Is 'industry experience required' overrated?

Comment by Scott Lavoie on May 13, 2008 at 2:22pm

Your post is dead-on. I too am in the middle of a job search in marketing. I have over ten years experience in communications and marketing, and have consistently delivered results regardless of industry. However, I find that most of the listings I find are requiring "industry" experience. I apply anyway, but suprisingly enough, I'm not hearing from those companies. It's extremely frustrating for someone such as myself with experience in a couple of different industries as well as a background in journalism. I've been trying to play up the fact that my journalism education and experience makes me quite versatile and a quick-learner regardless of industry, but that doesn't seem to be working either. Any advice from others in the same boat would be appreciated.

Comment by Laura Smith-Proulx Resume Writer on May 13, 2008 at 3:09pm

As a former IT industry veteran, I'm not surprised. You simply couldn't squeeze your way in the door without the proper buzzwords on the resume. I remember getting all the way into the interview when someone shot me down with "No C++? No way."

However, I'm not amazed to hear that this is happening in other industries. From a resume standpoint, drawing a connection between your former experience and what someone needs now means that you have to de-emphasize the other industry ALL the time, in EVERY way.

For Scott, this might mean that the word "journalism" isn't even referenced. Do I personally find this strange? Absolutely. However, it works. In fact, transferring between industries in any way pretty much dictates using a strategy that directs attention to the desired skill set, to the exclusion of nearly anything else.

Adding weight to the versatility is a great idea, and you might find that it just takes the right employer to appreciate the diversity of your background. In other words, getting hired might be a matter of probability as well. (I hope this isn't too aggravating to hear, but it does sound like you're on the right track.)

Chris, when it comes to the interview, don't discount the thought that your friend might be bringing his fear to the situation.

When I hired candidates in IT, I sometimes found that I needed to convince the applicant of his or her usefulness to us (if they had any doubts about themselves). It seemed that the tapes playing in someone's head could be so strong, that it was tough to shut them out.

Perhaps some role-playing would be helpful to him, especially if he is getting consistent results from each interview. He needs to be ready for both the interviewer's queries AND his own, if that makes sense.

I definitely agree that employers are being choosy about who they select for consideration. It's really a tough game out there right now, and I feel for those who are trying to connect the dots for hiring managers. I remember that feeling all too well, and it's frustrating!

Laura

Comment by Mark Swartz on May 13, 2008 at 3:19pm

Dear Chris and Scott,

I am not surprised at all to hear about this type of "discrimination." It's a logical result of a job market with too many candidates seeking too few jobs. The employers get spoiled, and resort to cherry-picking the cream of the crop. Which translates into job descriptions that ask for the sun and moon, demand extensive education, and insist on relevant industry experience.

Think back to the year 2000, when a 22 year old fresh out of college with a diploma in web design would get snapped up with a signing bonus ASAP. Never mind that they didn't have industry experience - a number of them had no demonstrable work experience at all!

So I think what you are seeing is a sign of the times in the U.S. There are still, of course, hot pockets of employment (in certain industries and cities). But overall the cooling effect is leaving highly qualified applicants in a frustrating bind.

Having said all of this, please keep in mind that the average length of a job hunt at $70k+ is maybe three to six months, if you're going after a good job with a solid firm that offers benefits, room for advancement, etc. Thus getting overly upset at the two month point may well be premature (though certainly understandable). Patience and persistence are becoming necessary ingredients in the job search mix.

All the best,
Mark

p.s. Here's a link to an article I wrote called "What Exactly is the War For Talent?" It addresses some of the myths we're facing in Canada re: an under-supply of candidates.

Comment by Karen D. Swim on May 13, 2008 at 3:45pm

Chris, I too am seeing this trend. While I always created targeted resumes, I am doing much more these days to play down industries so that candidates can transition. I agree with Mark that this is likely due to the overwhelming number of candidates. Industry experience enables employers to narrow a crowded field. I still find that accessing the hidden job market is the most effective way to obtain a job with or without industry experience.

Comment by Job Magician on May 13, 2008 at 4:06pm

I run a retained search firm, and we generally get a mandate to find someone from the client's industry. If other things are even close to equal, it is almost always an advantage to the employer to bring in someone with industry experience. That person will have a shorter learning curve, may be able to bring customers with him or her, and has a much smaller chance of washing out. I stopped by to see a candidate four days after he started with my client, a biotech company, as their chief sales and marketing officer. He had experience selling to the big pharmas, and four days in was reviewing their contracts with their major customers, and finding clauses and givebacks that in hsi experience were unnecessary to keep the business with these customers. That means a lot, so industry experience is not overrated.

My experience is that if I do throw in a wild card candidate who is superior but has no industry experience in with a panel of four others who have industry experience, the client invariably goes to the person from their industry.

That may not make job hunters happy, but that's the way it works. Complaining about it won't change what is.

That means if you are a job hunter, search the industry you're in, and others that are tangential to it, first. If you want or need to go outside of your industry, you need to get to the employer first, before they've started looking; if they conduct a serious search, they're going to find someone who fits their industry more closely. If you get there first, they often will hire you before they take the time to dig around and find out who they can attract. Especially if you make a great impression.

I wrote a short article about this, entitled, The Key to Job Hunting Success: Get 'em Before They Come to Their Senses (http://www.jobmagician.com/key_job_hunting.shtml)

Job Magician

Comment by Miriam Salpeter on May 13, 2008 at 4:48pm

In a tight job market, an employer may be able to afford to be so selective.

In your friend's case, since he is getting interviews (presumably the employers know he doesn't have the specific experience they seek when they invite him in), I would suggest there might be something else going on. In an interview, the onus is on the candidate to sell himself as just right for the job. He needs to really sell his transferable skills and come out of the meeting as the candidate most qualified to get the job done.

It's easy to tell a candidate, "You didn't have the skills." Telling him, "You didn't interview well" could open the employer up to uncomfortable conversations or litigation.

Mock interviews and specific preparation could help someone in this situation overcome a perceived skills deficit.

I'm writing all about interviewing skills on my blog this week. I'd be honored if you'd refer your friend to my tips:
www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com.

Miriam Salpeter
Keppie Careers

Comment by Barry Groh on May 13, 2008 at 8:57pm

Chris,

I think you have hit a chord here that may be more deeply ingrained than we think. In my own experience as a job hunter I have been turned down from many jobs simply because I didn't have any industry experience. However, my work history truly shows not only experience, but numerous years of it. The problem is that you have to see it as transitional, and that seems to be a stumbling block.

I'm very sure that companies are hiring those most like minded to them, those who have had experience in their specific field, but what surprises me is that many companies also don't look at skills gained in other fields that may be EXTREMELY similar to theirs, yet because they are not EXACT matches that person is not considered.

I'm becoming more sure that industry skills and experience, more than any transferrable skills, are what most companies are looking for. I'm afraid that means anyone looking for a way into another field may need to stick it out where they are until the market becomes a bit more open and a bit less overloaded.

Barry Groh

Comment by Karen D. Swim on May 13, 2008 at 9:31pm

In another twist to this topic, not only do employers often stick to industry experience but many are blacklisting applicants from certain industries, such as mortgage professionals. Long term professionals with a degree, business development skills and financial management savvy are finding that some companies have issued directives not to send candidates from their industry.

When I worked in corporate I tired to hire people from outside of my industry who would bring a fresh perspective and innovative ideas. Too often people inside an industry have become so myopic that they simply engage in "me too" marketing. While industry experience can certainly be an advantage, there should also be room for diversity.

Comment by Darlene McDaniel on May 13, 2008 at 10:40pm

Interesting question Chris. I blogged my answer here: http://www.interviewchatter.com/industry-experience-how-important-is-it-in-your-job-search/. Thanks for asking the question. I am available to speak to your friend by phone. He is willing to speak to me, I know I can help. Feel free to share my contact information. My email address is a great start. I will send him my telephone number or I can call him. Let me know.

Darlene
Interview Guru
http://www.interviewchatter.com/

Comment by Cynthia Ferrie on May 14, 2008 at 8:22am

Unfortunately, this trend is true across many industries, and for many levels of staffing. I am a human resources consultant, and fully embrace the idea that skills are attainable, behavior is not so much. People still get stuck on resumes and specific criteria, but they forget that if they are going to hire this person that they have to work with their personality, which has a close relationship with their work ethic and ability to adapt (transferable skills). So why hire based on all these credentials if the guy they hire is going to be a jerk and make everyone else miserable?
Also, staying with one position or company for several years is no longer the norm, and when people leave their long-term positions to find another, they will likely change career fields as well. Hiring based on years of experience and specific achievements is an out-dated tactic, and anyone they hire with solely these things in mind will have to be just as out-dated (meaning the company has left little or no room for personal or professional growth - eventually hurting the company's success).
So what to do about your friend? If the people he is applying with are turning him down based on a mismatch between their criteria and his resume, he may need to be looking in harder-to-find places. It would be naive of me to say he should find work that he will be happy with, but he should at least find a company with a little breathing room so he can learn a little (or a lot) along the way.

Cynthia
Senior Consultant
blindSpot Business Consulting Inc.
www.blindSpot.ca

Note - I also have a separate entity (started only this year) that is tuned more to a Generation Y audience, however many of these newer human resources and job search concepts are expressed there. The Revo*Y community can be found at www.revoy.ca.

Good Luck!

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