The tech industry is currently experiencing significant growth. If you’re considering a career change, a job in tech could be a rewarding opportunity.
However, while the opportunities are enticing, transitioning into the tech industry can feel daunting, especially given the influx of professionals from various fields, which makes competition fierce. Despite these challenges, there are proven strategies you can use to make the transition smoother.
In this guide, I share practical steps to help you:
- Leverage your transferable skills and practical knowledge as a career changer.
- Optimize your resume and LinkedIn profile to capture recruiters’ attention.
- Prepare thoroughly for the rigorous interview process with tech companies.
Now, let’s dive into how to successfully transition into the tech industry as a career changer:
Highlight Your Transferable Skills
While competition is strong for tech jobs, career changers gain a unique advantage by virtue of the fact that they bring diverse experiences to the industry. To stand out, you want to focus on showcasing your transferable skills, which might include:
- Problem-Solving Abilities: Highlight specific instances where you successfully navigated challenges.
- Teamwork & Communication Skills: Provide examples of how you effectively collaborated with colleagues to achieve common goals.
- Project Management Experience: Discuss projects you led that required strategic planning and project management.
- Cross-functional Collaboration: Illustrate your ability to work across different teams or departments to drive results.
- Flexibility & Willingness to Learn: Emphasize your adaptability and eagerness to acquire new skills in a fast-paced environment.
Avoid simply stating that you’re a “strong problem solver” or “team player” on your resume. As I often tell job seekers, it’s not enough to make claims of greatness without evidence. Instead, you want to provide concrete examples that demonstrate your skills in action.
Better yet, include results and testimonials that showcase your impact and potential value to a prospective employer. This approach not only strengthens your application but also paints a vivid picture of what it’ll be like to work with you.
Demonstrate Your Practical Knowledge
Beyond your soft skills, you must also demonstrate practical knowledge if you want to secure a role in tech. Fortunately, there are several ways to showcase this:
- Technical Projects: Share technical projects from your current and previous employers. Be sure to describe your specific contributions and the impact you have made.
- Volunteer Work & Personal Projects: Discuss any volunteer experiences or personal projects you’ve completed that are relevant to the industry, as these can illustrate your initiative and passion for tech.
- Tech-Related Certifications & Courses: Showcase any certifications or courses on your resume and LinkedIn profile. (These don’t have to be exclusively paid programs; if you’ve gained valuable knowledge from free resources like YouTube tutorials, be sure to mention those as well!)
Effectively demonstrating your practical knowledge will further enhance your appeal to prospective employers in the tech industry.
Customize Your Application Strategy
Rather than mass applying to every tech company with an open role, you want to focus on the quality of applications you submit, as there’s intense competition, and it takes a tailored application to stand out from the crowd.
When you’re transitioning into tech, it’s tempting to make minor adjustments to your potentially decade-old resume to fit the roles you’re targeting. However, this can result in a “Frankenstein resume,” or a disjointed document that fails to resonate with recruiters.
Instead of patching up your existing resume, consider starting a new document. Here’s how to write a career change resume:
- Identify the job description of a target role. This will guide you in ensuring your resume aligns closely with the language of the employers you’re targeting.
- Use tech industry-specific keywords from the job posting. For example, if you’re transitioning from higher education, you’ll want to replace “students” with “users” to make your experience more relevant to the industry.
- Before submitting your application, review each line of your resume to ensure you’ve clearly articulated how your previous experiences add value to tech.
Customizing your resume for each job takes time, but it will significantly increase your chances of grabbing the attention of recruiters and landing interviews in the tech industry.
Bolster Your Online Presence
In addition to your resume, you must optimize your LinkedIn profile, as the platform is a primary tool for recruiters looking to source talent. Make it as easy as possible for prospective employers to find you by including relevant keywords throughout your profile, particularly in your headline, About section, and Experience section.
For example, if you’re targeting a product manager role in tech, a recruiter might type in words like “product manager” and “product management.” Be sure to include those keywords throughout your profile to increase your chances of appearing in search results.
Beyond LinkedIn, tech professionals are very active in various online communities. Platforms like Team Blind, Fish Bowl, and even Reddit can be helpful for connecting and building relationships with individuals in the industry.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to people on these platforms to learn more about how they transitioned into tech and gather tips for making your own transition successful.
Get Prepared for Tech Interviews
As you continue to submit tailored resumes and network with individuals in the industry, you’ll likely start to land interviews.
Importantly, interviewing with tech companies is a different experience compared to traditional interviews. While it will depend on the company and role, the process can often feel more intense and involve additional steps, so it’s important that you prepare yourself accordingly.
I’ve authored several informative guides for Career Directors International on how to prepare for various interviews:
Fortunately, if you land an interview with a larger tech company, there is usually a wealth of information online about how to navigate the interview process. Additionally, your recruiter will likely walk you through what to expect during the conversation, including details about who you will be meeting with and tips for preparing for the interview.
Consider Alternative Entry Points to Tech
If you’ve been struggling to make a career change into tech, or simply want the process to be less challenging, consider targeting industries that can serve as stepping stones.
There are several tech-adjacent industries worth exploring that can provide valuable experience to support your transition:
- eCommerce
- Retail
- Food Delivery
- Ridesharing
- Healthcare
A tech-adjacent industry provides you with a strategic opportunity to gain relevant experience and can make it significantly easier to secure a role in tech later down the line. These industries not only offer exposure to technological systems and processes but also help you develop transferable skills that are valuable to tech companies.
Breaking Into Tech As a Career Changer
Although the tech job market is tough, breaking into the industry is possible with a strategic approach. Focus on showcasing your transferable skills and practical knowledge, customizing your resume, optimizing your online presence and engagement, and preparing for the rigorous interview process. Also, consider whether you might wish to start with a tech-adjacent industry in order to gain relevant experience. Keep in mind that every step brings you closer to your goal. You’ve got this!
