Career Change for Experienced Professionals

"Can I really change careers after 10+ yrs?" I get this question a lot. Here's my answer ↓ For most experienced professionals looking for better career options, they're not starting over. If you've got 10+ yrs in one role/industry, avoid the temptation to frame your job search as a RESTART. Instead, view it as a TRANSFER. You’re building on a foundation of relevant skills, experiences, accomplishments, and execution. All of these things are valuable and attractive. The question is - How Much? I recently worked with a Director from education who wanted to move into learning technology roles. He was worried his experience wouldn’t translate. So we reframed his background:. From: “Educational Operations” To: “Leading complex, regulated systems in high-stakes environments” We also adjusted the value language: ✅ “academic systems” became “enterprise-grade reliability” ✅ “student throughput” became “scalable infrastructure” He stopped applying cold and started networking with former colleagues in adjacent industries. Within weeks, he landed interviews—and eventually, a new career in a new industry. Remember: Your experience isn’t the problem. In most cases, it’s how you’re framing it. If you’re considering a pivot, focus on aligning your narrative with your target industry’s needs. You’re not starting from zero. You’re bringing a wealth of experience that, when positioned correctly, is incredibly valuable. Have you made an industry pivot? What strategies worked for you? ♻️ Reshare for folks in your network looking to pivot

I changed careers 5 times in 15 years and here's what I learned... 1️⃣ Learning a new industry isn't harder than learning a new company. Focus on transferable skills over industry knowledge. Even when you switch jobs within the same industry, there is a big learning curve for how another company operates. Focus on understanding your transferable skills more than harping on lack of knowledge about the industry. This was true for me when I switched from finance -> consulting -> hospitality -> two sided marketplace startups. 2️⃣ Convincing hiring managers of your value is key. Seek workplaces valuing diverse backgrounds and ideas. It's frustrating that people don't want to give you a chance just because you come from a different industry. But you won't succeed working under someone so narrow minded anyways, so look for places to work where they value diverse backgrounds and ideas. Some functions naturally look for specific skillsets like former ibankers or consultants because they value how a person thinks over specific industry experience. 3️⃣ Networking is crucial for career changes. Recruiters and hiring managers may quickly pass on your resume when lacking context given the number of applications they receive. However, when you can explain to someone why you want to switch careers and emphasize those transferable skills, you're more likely to get into the interview process vs. cold applying. So tap into your network and see who can pass your resume along or fill out an internal referral form on your behalf. 4️⃣ Your next job doesn't have to be your forever job. Which means look for an opportunity to switch industries where its easy for you to get your foot in the door. Often that means applying for the same type of job you had previously, but in the new industry, even if you want to move out of that type of work. It will be easier to move internally if you pick the right company, than to switch industries and functions all at once. When I left consulting I didn't want to keep working in "strategy" roles, but those were the roles more apt to hire former consultants. So I took one of those strategy roles and then leveraged my success to move into other parts of the organization after 2 yrs. 5️⃣ Progress takes time. Embrace step-by-step changes for long-term success. Sometimes when we are ready for a change, we can get impatient and want it to all happen immediately. Instead, aim for progress and step wise change as it will fuel you over the longer term which is necessary for making big changes. It took me 3 years to make my last career change, but I took the process step-by-step and couldn't be happier now in my current career. --- What have you learned from making a career switch? #careerchange #careercoach - - - - 🖐🏽 I’m Jess Wass, CEO & Founder of Reworkit 💥 I help overachievers find the best places to work and help organizations who want to become the best place to work.

The Strategic Flaw Undermining Career Transitions   Throughout my career guiding professionals through industry and functional transitions, I've identified a consistent pattern among those who struggle to pivot successfully: they position themselves as inexperienced candidates in the new domain rather than as valuable cross-pollinating experts.   This fundamental positioning error creates unnecessary obstacles in an already challenging process.   Successful career pivoters employ a distinctly different approach: • Value Reframing: Positioning their outside perspective as an asset that brings fresh thinking to entrenched industry challenges • Problem-Solution Alignment: Identifying specific issues in the target field that their unique background equips them to address differently • Strategic Narrative Construction: Developing a compelling story that connects their existing expertise to the future needs of the target industry • Selective Credential Building: Acquiring specific knowledge markers that demonstrate commitment while leveraging existing transferable skills   The most effective career transitions aren't accomplished by minimizing differences or attempting to compete directly with industry insiders on their terms.   Rather, they succeed by deliberately highlighting how cross-industry perspective creates unique value in solving the target industry's evolving challenges.   For professionals considering a pivot, the critical shift isn't in acquiring years of new experience, but in reframing existing experience to demonstrate its relevance and value in the new context.   What unexpected industries have you seen professionals successfully transition between by leveraging seemingly unrelated backgrounds?   Sign up to my newsletter for more corporate insights and truths here: https://lnkd.in/ei_uQjju   #deepalivyas #eliterecruiter #recruiter #recruitment #jobsearch #corporate #careertransition #crosspollination #industryshift #careerstrategist

7 Steps I Used To Change Careers (From Healthcare To Microsoft) With No Experience: 1. My Pivot Story I started my career in healthcare, working as a medical device sales rep in North Carolina. Two years later, I landed a role in tech sales at Microsoft in New York City. Here are the steps I used to make that career change without any formal tech experience: 2. I Started With Clarity Before I sent out resumes, applied, and networked? I focused on getting crystal clear about the specific types of roles and companies I wanted to work for. Juggling the possibility of multiple job titles and industries is overwhelming and stressful. When you have a single north star, you can invest 100% of your time and energy into it. 3. Then I’d Found People Who’d Done It Before I crafted a list of criteria I wanted for myself: Specific Job Titles Specific Companies Specific Locations Specific Salaries Then I used LinkedIn to find people who met those criteria AND came from a non-traditional background like mine. 4. I Used Those Connections To Craft A Blueprint How do I build the right experience? How do I position my non-traditional background? What mistakes should I avoid? I used the connections I just mentioned to gain clarity on all of those things so I could craft a plan for building the experience I needed to fit the skills and narratives companies would buy into. 5. I Created My Own Experience I wanted to work in advertising technology (think Google Ads, Facebook Ads, etc). Rather than hoping someone would give me a chance to get experience? I went and created my own. I took courses, volunteered my skills for local orgs, then used those success stories to freelance. Employers want results, not education from career changers. 6. I Focused All My Energy On Networking Online apps didn’t work. People would take one look at my resume and not see any traditional experience. When I networked with people? I could have a conversation with them. I could tell my story in my own words. And I could prove my value as the relationship built. That generated referrals and advocates. 7. I Used My Background As An Advantage Sounds crazy, right? Most applicants had cookie cutter backgrounds. I told a story of how I had to learn this all myself, from scratch. I’d bring a new perspective, new takes, and new ideas to a take vs. simply adding someone with the same thought process as everyone else. That’s got buy in from a lot of stakeholders. 8. I Created Projects To Prove My Value When I landed interviews? I’d brainstorm ideas for how I could impact those and package them in a 5–7 slide deck that matched the company’s branding. I’d send it to my interviewers as proof of the ideas I could bring. Showing them > telling them. —— ➕ Follow Austin Belcak for more 🔵 Ready to land your dream job? Click here to learn more about how we help people land amazing jobs in ~3.5 months with a $44k raise: https://lnkd.in/gdysHr-r