Changing Job Role
Moving sideways instead of upwards
When we talk about career growth, the first thing that comes to mind is usually promotion. But, sometimes, a lateral move into another job role makes just as much sense for your career as an upwards one. Perhaps you are a Data Engineer looking to become a Data Scientist? Or a Software Engineer wanting to move into Product Management? Moving into a new role can bring new challenges, change your perspective, and stretch you in unfamiliar ways.
Companies are typically better at supporting promotions than they are at supporting sideways moves, so moving into another job role needs some foresight and planning. Move too early, when you don’t have the right skills, can leave you performing poorly and facing bad performance reviews. But staying in a job role you are outgrowing can leave you frustrated and looking for more suitable opportunities outside your company.
Luckily, most companies want to support your career growth and will be happy to support you along the way.
Step 1: Discover what the new job involves
The first step in any career move is to discover in detail what skills the new role actually involves. Sometimes, people’s perception of a role is different from the reality! You can look at:
- Job ads, to see what skills are being looked for
- Your company’s progression framework for the role
- Online blogs — there’s plenty of material demystifying various jobs (e.g. I’ve written before about ML jobs like ML Scientist & ML Manager)
Also, chat to people who are already in the role to find out what they’re working on day-to-day. Every job role has compromises. Knowing what these would be can help you decide whether the new job is really for you.
Step 2: Identify the skills gap
Now it’s time to be brutally honest with yourself. What is the skills gap that you need to bridge?
Often, it’s technical skills that you need to gain. For example, moving from a Data Engineer to a Data Scientist needs you to demonstrate strong statistical skills. But sometimes it’s leadership skills that are crucial. If you hope to move into a Product Manager role, perhaps the expectation around collaboration is higher than in your current Software Engineering role.
Again, talk to trusted people around you that and get their opinions too. It can be a difficult conversation to have, but better to have honest opinions early in the process than spend months working towards a goal only to later discover that you’ve overlooked a crucial skill for the role.
Step 3: Talk to your manager
Your company may or may not have a formal process for a sideways job move, but having your manager on board is very important with achieving any career goal! Talk to them about your career aspirations and let them know that you’re thinking about a sideways move. Your manager is always trying to balance the needs of the company against the skills and aspirations of their team when allocating work. If they know your goals, you’re more likely to be able to work together to take on the right kind of projects.
Also, know that your manager may not be the best person to advise on details of the transition, especially if they don’t directly manage people in the job role that you want to move into. In a larger company there might be a particular team you want to move into. Talking to the manager of that team is also crucial, to get their insight into the role and to have them on board with the move. If there’s no specific team you have in mind, then at least talk to someone who manages people in that new job role to get their perspective.
Step 4: Come up with a plan
Using the skills gap you’ve identified, look at what you need to do to bridge the gaps. That might be
- Projects you can take on
- Training you can do
- A mentor or a coach
- Going back to formal education
Also consider a rough timeline — is this something that might take 3 months to demonstrate? Or is the gap large and it might take years to bridge? Having realistic expectations is crucial here, but so too is having a plan so that you can feel like you’re moving forwards in your career.
Step 5: Talk to your manager again
As a plan is forming, keep talking to your manager. They may spot gaps that you have missed, have different ideas about how to gain the right skills, and know about other opportunities that are available within your company.
Step 6: Follow through & keep notes
You should be documenting your work anyway! But as you follow through on your plan and demonstrate new skills, keep notes to remind you and those around you of what you’re doing and how you’re progressing.
A word of caution here though. While trying to transition into a new role, you’re still employed to do your current job. You may be able to take on tasks to prove you can do the new role, but you’ll still need to carry out your existing responsibilities.
Successfully making a sideways job move depends on a number of factors. Largely, it’s about demonstrating new skills and convincing the relevant people that you’re competent for the new role. By doing some work ahead of time, you can get input from those relevant people and maximise your chances of being able to make the switch.
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