Reflect, Research, Reposition: Tools for changing careers successfully

You’ve told yourself that 2023 is the year. Maybe you have spent a bit of time in a function you don’t enjoy, or maybe you are looking to take on a new challenge after decades of industry experience. Regardless of your situation, you have decided that now is the time to transition into an occupation that gives your professional life meaning and purpose.

Sadly, there isn’t a shortcut when it comes to changing careers – you simply must do the work. Once you decide upon an opportune path, it’s likely you’ll need to step down to step up, upskill and retrain in your spare time, or take on unpaid projects to build a portfolio in your new field. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you’ll get it all wrong and you’ll get to go through the motions all over again.

In my case, moving into venture development in climate tech required all the above. Twice.

By the time I joined the Bayes Modular Executive MBA , I had pivoted from a design career, launched a social enterprise, and grew a start-up sustainability agency through business development. My objective for my MBA was simple: steer my transferrable skills to an environment in which I could help impact-led organisations overcome barriers to growth, daily. Although I had the right experience to make the transition, I lacked the positioning that would not only demonstrate my conviction but also signal to employers that I would be a good long-term fit.

Enter the Careers and Professional Development Team at Bayes. Through a series of reflective, career planning, and coaching exercises, I landed a role at a company that I had previously pegged as a “post-MBA move” within three months of embarking upon my two-year MBA.

In this article, I’ll walk you through the three major tools I deployed and outline why they are essential to launching yourself into a new professional world.

1) Reflect

Before you can reap the benefits of applying your hard-earned transferrable skills in new environments, you first must have a clear idea of what you want to do. And more importantly, whether what you want to do aligns with what you’re good at and what you have the stamina to endure through the ups and downs.

Access to Jane Barrett’s MBA Maximiser is provided to all Bayes MBA students at the start of their journey. This reflective tool helps you evaluate and rank your strengths, values, interests, work preferences, and long-term goals. The undisputable value-add lies within the process of ‘ranking’ your answers, as it helps separate your real ambitions and desires from fleeting trends. Whilst you might think that you’re perfect for a certain industry or function, your subconscious might tell you otherwise. An essential conversation to have with yourself prior to going on job interviews – as people will always be able to see right through you.

2) Research

As you’re doing your reflective work, start researching people who currently hold the job you want in the future, in organisations that you admire. I (along with everyone else at Bayes) would recommend using LinkedIn, as you’ll have the ability to observe people’s careers over time to understand what moves they made to get to where they are today. Alongside your “desktop research”, start speaking to people in your network about what their job entails daily. Where are their highest highs, their lowest lows. If the job at its worst does not appeal you, perhaps you can cross it off your list. In a pool of similar candidates, companies will choose those who are willing to do the work when times are tough.

The Careers Team provide great advice about creating meaningful connections and can make suggestions about alumni in similar situations.  Don’t forget that people are doing you a favour by taking the time to speak to you – do your research to make it worth their while and make it easy for them to say yes by asking for advice rather than asking for help. Taking them for coffee and meeting them by their offices is always a nice touch.

3) Reposition

At this point, you will have nailed your strengths, outlined suitable environments, and taken the time to get to know your career options. Your next step would be to book a 1:1 session with the Careers Team to discuss your CV and be coached on upcoming interviews as needed. They will help you tailor your career narrative to your desired industry and pull out the strongest outcomes from your prior experiences. This is important because it forces you to emphasise the overarching impact from your work, meaning that projects that you previously thought were strong or relevant for your transition, in fact, may not be. Don’t get discouraged – showing how you have developed your key strengths rather than listing experiences you think the interviewer will want to see will better demonstrate your differentiation.

Final thoughts

Changing careers is emotionally and physically gruelling work. It took eight long years (plus three months) for this womenswear designer to finally land in commercialisation and development for start-ups. But, as someone who has seen the light at the end of the tunnel, I can guarantee that rewards outweigh the difficulties incurred. In those moments of doubt, remind yourself that being brave now means that you’ll get to be in the environment in which you can thrive by being undeniably you.

Roll up your sleeves; you have a long road ahead of you. But the good news, and perhaps the secret to true success, is that you don’t have to travel it alone.

Lauren Pilgreen, Modular Executive MBA (2024)