How to Identify Transferable Skills

When you are switching industries or making a radical career change, your current resume may not be an adequate job-hunting tool. In order to convince employers that you will be an asset, you must identify the abilities that are applicable to the new industry. Understanding your transferable skills will help you market yourself more effectively.

Changing jobs, and even industries, is not as rare as it once was. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average tenure for an American employee is 4.6 years. Although employers in your new industry may not be surprised by your transition, identifying your transferable skills is still crucial when you are competing with more experienced workers.

The first step in finding your transferable skills is identifying what you are good at in your current industry. Consider general skills that transfer well, such as sales skills. Write down your most important accomplishments in your past positions. What skills helped you with each one? Then, look at the description for a job in your new industry. How can those skills help you meet the job requirements? If you have been working as a chef but you want to move into project management, for example, your experience managing the parts of a busy kitchen will be useful in your new line of work.

If you're having trouble figuring out which of your skills will be useful in a new industry, start with a description of your dream job. Highlight the top requirements and responsibilities for the position, and write down the reasons you think you can handle each one. Include examples of similar projects or responsibilities in past positions. Often, this method helps you spot patterns and identify transferable skills that were not immediately obvious.

It can be difficult to remember the details of your past professional experiences. Improve your recall by reading through the job descriptions; use descriptions from similar positions, if necessary. Look for duties that may have slipped your mind due to their everyday nature: developing filing systems, managing staff requests and handling executive communication are all skills that transfer easily across industries.

When you are switching industries, your professional experience may not be enough to qualify you for a new position. If this is the case, consider how your personal experiences make you a good fit. Look back at your volunteer work and personal hobbies to find transferable skills. If you are an accountant looking to switch into theater management, your decades of community theater experience may offer unique insight. Find ways to use your personal passions as professional assets.

Once you start identifying your transferable skills, the process becomes easier. By pinpointing the skills that make you uniquely suited for a position in another industry, you give yourself a competitive advantage over other candidates.

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