Going into grad school, one of my main goals was to change jobs and change industries. Needless to say, I knew that I had a lot to learn, both in and out of the classroom. In retrospect, I took a three-pronged approach to acquire the business intelligence that helped move me from me from point A to point B:
1) Talk to anyone and everyone who worked in the space. I mean everyone. Through networking opportunities, I was able to land some informational interviews with industry leaders that were happy to share their experiences. There is no substitute for the value of their insights that both informed me and reinforced my desire to be a part of the industry. Even more valuable – and directly responsible for my eventual success – was the help of classmates that had significant experience working for food and beverage companies (you know who you are!). Their willingness to help was undoubtedly the turning point for me, and the shared knowledge of industry dynamics and lingo was instrumental. I truly believe gaining direct knowledge from peers and mentors is the best way to gain business intelligence.
2) Industry publications: Being familiar with the current landscape of an industry is critical in making a big transition. So many resources are available to help deepen understanding and industry knowledge, and not just the usual suspects. I was able to stay on top of emerging food and beverage trends by following leaders on Twitter and other social media platforms. This awareness was integral during the interview process. However, as Ann Cullen, on of our business librarians, was quick to point out: consider the source. Industry publications can be motivated by all sorts of outside forces, so this must be considered.
3) The old fashioned way: research. In my meeting with Ann, we walked through so many examples of deep resources available to us. It’s truly amazing how much data there is out there, and it’s up to us to refine our skills on how to find it. Luckily, our business librarians are there every step of the way to support. In addition, she showed me several great methods to make the search easier. My favorite trick is to narrow a google search by using “inurl,” which can search for any keyword within a specific website. Another great tip is using the tilday symbol (~), which searches for any synonym of a key word. Using tips like these have helped me become more efficient in my research, and the mountain of information out there seems a little less daunting.
What research tips can you share? Do you agree with my three-pronged approach mentioned above? Have I forgotten any good source?
Great thoughts and strategy here Matt. I agree with the prongs you suggested and I think it’s critically important to get perspective from multiple angles when evaluating and making decisions, especially when making industry and career changes. I’d also add that you can never start too soon. I’m considering making a career change at the end of this program but have already started gathering information and having preliminary discussions with industry experts and have made some progress already. Thanks for sharing.
These are all really great tips, thanks for sharing. I am hoping to transition from media to the food and beverage industry, so these insights are really helpful! In addition to the ones that you mentioned, I’ve found that speaking with people who don’t work directly in the department that you are interested in, really helps too. For example, if you are interested in joining the marketing team, it’s good to have informational interviews with people in the design, business development, and strategy departments. Speaking with them really gives you a holistic view of the business and how these teams work together.
Additionally, if you are trying to gain experience in an area, but don’t have any related qualifications, remember you can always get experience through outside groups, charities or associations. For example, if you want to gain marketing skills you can join the marketing committee at a professional organization, and strive to have a leadership position within that group. I found myself in this situation several years ago, and was able to gain experience by joining a marketing committee in one of my company’s business resource groups. As a result of working within that group, I was able to get the experience I needed to make a career transition.
It’s amazing how far networking and informal interviews can help you out both now and later down the road. I really like the three areas of focus you pointed out. This goes along with industry publications, but it may also be beneficial to point out that you can help build your network in a certain industry or function by joining an association or organization in your area of interest.