How many, like me, are in process of reimagining their career, post pandemic, and are evaluating Transferrable Skills to transition to new teams or industries? It’s not easy, right, to qualify and quantify skills in a 30 second email, or 30 minute dialogue? In reality it doesn’t need to be difficult, but AI and hiring regulations tend to make the easy complex, and the complex easy. I’ll share snippets of my journey of industry transition, and hopefully at least one person will read or hear something that will help them in their journey as well.
You’ve heard this before: If you have a trusted contact who is willing and able to connect you to internal decision makers to conduct preliminary calls at an organization you desire to work at or with, let them connect you and take the calls. At a minimum, you will learn about your transferrable skills, and may discover many you had overlooked, which may lead you to opportunities you hadn’t even considered. Often times we undervalue our experience and what we offer.
On to the transferrable skills topic: Data Analysis – we hear or read about it all the time online. Must have data analysis skills, data, data, data… guess what? Most everyone does have this… we just don’t frame our background in a way that highlights it. When we tell the story in current keyword terms, suddenly it becomes relevant!
What is Data? Data is plain facts. Data and Databases aren’t new – databases were invented in the 1960’s. They’ve transitioned from hierarchical (org charts) to relational (Salesforce, CRM). If you have used Excel or Access, you have worked with a database. If you have kept a rolodex, you have worked with a database. If you have kept a paper project file, you have worked with a database. If you have a cell phone and keep a contact list, you have worked with a database. Data is processed into information.
What is Information? Information is data that is processed, organized, structured or presented in a given context so as to make it useful. If you have used Excel or Access, you have worked with information.. If you have kept a rolodex, you have worked with information. If you have kept a paper project file, you have worked with information. If you have done research of any kind, on any topic, online or via books, journals, etc., you have worked with information.
What is a Data Analyst? A data analyst is a person who collects and organizes data, then uses the information to solve problems or answer questions, uncover trends, draw meaningful conclusions and communicate findings. If you’ve uncovered a sales or customer trend on any scale, large or small, you have transferrable data analyst skills. If you have researched a competitor or potential client to plan a call or conduct prospecting, you have transferrable data analyst skills. If you have researched and addressed client objections, drawn meaningful conclusions, and presented solutions, you have transferrable data analyst skills. If you have collected facts to draw conclusions and navigate decisions and actions, on a daily or weekly basis, you have transferrable data analyst skills.
When you learn and practice how to look at your background on a macro level, you can uncover many transferrable skills. Next up? I’ll generate another post about the many soft-skills associated with data analysis – very relevant, transferrable soft-skills many of us have practiced and perfected for years. It’s all about communicating the transferrable skills in terms that AI and hiring managers are using today. Most of us have the top, sought-after transferrable skills companies now require. I’m also analyzing how to quantify and fit “neuroplasticity” into a resume, for anyone of any age… because the brain does not “age out”… it evolves, learns and strengthens continuously over your entire lifetime… if you continue to challenge it accordingly! No matter what road you’re headed down in your career right now, the paths can be wide open…