Are you thinking about making a move from your traditional field? Branding yourself as a subject-matter expert can give you an edge.
If you’re competing with candidates who have experience within the industry or function, you’re going to need a way to distinguish yourself.
It’s simple: If you can apply your current skills effectively to compete against industry insiders, hiring managers will be more likely to take a chance on you. In addition, demonstrating an investment of time and resources shows that you’re focused on the new path and that you are not just an industry hopper.
Thanks to online tools, it’s easier than ever before to study up on a subject and demonstrate your mastery to prospective employers. In many fields, today’s career changer has options that take fewer resources and time than formal university reeducation.
Here are four steps to gain visibility in a new industry or function:
Create your subject-matter expertise.
1. Determine your subject-matter expertise.
Identify your unique ability to solve a specific business problem. Note the words “unique” and “specific;” both qualities are essential if you want to differentiate yourself. By focusing on problems you are uniquely qualified to solve, you reduce reliance on industry or functional experience.
2. Focus on skills over industry and function.
Even more important than transferrable skills, what makes you unique? What value have you provided to employers – and which ones apply to your new career?
Distribute your subject-matter expertise.
1. Manage your online reputation.
Do a Google search on yourself – what does it say? Shaping and creating your online reputation is just as important as keeping negative information off the Internet- especially to a career changer. You can build your reputation for subject-matter expertise by creating content under your name or citing the content of others on a blog or another online venue.
2. Establish an online portfolio.
Hiring managers know that resumes only offer a limited view of a candidate’s performance on the job. Online portfolios include work examples, reports, spreadsheets, presentations, design, and projects that an employee has managed or developed, demonstrates transferrable skills.
If you’re a candidate trying to compete in a new field, you’ve never had a better chance to build a new brand as a subject-matter expert. It takes some work to rebrand yourself, but even in today’s competitive job market you can compete against industry vets. There’s no pill you can take to reinvent yourself — these methods take work, time, and resources. However, in many careers it now takes significantly less work, time, and resources than going back to school for a formal degree.
How will you build your subject-matter expert brand? Share your thoughts here on MyPath.
