9 things I know about Engineers that influence their job search.

 

Did you know that your skills as an engineer give you an edge in your career development?

 I’ve been working Engineers (as a Leadership Coach and as a Recruiter) around the world for a few years now, and so I think I have a fairly good understanding of how engineers perceive their careers and the type of decisions that underpin their choices when moving forward in their careers.

I have great respect for an engineering mind and enjoy working with engineers to build their careers. I have come to recognise common traits of engineers that influence their career development.

Granted, I’m making some general statements as not everyone is the same. But there are definitely recognised similarities – enough for me to talk about today.

 

You know how to get the job done:

 It’s not just a job to you. you care about what you do.  Of course there are those who are in it for the money, but usually most are motivated by new challenges, new learning experiences and increased responsibilities.

So your first question in the job search is generally not about the money. It will be about the name of the company and the future career growth options. After discussions about the role you’ll ask about the salary package to ensure that it’s building on to what you currently earn.

You are driven to succeed, but not at a cost of the standard of product.

Being driven to succeed makes you a good passive candidate and a fairly open to be headhunted. You’re generally open to discussing new opportunities, but a lengthy process may follow to convert to placement.

You generally don’t overstate your knowledge or experience.

If you haven’t the necessary experience for the role, you’ll generally say so. You’re not one who enlarges on your capacity to handle something that you can’t.

This makes you a good candidate because there is an openness to our discussion. There is a level of trust developed between us. When a candidate presents a CV with omissions or discrepancies, I am on alert and ready to stop the process, but this is rare for engineers.

You are particular about your job applications, wanting to dot all I’s and cross every t’s.

Generally you’re willing to reconfigure your CV to suit the application because you want everything to be correct. Sometimes there is relevant additional experience that you’ve omitted and needs adding. However, writing isn’t your preferred skill.

Your job search is similar to your approach to life – thorough and methodical.

This means that you’re generally not interested in hurrying an application process. If you can’t make a meeting this week then in a couple of weeks’ time after you’ve completed your traveling commitments is OK.

You are practical and goal oriented

You are driven by wanting to improve something or create something to solve a problem.

So there is a great need for the role to be challenging and to lead on to something better. You’re not interested in side steps unless it’s to a company you definitely want to be part of.

You’re not generally interested in moving out of your comfort zone.

You prefer to remain in a familiar role than take a risk transferring skills somewhere else in the same industry.

You’re a committed person and won’t necessarily sway from your plan – even if you have a great offer.

So it is essential in the recruitment process to ensure that the role is enticing to you right from the beginning of the process. If not, it will save time to pass on it and wait for the ‘right’ role for you.

If offered a role that provides options for increased learning – you’re interested.

Underpinning your career goals and aspirations is a genuine desire to achieve more experience in your chosen industry. You have ambition for your future. You make a perfect coaching partner.

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About the Author: Dianne Rowe

Dianne is an Executive & Leadership Coach for Engineers (and other clever people) & lead recruiter at Rowe & Co, Global Search Consultants in Oil & Gas, Power & Water.

Dianne knows that engineers have a tendency to undersell their skills and knowledge causing them to be conservative in their career aspirations. Leadership coaching with Dianne Rowe can help you to see your strengths and learn to expand and grow, both personally and professionally.

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Career Coaching, Coaching Tips, Inspiration, Job Search