This has been an increasingly common situation for the past decade. You probably realize that developments in technology have reduced the role of middle managers in many industries. Financial pressures have also reduced the number of supervisory levels in many organizations.
If you are in this situation, you may find it difficult to make a move within your own industry, partly because it might be declining, and partly because employers may doubt that you'd truly be satisfied in a less demanding job. You might also be hesitant to seek a job in a different industry, where you have little knowledge and no experience. Fortunately, there are a number of ways to address this liability.
Mindset
Keep in mind that, because this has happened to so many people who performed well, employers today understand that this can happen to anyone, and do not automatically associate so many negatives with it as they might have in the past.
For many people, careers are a series of advances followed by plateaus. If you are stuck on a plateau, realize it is a temporary situation faced by many, and that if you are determined enough, you will find a job that allows you to make advances again, as you have in the past.
Also, careers peak for a variety of reasons. If you have achieved a high level in a corporation, it just may be that you will never go any higher there, nor do you wish to. Boredom may be the root of the problem, and a lateral move to a new environment is what's needed. The challenge of a new company, new associates, and different problems to solve, could meet your expectations fully.
Remember too that a large number of smaller growth companies have started up in the past five to ten years, and many of them need the kind of seasoned talent you bring, to help them manage their growth smoothly. Your experience may make you highly suited to playing a broader role in such a smaller company.
Another consideration is that, with so many industries outsourcing so many functions today, industry knowledge is not so important as it once was for many functions. It is more credible in this fast-paced era for a person to switch industries and still be able to make contributions quickly, so long as they have the skills an employer needs.
Regardless of the fact that your career may have "peaked," that is not so significant to many employers, as long as you have the talents and traits which indicate you can help them meet their near-term objectives, and show enthusiasm for the chance to do so.
Resume
Use an up-front summary that highlights briefly your most significant achievements without regard to when they occurred. Structure the body of the resume primarily according to achievements or functions filled. You need to include chronology, but you do not need to overemphasize it, or structure the main portion of your resume according to dates and titles. They can be summarized in a less prominent position, and not in bold type.
The achievements and experience emphasized should be supported by concise statements of the actions you took to achieve results, and those results should always be measured in a manner that puts them in the most favorable light. They should also correspond closely to your goal, which can if you choose indicate an objective with a broader scope than the positions you have filled in the past.
Beyond functions and experience, be sure to give sufficient attention to personal strengths and traits that would be important for the type of position you are seeking. People are hired when their cluster of skills, knowledge areas, and personal traits are the closest match to the job requirements, and the personal traits can sometimes be a major factor.
Interviews / e-mail / Letters
In interviews and correspondence it is possible to turn this liability to an advantage. You can make the point that achievements are more difficult to come by in a stable or declining field. Since you were able to achieve even in that environment, it is reasonable to assume that your efforts would yield even better results in a growing organization.
You can also use this liability as the basis for claiming a high level of motivation. Explain the level of frustration you've endured for lack of an organization that could make full use of your ability to contribute. Emphasize that you are resolved to find an employer that has the same high standards you do, one which needs and expects innovation, creativity, and outstanding results from all its people.
Ask questions that direct the discussion toward the functions and personal strengths that will be most important for the person who wins the job, and when they are identified, relate examples of how you have used those precise abilities and strengths to make significant contributions to your employer.
The most memorable and credible way to do that is through concise situation-action-result format stories which show that you analyzed situations well, took appropriate actions, and achieved measurable results. The actions in particular should show that you have knowhow and knowledge in the areas most important for the job.
Remember that you can also lay claim to partial credit for results when you worked as part of a team. Simply make clear the role you played.
It may also be significant to an employer that you have specialized education or training in an area where you don't have a lot of experience, or that you had a lot of exposure to a particular function in which you did not have direct responsibility. Valuable personal traits, such as an ability to work well with people at every level in many different departments, should not be overlooked.
Actions
Analyze your company and industry with a critical eye. When revenues are declining, many employees will face a limited future. The longer you accept this situation, the more likely it is that others will view you as "peaked." If you are in this situation, and you do not see sufficient opportunity to use your skills and knowledge, the first and best action you can take is to recognize your plight and resolve to do something about it.
If there is a course you can take, or information you can study, that would help prepare you or make you more knowledgeable about the type of position you are targeting, get started on that as soon as possible. If you can talk with people currently active in that type of position, arrange to meet with them and get their input. If there is a trade or professional publication geared to that function or field, subscribe to it or read back issues in the library. Being "peaked" is a less significant obstacle when you have a good deal of knowledge about the position you are targeting. This is one way to get it.
Likewise, if you aren't already familiar with them, conduct research on any industry and companies you are targeting, using the Internet and/or resources in the Business Reference section of a good library. It will be to your advantage to write a small article about the major trends in that industry as they affect someone in the function you are targeting, whether it is general management, purchasing, sales, production, marketing, finance, customer service, information systems, or any other function.
In this way, you take the focus of the discussion totally away from questioning whether you've "peaked," toward specific ways you might contribute to the potential employer in a selected function. The anticipation and excitement that is often generated in such future-oriented discussions is a key ingredient in a positive hiring decision.
When choosing the type of positions and industries you are targeting, give a lot of thought to how closely you can match your strengths and achievements to those which are likely to be required for those positions. Ask yourself, "If I were doing the hiring for that position, why would I hire someone with my background?"
Examine your past contributions closely, and take sufficient time to prepare and rehearse several action-oriented stories that demonstrate your talent for moving rapidly to get results in the types of situations that resemble those likely to be faced by the person who wins the job you are seeking.
Look for as many specific result indications as possible. Be prepared to give a wealth of evidence in the form of these memorable stories. They will reassure the prospective employer that, from your perspective, you are far from peaked, but rather, more than ready to dig into challenging problems and opportunities.
Develop and coach enthusiastic references from selected individuals you can trust inside your employer organization, if possible, and from outside of it, e.g., customers, suppliers, sales reps, consultants, etc., who will be happy to attest to your action orientation, ambition, and ability to deliver results in a demanding, fast-paced environment.
Review your resume with these references, and make sure they keep a copy available to scan when and if they are called. You can if you choose give them "special assignments," where in addition to an overall enthusiastic endorsement, each of them will be expected to emphasize a different strength or ability in a special functional area.
This step will enable you to make the statement in an interview that, "You've heard about my achievements, but only from me. You really need to hear it from people who have seen me in action. Experience in Function X is important to you, and for that I suggest you contact Mary Jones. Experience in Function Y is also essential, and for that you'll get good input from Phil White. Personal traits A and B are needed for this job, and the people who would know best about that are Sue Griffith and Tom Robbins." It would be to my benefit if you contact all of them, and I hope you will." Such a statement will erase any lingering doubts about your being ready and able to turn in outstanding results, even if you haven't had much opportunity to do so recently.
Because we tend to get what we expect, and because people tend to reflect back to us the beliefs and attitudes we are projecting, examine your beliefs about yourself and about what is possible for you in your career at this stage. If your beliefs are limiting or negative, work on them. Recognize that all of us filter reality through our attitudes and beliefs, so what we perceive doesn't necessarily reflect reality, but just the way we are seeing it at the moment.
If you have been in a declining situation for any length of time, it's very likely that your "filter" has been darkened and distorted toward the negative, and has been reinforced by many of those around you. Write down your beliefs in this area, not as fact, but as beliefs. Start each one with the words, "I believe."
If any of them are negative or limiting, then write a corresponding positive version. As you may know, any belief can be justified by the facts, depending upon which facts you choose to focus upon. Intentionally use "selective perception" to focus on and write down all the events which support the positive beliefs and ignore any which support the negative.
If the daily newspaper is full of only negative news, don't read it. Choose instead to read only positive literature, listen to positive tapes, to music that makes you feel good, and engage in physical activity that energizes you. Visualize yourself being warmly greeted by interested prospective employers, and make corresponding verbal affirmations. Visualization has proven effective in many fields, including sports and medicine, and there is no reason to doubt that it also works in job changing.
These activities will help you to see the world in a brighter perspective. You will gradually develop more positive expectations about what is possible for you and how people will react to you. Remember, such expectations have a lot to do with how we are treated and the kinds of events we experience. You may have had more than your share of disappointing events in recent years, so it's time to bring into focus the good times. Working consciously to intentionally build positive beliefs and expectations is one way to do it.
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