Many people hear the term career strategy and immediately think of it in the same way as career coaching, career consulting, or career counseling. They assume it means helping someone decide what career path to pursue, providing guidance on career goals, or discussing long-term career planning.
Well, you know what happens when you assume.
In the context of resume writing and job search positioning, career strategy means something entirely different.
Career strategy begins with understanding where you are today and where you want to go next.
It involves reviewing your current resume, your work history, your accomplishments, your skills, and the position you are targeting. Most importantly, it requires understanding the job description for the role you want to pursue.
Once that information is gathered, the real work begins.
Rather than simply updating a resume or retyping existing information, career strategy focuses on positioning. Positioning is a key factor in getting hired. Your experience, skills, and accomplishments have to align with your desired target role.
Career strategy is the process of presenting your qualifications in a way that clearly demonstrates your value to prospective employers.
This is particularly important in today's hiring environment where most organizations use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to screen resumes before a hiring manager ever sees them.
Many job seekers believe that ATS optimization is simply a matter of adding keywords to a document. In fact, when job seekers try to rewrite their resumes themselves, they oftentimes do the equivalent of keyword stuffing. That never works.
Realistic, effective career strategy goes much deeper than that.
It involves understanding how employers describe the position, identifying the skills and qualifications they are seeking, and strategically incorporating those elements into your resume while accurately reflecting your own abilities, experience and achievements.
What is the Goal Here Then?
The goal is not to "game" the ATS system. The goal is to create a resume that accurately positions you as a strong candidate for the role you are pursuing.
Career strategy also means understanding that not every accomplishment deserves equal attention. Some experiences should be highlighted. Others may be condensed. Some don’t need mentioning at all.
Certain skills should be emphasized depending on the target position. The way your particular information is presented will significantly impact how employers perceive your qualifications.
Which is why a resume should never be viewed as a static document.
A resume designed for one position may not be effective for another. Different opportunities often require different emphasis, different language, and different positioning.
Career coaching helps you determine what direction you want to take.
Career strategy helps position you to compete for the opportunities you have already identified.
This distinction between career strategy and career coaching is important.
When a client hires us for career strategy services, we do not spend our time discussing what career path they should pursue.
We focus on the crucial business at hand.
And that is building a resume that supports the career goals they have already established and make that value proposition front and center to the prospective employer.
We examine the target role, evaluate the client's qualifications, identify strengths, highlight accomplishments, and strategically position their information to improve competitiveness in today's job market. This strategic alignment makes the strongest possible presentation of their professional value to the prospective employer.
That is career strategy.