It was once widely accepted that the career path you chose after school or university would be maintained/consistent until retirement. However, in today’s more fluid and fast-paced job market, is having a ‘career for life’ becoming an outdated concept?
Leading e-learning organisation Edology, surveyed 1000 employers to see if attitudes have shifted around job hopping. They find changing jobs could actually be good for your career, with the majority of employers (82 per cent) saying they would hire someone who had switched jobs in the last six months.
The shift indicates that people’s perceptions about regularly changing jobs has moved from negative to largely positive. The employers surveyed agreed with this, with over half (51%) believing that people who switch careers tend to be more motivated, as they know what they want from their job.
For some employers, these additional qualities are highly desirable from a potential hired hand, with 42% saying they would be more likely to hire someone who had retrained or made a career change than someone who hadn’t.
Daniel Rowles, founder and CEO of Target Internet, agrees explains, ‘The fresh perspective of someone from a totally different industry often ends up providing a greater benefit than the relevant skills of someone who’s done the advertised role before.
As tactics and technologies in the workplace continue to change at an increasing rate, I can foresee growing numbers of employers subscribing to this point-of-view.
‘In this age of exponential change, every candidate will require ongoing training to stay up-to-speed. With careerists arguably losing their skills advantage, and job roles becoming more creative and strategic, career changers are starting to look like the smartest hires.’
Clare Reed, former head of recruitment at Deloitte, explains that if you are wanting to change careers make sure you have solid a reason for why you want to switch things up. ‘Don’t appear to just be changing career paths on a whim – explain why the different career path can help you in the role you are applying to. Many diverse roles have transferrable skills so make sure to point these out, and if you want to job hop try to wait at least 18 months if you are in a permanent role.’
With 63 per cent of employers believing that changing jobs could be beneficial to your career and 53 per cent saying it helps aid your personal development. The research stated that people should no longer feel the pressure to stay in a job they are unhappy in.
Dr Jeremy C Bradley, executive director at Edology, says, ‘Until recently, job hopping was considered career suicide, but things have changed. As job longevity becomes a thing of the past, employers and recruiters are beginning to have a different outlook on job hopping, as our research confirms.
‘It’s important that people stop viewing changing careers or jobs as a negative move. In this era of freelancing and fluid working, it is essential to make the right career move for you. With employers embracing the well needed change in viewpoint regarding career hopping now is the best time to consider your options and further qualifications could help you to move into an aspired role more easily.’
Further reading on job hopping
