the period of learning which occurs during our primary, secondary or possibly tertiary education. Nowhere is this more evident than in the professions. The pace of scientific, technological, social and economic change is now so rapid and intense that an initial period of professional or occupational training can only provide the foundations of knowledge, skills and attitudes on which further development must take place if professionals, particularly managers, are to remain current and competent. From Self Development to Continuous Development Over the past fifteen years, self-development has moved from being a fringe pursuit, to a position in the mainstream of management and business development. According to Pedler (1990) the growth (actually a re-emergence) of self-development is attributed to a response to the limitations of systematic and analytical training. Faced with complexity, variety and change, systematic training can be far too prescriptive and trainer centred. Moreover, with regards to management development, quite often when managers are thought to need a particular skill they are speedily dispatched on the appropriate course, with the result that as their careers progress, they assemble an impressive list of ‘attended’ courses. In many companies, training and development is still regarded in these terms. The problem is that the skills needed by today’s and tomorrow’s managers are so broad ranging that “picking off” skills is no longer enough. Managers have to be more selective and focused when it comes to development. Indeed, there is a growing trend of managers who are realising that developing managerial skills and techniques is not simply the responsibility of the organisation. Managers too have a role to play in being proactive and identifying areas in which they need to develop - examining their strengths and weaknesses to develop the skills necessary for the future. Rather than having their development mapped out for them, effective managers are managing it for themselves. The self development philosophy therefore underlines the notion that the individual takes responsibility for learning and choosing the methods and place, to pursue goal-oriented learning activities, whether on-the-job (tasks themselves are highly effective instruments for development) or off-the-job. Self development also means that individuals must be motivated - feeling strongly about developing, growing and taking action. It is suggested that the process of self-development enables the attainment of an ability “to learn how to learn” (Megginson and Pedler, 1992), “a continuing openness to experience” (Rogers, 1969), and to utilise this “learning edge” (Wick and Leon, 1993) to increase change management skills: flexibility and adaptability. Furthermore, encouraging and empowering subordinates to take charge of their own learning can motivate managers to increase their willingness to continue their own development. Wick and Leon claim that: “In companies across the country, the ability to learn is becoming a condition for employment, one that requires every successful manager’s deliberate attention and commitment”. (Wick and Leon, 1993, p.4) Indeed, schools of thought from Scientific Management through Human Relations and Organisational Psychology, particularly the latter, have emphasised the generalised and changing nature of managerial work. Yet, as self-development is a less visible and tangible process than training there are various constraints: “Self development presupposes an enormous amount of commitment and motivation on the part of the self-developer. To succeed they need help and support from the organisation within which they are developing”. (Critten, 1993, p.127) Besides, as some might argue, why should managers develop themselves when their company offers little in the way of support or rewards? The creation of the right sort of climate for self-development is very important - repressive climates in organisations will block the individual’s development (Temporal, 1981). Moreover, self-development activities may be more orientated towards the individual’s requirements rather than the organisation’s needs. This is quite often an area of debate with some organisations e.g., Ford’s (UK) Employee Assistance and Development Programme (EADP) scheme providing special funding for any type of adult learning programmes, whilst other organisations restrict the learning only to the relating to its needs and budgeted training expenditure. Megginson and Pedler, promoters of the self development movement, argue: “But who is the organisation and what are its needs?....in these new days of skills shortages, to what extent do senior managers have the power to define in what direction you and I should develop? Self-development...recognises the increasing power of the ‘knowledge worker’ who may have a personal or professional career loyalty first and an organisational loyalty second”. (Megginson and Pedler, 1992, p.4) Perhaps it is when self developers seek a ‘trade-off’ - pursuing learning paths which benefit themselves and the organisation, that this can truly result in a feeling of mutual benefit, fostering a climate of continuous development as a route to effective work and organisational performance. | 
