May 17, 2024

How To Stay Relevant As An Executive In Career Transition

OnTalent

When a chain of organisations begin a process of cutting staff in higher-level management, leaders often begin to wonder when their company will be next. Whether you’re an executive who has already been made redundant, or you think you may face redundancy in the future, you can take action now to ensure that you stay relevant when undertaking a career transition and throughout your career journey.

Build Your Personal Brand During Your Career Transition

Branding isn’t just about selling goods and services anymore: It’s about selling yourself, particularly during a period of career transition. Times have changed and it’s no longer enough to have a resumé packed with impressive roles (in fact, it’s better to be selective on your resumé and highlight skills from the past 10 years, that will most impress hiring managers.) What makes you unique besides the jobs you have held? What are your values? What sort of interpersonal or technical skills can you bring to the table that will put you at the top of the pile when making that career transition?

This then becomes translated into your brand that you project out onto the world, whether it’s through your resumé, business cards, online profiles, or even your own website. This can be a challenge for the more experienced executives who haven’t had to think about personal branding before. But it’s not as hard as it seems, especially when you have help. This is where an executive career coach can be an invaluable asset.

Live Online

In today’s digital age, all workers—from the youngest graduates to the most experienced CEOs—are expected to maintain a strong online presence, especially during a career transition.

One of the easiest and most effective ways to achieve this is by enhancing your LinkedIn profile and becoming an active participant on the platform. A comprehensive and well-crafted LinkedIn profile not only highlights your professional achievements but also significantly boosts your visibility to potential employers. To optimise your LinkedIn profile for career transition success, start by ensuring every section of your profile is filled out, including your work experience, education, skills, and endorsements. A complete profile is more likely to attract the attention of recruiters and hiring managers.

Active engagement and networking are also crucial for building your professional brand online. Join professional LinkedIn groups related to your field or areas of interest. By participating in discussions, sharing insights, and connecting with other professionals, you expand your network and position yourself as an active and knowledgeable member of your professional community to help you stand out during a career transition. Regularly posting updates, articles, and insights relevant to your industry can establish you as a thought leader and attract attention from industry peers and potential employers. Engaging with others’ content by liking, commenting, and sharing posts from your connections builds relationships and increases your visibility within your network.

Become A Thought Leader

The wonderful thing about the online world is the ability to convey your wisdom and knowledge to others who will benefit from it. Known as “thought leadership”, this involves a variety of ways to show you are a leader in your field. One of the easiest ways is to write a series of short articles in your subject area and publish them on LinkedIn under your profile. Or, you can post them as blogs on your company website or even your own personal website. If you enjoy making videos, you can create your own YouTube channel and make a series of short informational or how-to videos. Or, you can take it a step further and become a Ted talk speaker.

Keep the Ball Rolling

It’s important to sustain your momentum during a career transition and do as much as you can to proactively make yourself into the ideal person for the role you want. Engage in continuing professional development with the myriad of affordable and free courses available on fantastic platforms such as amplifi. And of course, don’t forget good old-fashioned networking: as we know, it’s often not what you know, but who you know. There are many ways to connect with people – directly, events and organisations online through LinkedIn and other platforms.

If you’re an executive going through a career transition, or even simply wish to stay in your current job, you have the power to take charge and stay relevant in your career. Build your brand, connect with others both online and in the “real world”, demonstrate your expertise, and keep learning new skills. In this way, you can help buffer your job against industry downtrends and maintain a satisfying career.

Navigating the complexities of organisational change requires more than just strategic insight; it demands empathetic and robust support systems for your people. Our Career Transition and Outplacement team, with deep expertise and a profound understanding of the Australian job landscape, is dedicated to guiding leaders and their teams through every phase of career transitions. Reach out to us by emailing [email protected] to see how we can help you.