By Steve Seepersaud
Changing jobs or career fields can be exciting, challenging, overwhelming, and frustrating. Insights from compassionate friends in the Binghamton University alumni community could make it easier to manage the tactics and emotions associated with a job search.
The fifth annual Success Week brought alumni together virtually and in person for advice sharing and networking. Held April 13-16, the week included three webinars and one panel discussion, all featuring alumni speakers who have made career pivots, in some cases more than once.
Success Week started with a webinar (see the video) for recent graduates in which alumni shared stories of fitting in at their workplaces and gaining skills and connections to help them take the next steps in their careers.
"Make sure it's known that you're thinking about career growth at [your] company," said Sofia Haikin '19, risk advisory manager at Advance. "If it's not communicated, there might be an assumption that you're comfortable in the role you're at, and you're not looking to grow. If you're not constantly talking about it, how would they know it's top of mind for you?"
Faye McCray '03, founder and CEO of Culture & Quill, spoke at a webinar (see the video) about staying resilient during a transition. She's a health attorney turned executive and entrepreneur who has navigated multiple career pivots across federal service, media leadership, and entrepreneurship.
"It's not only about finding your next job," McCray said. "It's about how you move through this moment with intention, with self-awareness, and with a clear sense of what it is that you are actually building."
Logann Todd '18, MBA '19, director of career services and alumni engagement for United States University, discussed (see the video) identifying and translating transferable skills across roles and industries, and gaining confidence in developing a transition plan.
"Now, [employers] are focusing more on skills," Todd said. "So, when we think about a career pivot, we might have been in a [particular] role for a while, so sometimes we forget what skills we have and what we have as an asset."
At an event held at the SUNY College of Optometry in Manhattan (see the video), the panel talked about making pivots either on their own hook or because it was forced by circumstance, with reasons ranging from project teams being downsized to the sale of a company they helped start to realizing their passion project was capable of producing a sustainable income.
"Think about when you finish you career and you look backwards, how do you want to feel about what you did and how you did it?" said Michael Devinoff '94, chief strategy officer for PharmaACE. "Don't ever let your short-term anxieties dictate where you go because you don't want to regret what you did."