Career Change Case Study: 40yo in Australia
There are plenty of reasons why job seekers decide to switch career paths from one industry to another. One motivation can be as simple or as strong as HATE! According to a study conducted by an energy comparison site, the UK Power, one out of five employees are reported to be unhappy with their careers. It also exposed how 25% of staff within every organisation think that switching to a new job can aid in stabilizing their mental health. As for Noah, he didn’t have any hate. Yet, his career path, he decided to navigate! But at 40, isn’t starting a new career a little too late?
Restarting a New Career at 40: Main Challenges
Noah, a Customer Solutions Specialist, possesses notable professional experience within the aged care sector. He has rendered two fruitful years of his life guaranteeing the best customer solutions to aged care clients. Despite his success in this field, he wanted to work in a different sector and return to an industry he left some years ago.
Noah is not alone! According to a study conducted by SEEK researchers, about half of Australian professionals, or 44%, desire to work in a different industry from where they are now. It was also revealed that this dilemma is triggered by three main reasons – experience or qualifications, money, and difficulty. One reason which was failed to be mentioned was PASSION. There are some instances when people neglect doing what they truly love to chase higher compensation. As for Noah, the old saying “life begins at 40” resonated with him. As soon as he entered his 40s, he realised where his heart really was – Cybersecurity. He was ready to re-invent his career and knew that this will not be easy.
His main concern was how to transform his decades-old qualifications and experiences into desirable employability skills. He needed a strategy that would not trigger any recruiter biases and complete the transition without going broke.
A Tailored Career Paths Solution
Knowing the depth of his problem, Noah chose to seek help. After weighing his options, he chose to consult The Perfect Resume. Prior to availing of the team’s services, his resume was reviewed for free. Through this step, he was given constructive criticisms that identified the gaps his application documents possessed. Afterwards, he gained an idea of which services he needed the most.
According to Noah, this was one of the many aspects he loved about working with the team – genuine care and enthusiasm. Unlike many other resume writing services, The Perfect Resume offered Noah the freedom to choose his own flexible package; the one that will surely help him address his application needs. Happy with this news, the client decided to team up with The Perfect Resume.
The work began! Noah communicated what he wanted to achieve with aid of the Team which were:
- To help him conceptualise, extract, and refine the achievements that he attained from the Aged Care Sector which can be relevant to the Cybersecurity industry.
- Turn his industry-related qualifications and experiences he acquired over 10 years ago into something which prospective employers consider as highly relevant, something irresistible.
Now, having the idea of what the client wants, the team also incorporated what Noah needed. They conducted extensive research in order to root out the best and the most impactful keywords. These words became Noah’s ticket into making a seamless re-entry into the Cybersecurity industry.
Make your resume shine; sign up for a Zero-Cost Resume Analysis.
Afterwards, the busy team started to formulate his resume and cover letter. Upon receiving, Noah thought that some areas needed further modifications. He wondered why some dates and information were eliminated.
An advocate of transparency, Melissa, the Director, revealed the bitter truth. Starting and strengthening a career at 40 is never easy. She patiently explained and shed some light on the significance of this step. With most recruiters and hiring managers in their 20s and early 30s, his decades-aged experiences will surely be tagged as irrelevant due to age discrimination or recruiter biases which many deny to still exist. Still unsure, Noah decided to accept the team’s way and submitted the finalised documents he received.
Result
“My resume is having a much higher success rate and I am getting to some good conversations by following up with hiring managers. You made my career change easy at 40!” - Noah
Despite the uncertainty our client had, he took a risk and trusted The Perfect Resume and it surely paid off! Noah happily shared with the team how his resume’s readability has improved. Additionally, his resume has been downloaded about 50% higher!
This is not it! He also revealed a handful of great news, such as:
- He has been shortlisted 4 times after submitting his application documents.
- He had detailed and promising discussions with three hiring managers.
- Two recruitment consultants have placed him forward for contract work.
Now, together with Noah, we all have our fingers crossed and waiting for him to be called back by the company he has been targetting.
If you want to tick the boxes of potential recruiters and hiring managers like how Noah did, The Perfect Resume can help you! What are you waiting for? Stop settling in an industry that is currently stressing you out and go for that job you love! Switching industries doesn’t need to be difficult. Call us at 1300 217 374 or send us the latest copy of your resume to info@theperfectresumes.com, and one of our Professional Resume Writers will review it for FREE.
Likewise, if you find this article helpful, don't forget to share and pass the kindness along to your fellow job seeker!
Ready to land your dream job?
Get started with a FREE Resume Review from The Perfect Resume!