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Careers & workplace advice from Hays

So, you have been in your role for a while, and are starting to wonder how much more progress you can make at your current organisation. You know your job inside out, and are certainly performing well – but ask yourself – are you continually developing and learning within your career?

No matter your field, constant progression during your career is essential. Without it, your role will seem repetitive, your skills could become outdated, and you are hindering your chances of success when applying for roles elsewhere, as well as in the future.

To a large extent – career development is down to you. You need to know which areas you want to improve in, and what your long term career goals are. You will then need to proactively communicate these goals to your boss and suggest action points for achieving these.

Once you have done this however, your boss should use their experience, seniority and influence within the organisation to help you achieve your goals.  Therefore, in order to gauge how much your boss cares about your career progression, ask yourself whether they are taking these below steps when you approach them to discuss your development.

1. Your boss communicates regularly with you

If your boss really cares about your career progression, they will have proactively tried to create an open environment in which you feel you are able to communicate your thoughts on how you see your role progressing. They will also make their own suggestions and provide feedback on areas where you can develop.

A prime opportunity for this type of interaction could include one to one meetings. Do you have regular catch ups with your boss to discuss your professional progress or “career map”? If not, do you think they would be receptive if you asked for this to start happening? Open communication during regular meetings provides both you and your boss with the chance to discuss the steps necessary for you to fulfil your potential.

2. Your boss encourages you to challenge yourself

Does your boss give you the chance to take on more responsibility or stretch yourself beyond your current day to day responsibilities, and are these opportunities relevant to your career goals?  Think about any new tasks or projects that they ask you to undertake, which aren’t typical for your day to day role.  For example, if the destination on your “career map” is to eventually become a people manager – then your boss might ask you to train up new members of the team and introduce them to other people within the business. The ability to welcome and integrate new team members is an essential people management trait.

In allowing you to take on tasks outside of your comfort zone, your boss is demonstrating to you that they want you to develop, and are willing to help you get there.

3. Your boss connects you to the right people

Another way your boss can help you meet your career goals, is by using their senior status to connect you to the right people. To use the same example as above, if you want to become a people manager, this will involve being promoted up the ranks within your company, therefore your boss will know who you need to impress. Moreover, they will know how to get you in front of these people to show off your skills, whether it is in the form of giving presentations, representing the team during meetings, or inviting you to corporate events.

Ask yourself – how often does your boss connect you with the people who can influence your career progression?

4. Your boss says yes to training

How supportive is your boss when it comes to training opportunities? As I mentioned in the introduction, it is down to you to find out what your goals are and proactively search for actionable ways to achieve them, and ideally your boss will supplement these with their own. One of these ways could be via certain training courses relevant to your career goals.

It is important to bear in mind that training courses can be a big investment of company time and money, therefore sometimes circumstances won’t allow. If your boss’s hands are tied on this basis, they should at least explain their reasoning, and suggest alternative ways to up-skill yourself which don’t impact time and budget as much.  These could include webinars, podcasts or training and mentoring sessions with relevant members of staff.

You are taking the initiative to learn new things in order to develop your career-your boss should understand and recognise this ambition, see the value it could bring to your organisation and therefore help you out wherever possible.

5. Your boss gives you credit

If you do something well, does your boss publicly praise you or take the credit for themselves? You need to know that your boss has your back and that they aren’t just following their own agenda. A key indicator of this is your boss commending you in front of the wider team, attributing relevant successes to you and being happy to let you take credit where credit is due.

6. Your boss welcomes promotional opportunities

The ultimate test – if a promotion comes up within your team which seems perfectly aligned to what you want – how does your boss react? They know you will want to apply for this opportunity. If they think you are suitable, do they encourage you to go for it? If they don’t think you’re quite there yet, do they give feedback and offer to help develop you accordingly?

What if an opportunity comes up elsewhere within the business that you would be perfect for and they know it? This situation is the definitive indicator of whether your boss cares about your career progression.  If they are willing to help you move elsewhere in the business for the sake of your career development-then they truly have your best interests at heart.

What to do next

Ask yourself the above questions to indicate how much your boss cares about your career development. If you answer yes to most of them – then you have a good boss who is supportive of your personal development and future career goals. Therefore, it is important that you make them proud – they have invested their time and budget into developing you, and will want to see results. Make the most of any new challenges, training and development opportunities that you take on, and feed back to your boss on how it has helped you.

If you answered no, then it’s time to have that conversation with your boss. Are they able to alter their management approach and support you more in realising your career goals? If not, then it may be time to move on and find somebody who can.

If you do decide to look for a new role at an organisation which can truly develop you, don’t forget to emphasise your ambitions on your CV, when speaking to a recruiter and during the interview stage. Find out how much these prospective employers can accommodate your career goals, and let this be a deciding factor when choosing between them.

You should also check out some of the below articles surrounding what to assess during the job search stage:

 

I’m pleased to see that Big Data is starting to become more and more like business as usual for many companies, including Hays. And, although the journey has undoubtedly been harder than any of us initially expected, it’s great to see how organisations are now taking the steps needed to develop and upgrade their staff, toolset and the amount or type of information they collect, to enable them to really take their data capabilities to the next level.

Continue reading Big Data 2.0 Will Be 2017’s Trend To Watch – Is Your Business Ready? →

Analysts at Gartner predict there will be 25 billion smartphones, smartwatches, wearables, connected cars and other connected devices by 2020. From household appliances to ATMs, all these devices will constantly gather user data, and communicate that data in what is known as the “Internet of Things” – or IoT.

IoT will change the world of financial services beyond recognition. Candidates with the right set of skills to exploit this opportunity have a bright future ahead.

IoT: a more customer-centric approach

Machine-to-machine (M2M) connectivity represents a revolutionary opportunity for the financial services sector to understand their customer much better and offer them the most appropriate products, based on their actual behavior, minute by minute.

“This is good news for everyone,” claims Romain Doutriaux, Chief Marketing Officer at Dataiku, a startup that creates software to help data scientists process information and make sense of big data, and whose customers include Axa Group and LCL (Le Credit Lyonnais).

“These days, most consumers and definitely the customers if financial services firms expect services to be centered around them and their needs. IoT will fine-tune products, for instance by offering specific pricing for a loan or an insurance contract, but will also help in fraud prevention, churn defection (customers turning to other companies), as well as contributing to a more accurate segmentation of customers,” he says.

Indeed in the banking sector, IoT technologies are currently used mainly to monitor customers according to Tata Consultancy Services. “To understand and engage with customers, 65% of the banking respondents use mobile apps and 16% track wearables. The next common IoT application is monitoring the supply chain with 38% of the respondents using it to keep tabs on a complex web comprising branches, ATMs, partners and so on” the company notes.

Banks investing massively in IoT

Tata says that banks and financial institutions have identified that deciphering what data to capture and how to gather, process and analyze it is the key to success with IoT. They are now investing massively in solutions to deal with the huge rise in connected objects.

Tata Consultancy Services reports that financial institutions have reported an average IoT budget of US$117.4 million which is 0.4% of total revenue. Its study reveals that they are planning to spend US$153.5 million by 2018. “A large amount of their IoT budget (32% in 2015 and 29% by 2020) will account for monitoring financial products and services. Also, this year they plan to allocate 30% of their IoT budget to monitor customers. This allocation is expected to increase to 34%  by 2020”.

Wanted: data experts

“With connected devices everywhere, by 2020 data monitoring, analytics and control will be used widely in marketing,” says Romain Doutriaux. The latter believes that in the financial services sector, data science will also be used in auto insurance customisation for instance. “There will be a black box in your car monitoring your driving, your speed, etc. The data generated will be able to offer very targeted pricing,” he says.

Doutriaux thinks the use of connected devices in lending is an “ongoing” development. “If you have a wearable device like an iWatch, your bank could use some of the information it generates to offer you more interesting contracts. Banking apps will monitor your expenses, what you spend on, at what moment, where etc. It will help determine which banking solution is right for you”.

However, Doutriaux also notes that currently financial services companies are having difficulties recruiting candidates with the right skills to take IoT further. “Yet, in 2017, IoT will be the most important source of innovation for banking and financial services,” says Romain Doutriaux. “Most of our customers find it very difficult to recruit data scientists, whose skills are a mix of good knowledge of business and mathematics. IoT will also increase the need for statisticians, actuaries, data analysts etc.,” he says.

A skills gap

So why is it so difficult for banks to recruit the right workforce to harness the power of IoT? “Financial services companies like banks and insurers have existed for centuries. Suddenly this long-standing industry and the people who have worked in it for decades and are supposed to be experts are being challenged by the GAFAs (Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon) and the Fintech world. There are seeing young folks who know lots about IT and not much about banking challenging them,” Doutriaux remarks. He thinks that what banks need to fight back is more agility, being more customer-centric and developing digital skills in-house.

However, he is noticing a shift, with financial services companies creating more chief innovation officer roles. “To master IoT you need more than tools. You need people who can learn quickly, adapt, be involved with project they would not have been involved with in the past” he concludes.

I hope you found this content useful. You may also be interested in these similar blogs:

 

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Do you think your job search will be easier now that you’re a manager? As a more senior level job seeker, you’ve gained some fantastic experience over the years and refined your skills – you are an expert in what you do – so why wouldn’t you breeze straight into your next job?

Yes, you are highly skilled, and you have a wealth of experience that would benefit a number of organisations. However, whilst you may be just as talented as the competition, you could be making mistakes whilst job searching that are hindering your chances.

These mistakes could boil down to complacency, or simply being a little rusty in your job searching techniques. In this blog, I discuss the common mistakes that you might be making as a management level jobseeker and how you can learn from them.

1. Your CV is missing key information

If you are at management level within your current organisation, chances are, you will have been in that role, as well as the company, for a relatively long time. Your current role will be prominent on your CV, and rightly so- this is one of the first things to recruiter looks at.  Despite this, many job seekers will regurgitate the initial job specification, without adding any information about the impact they have made at the company.

As a manager, you will have likely made changes and improvements to the business, so be sure to detail what you have brought to the role and the company as a whole. It’s not simply a case of saying you have made certain achievements either – you need to include quantitative information that backs this up. For example instead of saying “I increased profits in our overseas market”, try rephrasing  to “I increased revenue by X per cent in the company’s X region by developing such and such strategy.”

Give your CV a competitive edge by providing detailed, substantiated examples of what you have brought to your current company during your time there.

2. You have overlooked your recruitment consultant

Your recruitment consultant is your most powerful ally, so developing a good relationship with them is essential. They are valuable stakeholders, who can connect you to a number of desirable roles whilst providing you with valuable inside knowledge. Remember- at this level, some companies are not widely advertising more senior positions; therefore a recruitment consultant could be your only route of access. If you don’t feel comfortable going into a recruitment office, consider meeting somewhere such as a coffee shop where you can talk candidly.

Make time for the recruiter, go for a meeting with them and provide this consultant with more information about what you’re looking for in your next move. Having an open, strong rapport will not only help you to decide on the suitability of a role, it will also set you apart from the competition that don’t have as good a relationship with their recruiter.

3. You’re not working your network

Networking is completely different ball game when you’re further along in your career. Management level jobseekers are able to gain much from more networking than junior ones. You will have made a lot more useful connections during your career so far, you have more control over your diary, and are able to leverage more online opportunities. Ask yourself – are you networking to your full advantage?

Think about who you have met during your career – what are they doing now and how could they help you? Be tactical in your approach, don’t ambush them, and remember to keep the conversation two-way, mentioning what you can do for this person and their business. Go to relevant events, and look at the attendee list beforehand. There are some that will solely consist of senior decision makers. Again, remember networking is reciprocal, and you need to be interested and willing to help whoever you meet.

What about your online presence? Your expertise and input could be valued and in demand – are there any industry publications you could do a Q&A with or contribute some editorial to? Have you thought about starting a blog or doing a podcast? LinkedIn Publisher is great way to get your expert views across to a professional audience. Forums and groups are another route to showing your knowledge and getting involved in a wider conversation with potential stakeholders.

By networking strategically both online and offline, you are promoting yourself to the right people as knowledgeable, passionate and pro-active.

4. You are out of practice

You’ve done a lot of interviews, but how long has it been since you sat on the other side of the table? Refresh your memory of interview best practices, including researching the potential employer. If necessary, refresh your memory and brush up on the latest techniques here.

You should also keep in mind that an interview is a two-way street. Too often job seekers see the interview process as a competition for them to win. Instead, see it as a first date – you want to find out if you are compatible with them, and vice versa. Ask the right questions, and know what work environment and opportunity will make you happiest and most successful. In this case “winning” is finding a long-term commitment that is a good fit for you and the employer.

5. You are getting impatient

Recruiting a management level employee is never a decision to be taken lightly and the hiring manager will be even more determined to get this right than when they hire someone more junior. A management level recruit will typically be attracting higher salary, responsible for more than one person, and making a bigger impact on the company. Taking this into consideration, it’s not surprising that finding a new role isn’t as quick and easy as you initially thought. This can be quite dejecting, and may negatively impact your job search.

Stay positive and motivated, yet realistic. Brace yourself for long and tricky search, safe with the knowledge that these decisions are not made on a whim, so when you do get hired, it is because the company are sure you are right for them.

In sum, the most common job search mistakes that senior level job seekers make are caused by either being out of touch with the job search process and its best practices, or being complacent and assuming your senior position will propel you into position faster than it would a junior job seeker.

To avoid or rectify these mistakes, stay grounded and be willing to improve your CV, relationship with your recruiter, networking strategy, interview approach, and your patience during your job search. In doing this, your chances of securing your next senior position in the near future are greatly increased.

About to start your job search? Reading our job searching tips will help ensure it’s a success

 

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