According to a survey published last June, a trend is emerging on the career-change front: a majority of job seekers (64%) are looking at openings outside the industry in which they currently work. We asked Matt Degenève, a career transition consultant, for advice on making an informed transition.
Before leaping into the void, the first step is of course to set a target, a goal, a potential landing strip. To do so, you need to think about the problems you are trying to solve, then check that the solution (the new profession you have in mind) really exists.
“The first step is to take stock of what you no longer want to experience and what you truly want for your career,” explains Matt Degenève. “As with starting a business, you establish a precise vision and values. Once you have addressed the ‘specific’ side of the goal, the person changing careers then has to check whether it is realistic.”
It is a kind of proof of concept. How? By searching the web or by directly surveying professionals in the target profession.
“Ideally, a short immersion in the target profession, whether it’s an observation internship, a volunteer commitment, a freelance assignment or an exploratory meeting, will make it possible to verify that the reality of the job matches the image you have of it. On the other hand, these actions can eventually generate permanent hiring opportunities,” adds the advisor.
Alongside this, he suggests that people changing careers think about their financial security.
“A financing plan for the career change is crucial. It will include training and temporary loss of income. I would tend to advise an 18 to 24 month financial cushion, because changing careers takes considerable time in most fields.”
If circumstances allow, workers can take a sabbatical year rather than resigning outright from their former job.
Knowing how to sell yourself
Once the itinerary has been set and the refueling stops planned, it’s time to think about how to sell yourself.
“You have to list and clarify your transferable skills,” says the consultant. “You then select the right skills to highlight depending on the company and the advertised position, rather than submitting the exhaustive list. You have to sort them beforehand so you don’t flood the reader of the résumé with a ton of information.”
Matt Degenève adds one more ingredient to the reflection:
“The best advice I can give is to think not only about transferable skills, but also about ‘transferable results.’ Can impacts similar to past ones be achieved in the future? If they are nonexistent or hard to identify for the new field, then you have to look for them, sometimes imagine them and, in every case, clarify them for the potential employer.”
The idea is to give the recruiter a helping hand, by helping them see the contribution you can bring to the sector while allowing them to picture you in the new role.
Signaling your intentions
When following up with a potential employer, Matt Degenève suggests being upfront by clarifying your approach and intentions in your résumé.
“Whatever section you choose as an introduction (a headline, a profile or an objective), the destination must be mentioned in it. Sometimes the goal is more than professional, such as a geographic move. In the header, you then state the desired or ongoing relocation. You can also present yourself as a student or disclose your immigration status, among other things.”
The challenge is more complex when it comes to displaying your intentions on a public platform like LinkedIn, he acknowledges.
“The person changing careers may not have expressed their desire to change to their current employer and colleagues. Also, some people want to explore several professional avenues. They are not always ready to commit to a specific niche before having explored a few. You can have several résumés, but you only have one LinkedIn profile,” he points out.
His last piece of advice: network, network and network some more…
“Even though it’s obvious, I want to mention that keeping your professional network active, in addition to your personal one, applies as much to major career changes as to a ‘standard’ job search. Our network of contacts will surely help us spot opportunities and show us new avenues we hadn’t thought of until now.”
The roadmap is clear; all that remains is to put it into practice. Good luck with your career change!
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