Changing jobs – spread your wings

First of all, as this is my first Managing Talent newsletter of 2021, let me take this opportunity to wish all my readers a very happy New Year, and all the very best for your professional development. I indicated in my last message in 2020 that this year I’ll be publishing on a monthly rather than a weekly basis and focusing on how each of us can work on our own development by managing our own talent, helped of course by our manager. So it is with pleasure that I launch this first newsletter of the year with a more employee centric approach, rather than focusing on the role of the manager. After all, who better to manage our talent than us ourselves!

As part of the people ambition we launched in 2019 and have been rolling out worldwide since, each employee is responsible for driving their career forward and applying for next opportunities on an open internal job market. To accompany our employees we launched Job Posting Days, which we designed with an excellent project team in 2019 and I am proud was recognized as instrumental in the success of the mobility process. We are currently in the middle of the second global job posting campaign, unphased by the health restrictions enabling us to be as visible and physically present as last year. As I write 550 workshops, attended by around 6500 employees and managers, are underway delivered online to employees worldwide in over 100 countries. The workshops are designed to help employees prepare for their next job change, present their applications and handle the emotions that range from excitement on embarking on the process, doubt on whether to apply or whether a role is right for you or not, disappointment for the inevitable rejections and back to positive emptions of joy and pride on finding the right role. Workshops are also available to managers, to accompany their role as manager-coach in the staffing of their team and the selection process. In addition to these workshops around 80 sessions have been arranged as part of online career forums bringing together experts from the different professional disciplines, talent developers and employees sharing their career experience to help people in their job search.

At this exciting time with so much focus on taking a proactive and individualized action to career development and the next steps in their professional lives, it seems like a good theme to kick off the year with, and in a moment of inspiration giving thought to how to condense such a topic into a short newsletter, the image of a butterfly came to mind. As we have seen in my previous article, metaphors can be an effective tool for a persuasive argument so bear with me as I take you through the life cycle emerging into a vibrant flash of colour taking flight. 

The caterpillar

Before you can spread your wings there is a crucial stage of preparation. This starts well in advance of deciding on a move. In your current role you will be constantly feeding yourself on new learning, knowledge and relations with new people all of which will be useful to you later. 

Much as a caterpillar spends time fattening itself up, and gathering all the sustenance it will need to power its transformation, you will need to be open to learn and nourish yourself, getting the most out of the different experiences in your current role as possible to prepare for the future. Think of each task as a learning opportunity, even if what you are doing is the same task, think about how you can do it in the most effective way, or how you can improve the interaction with others in the process. Consider who you can learn from, how they can help you gain different perspective, exposure to new things, and grow your skills. Your manager-coach is going to be a key ally in this process, as they will be able to assign you missions or tasks that take you out of your comfort zone and enable you to learn and develop, and they will be able to support you and introduce you to others who can help. Of course though sometimes they might need a little reminder of your expectations, so be clear with them what your needs are, and ensure what you are asking them is reasonable and feasible and in the realms of their powers and scope to provide. 

During this stage of “fattening up” your skills and your experience, jump at the chance to contribute to project work, collaborate with other teams, gain exposure or work on different things. Relish any learning opportunities that arise in your role, whether they are formal or not. When it comes to formal training opportunities, take the time to prepare from them, considering your own individual learning objectives, and thinking about how you wish to use the new skills you learn. Exchange with colleagues, and with your manager, as support in implementing the new skills you have learnt after the training. 

As it becomes clearer that the time is right for you to consider moving on to the next step in your career, then start to prepare for the next phase. Bear in mind the normal duration in position in the company for which you work. In my industry usually people stay in their roles for 3-4 years.

The chrysalis 

Leading yourself forward towards the time when you’ll spread your wings will require a moment of introspection, reflection and preparation to unlock your talent potential. Much as a caterpillar transforms to a chrysalis, and prepares for its transformation, you will also need to prepare yourself too. 

Take some time to reflect on what you want to do next, what motivates you, and what skills you want to use in your next role. Think carefully about the types of working environment you want to be in, who you want to work with, what type of day to day work you want to do going forward. It is crucial also during this time of reflection to take stock of all the nourishment you have had to date, what skills you have banked in your past, what have you learnt, how can you leverage this, and what doors will this open for you. Where are your skills best put to use? Are there any gaps you need to be aware of and know that you will need to work on? 

The chrysalis stage is really about preparation, mentally, emotionally and physically for the process ahead. Ultimately the intention is to get you to a position of pride and contentment, but let’s be clear that getting to that point is going to take some energy, and can be an emotional rollercoaster.  There will be times of uncertainty, feelings of doubt and worry, there will be times of excitement and suspense, and probably some times of frustration and impatience. There may be times of disappointment, anger, and at times you may feel disheartened. You might find yourself with a choice to make, and this choice can be difficult, weighing up the pros and cons of each option, considering what compromises need to be made between two viable but not perfect matches to your aspirations. So, before launching yourself off the metaphorical leaf and trying to fly, remember that caterpillars don’t have wings, and it is important to hunker down and take some time to get ready for flight. 

Imagine your future self, envision what you want to look like, how you want to be perceived, and start to model yourself. Give some thought to how you are going to make yourself stand out, how you are going to be seen in the crowd, and get yourself ready to be visible. This comes very naturally to some, but is a much harder exercise to others. Not everyone feels comfortable marketing themselves, and so take the time build up the confidence to do so. 

Of course during this stage you are not alone and you’ll be able to interact and communicate with your manager, your talent developer (HR) and your peers to be at your best.

Emerging and spreading your wings

Once you have a clear design of how you want to be seen, what colours you want to wear, where and when you want to take flight, it is time to emerge from the chrysalis. The error here would be to only do so at the application or interview stage.

My view is that your butterfly stage of your mobility project starts well before you actually find a vacant job opening to apply to. Aim to have your wings on display as early as possible. Ideally you’ll be able to start to flutter around your target flowers before they even open, and ensure that your name is already known to the key stakeholders, the managers and the talent developers. 

Ensure that you portray yourself in the way you want to be seen for the roles you aspire to. Start to engage in the topics that you want to work on, start following or connecting with people who work there via social networks internally (Yammer for instance) or externally (there’s plenty of us on linkedin…!) and engage with them.

Ensure that your CV and your covering letter are well presented and clearly highlight the relevant skills and competencies that you bring to the job. Present your professional story logically and make sure the step into their role can be seen as an obvious next step for you. 

If you are shortlisted for interview, take time to prepare, analyse the competencies for the job and think about concrete examples to illustrate your knowledge and experience, and be ready to explain what you have done and achieved and importantly how you tackled the tasks in hand. The interview is your opportunity to enable the manager to understand your profile, your skill level, your experience, your motivation and your career aspirations, and how you see your place in their team being well aligned. 

Remember that you won’t be the only magnificent butterfly taking flight and trying to attract attention, so the key here is looking your best, flying well, being seen as stable, agile and well controlled. Put yourself in the manager’s shoes : what are they looking for? What profile best suits the job and the working environment? What are their needs? How will those needs evolve in the next 3-5 years? How does your profile compare to all this? Help the manager to see that you are the right choice and that you match what they are looking for. 

Finally, bear in mind that huge advantage of being a butterfly rather than a caterpillar is that you are able to readily move from one plant to another, depending on where the best source of the sweet nectar is. If the job application or interview doesn’t go the way you hoped, don’t fret! There are plenty of opportunities whether now or in the future, and so dust yourself off, flash those colourful wings and strut your stuff with pride and confidence, and fly off to try elsewhere. 

Changing jobs can often be seen as a stressful time, an unsettling period of unknowns and risk of putting yourself out there and failing. My personal view is that it is a great opportunity to get yourself known, expand your connections and your knowledge of jobs that could be right for you at some point in the future, even if not now, and to seize the opportunities that exist. In the case of internal moves the risks are minimal, as you will have a job even if you don’t find something immediately and you have an ecosystem around you to support you: you can count on your manager-coach and your talent developer as well as your professional network and peers. You’re not alone, and indeed at this time of year Spring has come early and there are many butterflies in the air looking for the next sweet flower to feed from. Enjoy the flight, take advantage of the winds that might help you blow in one direction or another, and make sure you have your best colours showing. Good luck to any of my readers looking for a new role! 

Alan Lambert is an International HR leader currently working at the Corporate HR Strategy division of a global energy major