Success Stories: Career Transition
Select stories and testimonials from senior executives and mid-career professionals. (See Career Launch stories.)
Is Age Going to Limit My Job Search?
- Challenge: Rick’s company had performed well for years, but when they hit a bump in the road, the investors changed out the entire senior management team. At 59 years old, Rick’s first question was, “Am I too old to land another great corporate job?”
- Actions We Took: We determined that his best positioning was to capitalize on his age by emphasizing his experience – that not only could he handle their current role, but that he had the experience they would need as the company continued to grow rapidly. He also emphasized his energy and enthusiasm, eliminating any thoughts they might have about his age.
- Results: Rick went into the interviews able to talk confidently about his accomplishments, quickly built rapport with the other senior team members, and conveyed his energy. 58 days after our first meeting, he accepted a C-level job with a young, fast-growing start-up that he led through a very successful acquisition 16 months later.
Where are You One in a Thousand?
- Challenge: Before working together, Dave was trying to be the ‘Jack of all Trades’ with his resume and LinkedIn profile. He was getting few interviews and no offers.
- Actions We Took: After looking over his bio, I asked Dave “What are you one-in-a-thousand at?” He looked at me like I was crazy, and said, “Nothing!” I pointed out that he had been a key player on a World Championship sports team, and that only about one in 10 million people have had that experience and know what it takes to really create a best-in-the-world team.
- Results: Dave re-focused his job search on organizations that truly wanted to be world-class, and were willing to invest in that goal. He soon landed a job helping a US Olympic team to do just that, and now has a rewarding career working with other teams and organizations that want to be the absolute best in their field.
The more unique your qualifications, the more someone will value your specialty
Is Networking Really That Important?
- Challenge: Jason’s company was acquired, and his now-redundant VP role was eliminated. Jason had enjoyed managing several functions, and wanted a similar, somewhat unique operational role.
- Actions We Took: Knowing he was looking for an unusual role, we focused his strategy on using his network to reach deep into his target industry. At each networking meeting, he asked for referrals and introductions to others in that person’s network.
- Results: One of his networking meetings was with a CEO who was 4 degrees of separation from his initial contacts, and they had a need for someone with his broad range of experience. Because he fit their need, the position was never posted, and he was hired after a short interview process.
Can You Change Direction Mid-Career?
- Challenge: Mark was an Executive Director of a theater company, which sounds exciting but over time, he realized it wasn’t fully aligned with his strengths and interests.
- Actions We Took: We used several assessments to determine his strongest interests, greatest strengths, motivators and career values. Mark identified a strong desire to help others achieve financial peace of mind by managing their investments. We created a resume and LinkedIn profile that highlighted some earlier work in financial services, identified target opportunities, and prepared to interview confidently.
- Results: Mark identified a premier investment advisory firm, and approached them about a Financial Advisor position. They had recently lost a key advisor in his region, and hired Mark to fill the position, before the job posting hit the market.
It's never too late to align with your strengths and interests
Who Values Your Unique Qualifications?
- Challenge: Sara was re-entering the workforce after an eight year hiatus raising her family. She had been looking for administrative jobs for several months with no success. She was discouraged and the job search was beginning to feel hopeless.
- Actions We Took: In assessing Sara’s strengths and experience, we discovered that she had a unique set of experience in project management, event planning, financial management and property management. I asked the question, Who values these skills, and will pay you a premium to do them, and the answer was – high net worth families looking for an Estate Manager.
- Results: We created a LinkedIn profile specifically aimed at this extremely small market, and six days later she was contacted by a recruiter representing a family. She interviewed confidently, and accepted a job offer making 50% more than the positions she was originally targeting.
Client Reviews
Batur Oktay
VP & Deputy General Counsel, Rad Power Bikes
“Stuart is gifted at what he does. After a very long time at a large company, I began considering a change. Though I had never worked with a coach before, Stuart was highly recommended and so I reached out for guidance. He was incredibly helpful in all stages of my journey including assessing myself, choosing the direction that was right for me, branding, and reaching out to companies. At each step of the way, I found Stuart’s approach to be steady, grounded in reality, and insightful. Importantly, he always tied my process back to what I had indicated mattered to me most. It is easy to deviate and chase shiny objects, and much harder to trust a narrower path you’ve decided on. Throughout, Stuart gave me great confidence. The end result was a seamless transition to a fantastic new position that I couldn’t have achieved without his help.”
“It is easy to deviate and chase shiny objects, and much harder to trust a narrower path you’ve decided on. Throughout, Stuart gave me great confidence.The end result was a seamless transition to a fantastic new position.”
“Career transitions can provide an amazing container to take stock of who you are, explore what resonates with your life and re-imagine where the greatest opportunities to make meaningful contributions to the world lie. I was fortunate enough to be coached by Allyson as I went through one such journey.”
Bharath Sridharan
Director of Engineering, Etsy
“Allyson is a truly gifted coach who brings the full weight of her rich and diverse leadership experience to her methodology. Her approach strikes a nuanced balance between a structured self-discovery framework and a pragmatic action-oriented drive that adapts rapidly to changing situations. Her key strength is her ability to effortlessly take on versatile roles through the process, donning the hat that the situation calls for most. At different points, she was a sounding board for making decisions, a brainstorming partner, a motivation partner giving me pep talks, an accountability partner, a teacher providing me with real and actionable feedback, and a friend when I needed one. She was extremely accessible as a coach and was also kind enough me to refer me to relevant industry contacts as I was giving shape to my “why” and “who”.
Cindy Jasper
Project Manager, Thermo Fisher Scientific
I was fortunate to have the opportunity to benefit from Aligned Career’s coaching during my job search. As a result of the guidance and expertise, I completely changed the focus and approach of my search and ended up in a position that will be an excellent, long term fit for my interests, values and lifestyle. I could not be happier with the entire process and the result. I highly recommend their services to anyone interested in re-evaluating or making a change to their career.”
Angela Barnard
SVP Marketing & Creative Operations
“My coach was a powerful and useful support to me at a time I needed it most. I believe that life parallels work, and my coach’s genius is that she recognizes this and approaches her coaching holistically. Through her thoughtful guidance, I was able to see myself more clearly and recognize the potential in myself that I might be underestimating. She was an actively engaged listener, and I always knew she wanted what was best for me. She will continue to be a source of inspiration and support for me as I move toward my goals.”
Michael Freeman
former Vice President, Corporate Compliance, Harry & David
“I worked with Stuart over the course of 8 months after I departed Harry & David. He is an outstanding Executive Coach who worked with me through the transition process providing invaluable advice, feedback and support. While it’s up to me to do the work, Stuart was always available with insights and advice to get me into my next position. Can’t thank him enough.”
Mark Pertschuk
Consulting Attorney and Project Director in public health
“I’m an unusual client for Aligned Career in that I am a nonprofit leader and public health consultant. During a transition period from serving as a senior manager in a nonprofit to becoming a consultant and project manager, my coach was indispensable in helping me define my goals and develop a successful second career. He was available, knowledgeable, flexible, and fair in his own business practices. I can recommend Aligned Career without any reservations.”
Giorgina Gottlieb
Chief of Staff
“Working with Stuart and Allyson has been an honor and a privilege, full stop. I came to them as a mid-career professional without clear direction on where I wanted to go, much less how I would get there. It was the first time in ten years that I didn’t have the “next thing” lined up. Beyond being exceedingly knowledgeable and responsive throughout our work together, what I most appreciated was how thoughtful and compassionate they were. I really felt like they were “in it” with me, really looking out for me in a way that helped to dispel the loneliness and gloom that would come from being in the “between” of unemployment.
The program itself deserves accolades as well: it is comprehensive and practical, and it has helped me to discover more about who I am, where I want to go, and what I have to offer than any other method I’ve ever tried. What’s especially impactful is that every practice can be revisited and revised as situations change. I am confident that as long as I return to this “map and compass,” I will never be “lost” again.”