Transitioning Industries: How Can You Stand Out As A Candidate?

Even though we all know that most adults change careers at some point in their lives (many more than once!), it can still feel like an overwhelming task—but it isn’t. What does it take? A great resume. Write a killer resume that highlights your transferable skills, using the keywords for your new industry as much as possible. Emphasize your accomplishments with quantitative evidence (numbers, percentages, dollar amounts, time saved, growth, etc.) Great networking. Hopefully, you’ve maintained a good network throughout your career. You can use your contacts there to lead you to new ones. Also, it’s critical that you get involved with a social media site like LinkedIn. With a professional profile, you can join groups that are relevant to your new industry and make connections that will help you land interviews. Above-and-beyond activities. Job shadowing is a great way to get keywords for your resume and provide you with talking points for your interviews. Conduct informational interviews to learn more about both your new career field and individual companies. Professional help. Find a career coach (interview coach) who specializes in your new field and can help you pinpoint weak spots, polish your presentation, and help you strategize the best marketing campaign for landing your new job. Interview skills. You do need ready answers to interview questions and a 30/60/90-day plan, but it helps to remember that your goal is this: You must be able to demonstrate to the hiring manager how you as a candidate can address the top 4 things he’s looking for in a new hire: • You can do the job • You will do the job • You understand how to be successful in the job • You won’t pose a risk to his own continued employment A job seeker transitioning to a new field will have some unique challenges that a candidate with experience doesn’t, but there are ways to overcome those challenges. If you attack your job search in the right way, you won’t be just putting yourself on a level playing field with experienced candidates, but you can actually stand head-and-shoulders above them.