Best ways to develop your career

[geek84]

Hi Folks

At the moment I am attending finance/accountancy related job interviews in the hope of developing my career.

However, a lot of employers only want candidates for that specific job role and want them to stay in that role for several years.

So can someone kindly advice the best way to tell the interviewer that I am are more than happy to stay in the role for the short term future but, due to having higher level qualilifications and experience, I am also keen to move in to other areas of the business?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

[SAS Tom]

If you already think you’re better than the job why are you applying for it?

Whether that is your plan or not I wouldn’t be telling the interviewer. No one wants to hire someone they think isn’t going to stick around as it just means they have to recruit again.

If you want to progress you need to gain the required skills and experience to progress. Don’t think there’s much of a short cut.

[GT03ROB]

What do you consider short term? They are going to be reluctant to hire you for x if you want to do something other than x 6-9 months down the line.

[bristolbaron]

Apply for short term rather than permanent roles?

[RDMcG]

If the role provides meaningful experience then this is the springboard to advancement provided you give it maximum effort and produce measurable first class results.

No, would not show ambitions to make it short term. Overqualified is irrelevant if this is the only job you can get. Otherwise seek another job.


I qualified as a CA many years ago and joined a fairly conservative company that frowned on ambition. Went at it with a vengeance - got ion every extra project I could find that gave me visibility. Doing your own job well gives you security. Doing extra jobs gives you visibility

I took over that accounting dept as the youngest VP in my thirties and by the time I went into another company I ran IT,Strat Planning,Real Estate and Procurement.

Very quickly qualifications are much less important than measurable achievements. It is not about working hard - nobody cares. It’s about producing more and being very focused.

[Countdown]

geek84 said:

Hi Folks

At the moment I am attending finance/accountancy related job interviews in the hope of developing my career.

However, a lot of employers only want candidates for that specific job role and want them to stay in that role for several years.

So can someone kindly advice the best way to tell the interviewer that I am are more than happy to stay in the role for the short term future but, due to having higher level qualilifications and experience, I am also keen to move in to other areas of the business?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Can I ask - why do you think you need to tell them that you're only interested in the short term future? Put yourselves in their shoes - nobody expects that a new recruit will be there for life but if you're already telling them you're thinking about your next steps, why would they bother to invest time and money in training somebody who was already looking to move on?

Also, if you have higher level qualifications/experience why are you applying for that particular role? It's going to make the Employer think that you're desperate and need something in the short term and will jump ship as soon as something better comes along

[Hoofy]

geek84 said:

However, a lot of employers only want candidates for that specific job role and want them to stay in that role for several years.

So can someone kindly advice the best way to tell the interviewer that I am are more than happy to stay in the role for the short term future but, due to having higher level qualilifications and experience, I am also keen to move in to other areas of the business?

These two things are the opposite, unless I'm misreading things.

They want someone to stay in the role for years.
You want to only do the job for a short time.

I wouldn't say that if you want the job.

As someone mentioned, apply for contract roles instead of permanent roles. When you're in the role, you can start sniffing around for better positions.

[geek84]

Thanks for your replies folks.

Ideally I was thinking of taking on junior roles just to get my foot through ter door of large organizations. I guess that wouldn't work?

[Countdown]

geek84 said:

Thanks for your replies folks.

Ideally I was thinking of taking on junior roles just to get my foot through ter door of large organizations. I guess that wouldn't work?

Absolutely it would. But instead of phrasing it as "Im overqualifed for the current role" I'd say that you were attracted to the opportunities of working for such a large organisation, you wanted to develop your career in Finance, and you hope there would be great development opportunities for somebody with your background.

[GT03ROB]

Countdown said:

geek84 said:

Thanks for your replies folks.

Ideally I was thinking of taking on junior roles just to get my foot through ter door of large organizations. I guess that wouldn't work?

Absolutely it would. But instead of phrasing it as "Im overqualifed for the current role" I'd say that you were attracted to the opportunities of working for such a large organisation, you wanted to develop your career in Finance, and you hope there would be great development opportunities for somebody with your background.

Exactly. And if you are good enough there will be no shortage of opportunities.

[geek84]

Thanks for your advice

[lyonspride]

GT03ROB said:

Exactly. And if you are good enough there will be no shortage of opportunities.

And if you're too good, the people around you will do their best to cut you down.

When I left school I was keen, I was ambitious, I was focused and I wanted to make a difference, I invested in my education and I worked hard, I took me 15 years to realise that's not what gets you ahead.

If you want to get ahead working for someone else, you need to be a fraction above mediocre (remember "the nail that sticks out gets hammered") and ideally you need to be a two faced, back stabbing liar.

Even as I speak there's a guy at work getting promoted, the guy st talks about absolutely everyone (even the bosses) behind their backs, he has no redeemable qualities, no skills to mention and the only reason he's getting ahead is because his gossiping makes everyone else look like poor candidates for any promotion. There are only a few people here who see him for what he his.

You might think this is a one off, but i've seen this same type of person doing exactly the same sh*t in every single company I have worked for in the last 20 years (6 companies).

[GT03ROB]

lyonspride said:

GT03ROB said:

Exactly. And if you are good enough there will be no shortage of opportunities.

And if you're too good, the people around you will do their best to cut you down.

When I left school I was keen, I was ambitious, I was focused and I wanted to make a difference, I invested in my education and I worked hard, I took me 15 years to realise that's not what gets you ahead.

If you want to get ahead working for someone else, you need to be a fraction above mediocre (remember "the nail that sticks out gets hammered") and ideally you need to be a two faced, back stabbing liar.

Even as I speak there's a guy at work getting promoted, the guy st talks about absolutely everyone (even the bosses) behind their backs, he has no redeemable qualities, no skills to mention and the only reason he's getting ahead is because his gossiping makes everyone else look like poor candidates for any promotion. There are only a few people here who see him for what he his.

You might think this is a one off, but i've seen this same type of person doing exactly the same sh*t in every single company I have worked for in the last 20 years (6 companies).

Lyonspride, you seem very bitter about the working environment, do you ever consider this influences your ability to develop your career? I understand a bit of cynicism, but your do seem bitter. You could just be better working for yourself.

[lyonspride]

GT03ROB said:

Lyonspride, you seem very bitter about the working environment, do you ever consider this influences your ability to develop your career? I understand a bit of cynicism, but your do seem bitter. You could just be better working for yourself.

Yes there's bitterness, but for very good reasons, I have no intention of "developing" my career whilst working for someone else, i'm 40 years old and i've realised there are more important things to life than following the dangling carrot. You get to a point where you think you're ok, you think you're finally getting somewhere, and then you get cut down, you lose your job and you have to start again, well f**k that for a game of soldiers. It was all lies, the job for life, the "hard work pays off", the "career", It's all just BS the education system feeds into kids brains to turn us into good little drones.

If your face fits, you might have a better chance of getting ahead, but there's always a line where if you are too good, too fast, too clever, your going to get hammered down.

[dingg]

Try the oil game, what's mostly needed in the company I've just left is an ability to be non committal, sit on the fence, brown nose anyone above you, and nod at the right time.
You'll get promoted in time.
In contrast make any waves or enter any debate against senior management team whether you be 100% correct and proven so and your card is marked forever.
Will I miss it?
Will I fk!!!

[thainy77]

That's not the oil game, that's just the company you worked for. Every industry has good and bad companies.

[RDMcG]

lyonspride said:

GT03ROB said:

Lyonspride, you seem very bitter about the working environment, do you ever consider this influences your ability to develop your career? I understand a bit of cynicism, but your do seem bitter. You could just be better working for yourself.

Yes there's bitterness, but for very good reasons, I have no intention of "developing" my career whilst working for someone else, i'm 40 years old and i've realised there are more important things to life than following the dangling carrot. You get to a point where you think you're ok, you think you're finally getting somewhere, and then you get cut down, you lose your job and you have to start again, well f**k that for a game of soldiers. It was all lies, the job for life, the "hard work pays off", the "career", It's all just BS the education system feeds into kids brains to turn us into good little drones.

If your face fits, you might have a better chance of getting ahead, but there's always a line where if you are too good, too fast, too clever, your going to get hammered down.

I am truly sorry that this is your experience.
I worked for the age of 11 and put myself through secondary school and university.
Work still at the age of 71.


I very much disagree that keeping your head down and being invisible is the path to success. You can win by making yourself visible and doing extra. Of course there are people in any career that you think get ahead unfairly. There are people who might not like you.

I have had those experiences, but you get ahead by doing what's important to your company, and by forming alliances, being helpful to others, be seen to be a problem-solver, suggesting practical improvements, and understanding the strategy of your company.

Of course I had reversals. We all do. I had a good career streak in my first professional job, new boss arrived, we just disliked each other. I thought he was a vain egotist, he thought I dressed sloppily. We were both right . I quit after six months as life had become miserable, I did not get the staff I wanted for assignments and so on. In the end the boss usually wins.

I had a lot more wins than losses. The world was not out to get me, but the world was and is competitive. Your company has to compete and is measured on the expectations of its output. So are employees.
I have had many thousands of people under my accountability, and I learned through many years of hiring my direct team what to look for.

It is NOT intelligence. It is drive. People who have enough drive will solve problems, need little supervision, will take constructive input, and when there is a real problem will get on it fast, let me know, and most of all will suggest a solution.

I have worked on factory floors at the very bottom up to to senior levels and I understand that this is not your experience,but if you assume that all is negative then your focus will confirm that.

[lyonspride]

RDMcG said:

It is NOT intelligence. It is drive. People who have enough drive will solve problems, need little supervision, will take constructive input, and when there is a real problem will get on it fast, let me know, and most of all will suggest a solution.

I have worked on factory floors at the very bottom up to to senior levels and I understand that this is not your experience,but if you assume that all is negative then your focus will confirm that.

It's not drive, it's the willingness to screw everyone else over, and they solve problems by creating problems to solve........ Like jumping from a colleague up for using their mobile phone ONCE, to there being a major problem with people using their phones at work, for which there NEEDS to be a solution. This idea of creating problems in order to play the hero, is how people of low competence seem to climb the ladder these days, it's always trivial stuff that's been blown up into something bigger.

People don't work their way up from shop floor level these days, it might happen extremely rarely.



Anyway... This is going off topic.

My point was that chasing careers is foolish, get a job, one that pays reasonably well, earn money and then put your time and energy into things that matter to you, because retirement is too late to start living.

Edited by lyonspride on Monday 27th January 14:46

[RDMcG]

lyonspride said:

It's not drive, it's the willingness to screw everyone else over, and they solve problems by creating problems to solve........ Like jumping from a colleague up for using their mobile phone ONCE, to there being a major problem with people using their phones at work, for which there NEEDS to be a solution. This idea of creating problems in order to play the hero, is how people of low competence seem to climb the ladder these days, it's always trivial stuff that's been blown up into something bigger.

People don't work their way up from shop floor level these days, it might happen extremely rarely.

Obviously I cannot comment on the environment in which you work but if it is as toxic as you describe you might well be justified in finding a different job. As I said I have made a number of job changes and on a couple of occasions this was because there was no longer a way forward. In general I have found that being supportive of people rather that trying to screw them over led to much better results.

[geek84]

Thanks folks