Assessing Your Strengths and Readiness for a New Role
Assessing Readiness for Top Tech Roles
Research shows that women tend to disqualify themselves from roles before they apply, because they believe they need to meet 100% of the criteria, compared to men who will apply even if they only meet 60%. (Harvard Business Review)
Continuing the conversation with T200 , Katherine (Katie) Graham Shannon , Partner at Heidrick & Struggles , highlighted some challenges and opportunities in identifying your readiness for a new role.
It takes a lot of confidence to apply for a job knowing that you don’t meet all the criteria. To build that confidence, Shannon recommended the following tips to assess where you are and get yourself ready for a new role:
Find a mentor or coach to help you. They can be a mirror to expose what you are not seeing and serve as a role model for achievement.
Find someone to sponsor you. Sponsors differ from mentors and coaches in this fundamental way: they are the people who talk about you and elevate you when you are not in the room.
Get in the habit of asking for what you want. Part of finding the right job for you is one that meets your needs as well as the needs of the company.
Recognize the shift in interviewing practices. Be crisp, succinct, and strategic in your response. Then stop & ask if they want more detail.
Put yourself in the shoes of the CEO or Board. Do your homework – figure out what matters to them and offer solutions to those challenges.
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Build and leverage a network of executive recruiters. This relationship should be a give and take; if you can help a recruiter source great candidates, they will be more than happy to help you prepare for and find a role when it’s your turn. Play the long game here.
Create an individual development plan. Look at your past and present to see where there may be gaps in your experience, skills, and competencies. Plan out how you will address those gaps so that you’re a better match for the role you want and consider what kind of impact you would have in the organization.
Work on your elevator pitch. If you were on an elevator ride with Richard Branson, what would you say to him to get him to invest in you when it’s time to exit for your floor?
Following these tips can go a long way toward preparing you for your next role. Remember, there are no perfect candidates, only perfectly prepared ones.?
What other tips do you have for assessing your strengths and readiness for a new role? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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At T200, we share our mission of fostering, celebrating, and advancing women’s leadership in tech. Our members are changing the face of consumer, enterprise, and business technology daily. We invite you to learn more about us and join, volunteer, or donate at https://www.t200.org/.