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Function

24 November, 2015 - 10:57

The function of a job refers to your overall responsibility and what you are doing day-to-day. As you peruse the general news and business stories that interest you, what problem are they solving?

  • Is the company trying to expand its customers or sales?
  • Is the company trying to be more efficient in certain aspects?
  • Are you drawn to the financial information—sales, costs, profits?
  • Are you concerned with people issues?
  • Are you interested in how things work behind the scenes or how technology can help?

Your target function of interest solves a problem or fills a need. The problems covered in news an business stories can give you a window into the types of problems with which you may want to work.

You might also have a theme in your life of doing certain types of activities. Make a list of twenty-four experiences and achievements over your life that you are most proud of. Be specific—don’t just say “running,” but talk about a specific route or event. Now select your top twelve, then top six, and then top three. Look across your list, but particularly at your top three.

  • What are you doing?
  • Are you solving a problem?
  • Are you taking care of people?
  • Are you creating something?
  • Are you using specific skills—computer oriented, design, math, foreign language?
  • What is your environment?
  • Are you in a difficult situation that you are turning around?
  • Are you in a happy, stable place?

Your past accomplishments give a window into what you might want to focus on for your work. You will still need to translate this into actual job titles and descriptions. Look for people you know who are doing a job you might want to do—what are these jobs called? Look at job boards for these job titles and read the descriptions to compare with what you think you like about the job. Look at career information websites, such as Vault.com or Wetfeet.com, that describe different jobs.

A good example of using past experience to identify potential function targets is Vince P. Vince had two business-related degrees, including an MBA, and had held various positions in financial services, including finance and reporting, business development, and investor relations. When it came time to pick a function, Vince focused on manager jobs that he thought would reflect the diversity of his skills. The problem was that manager roles are notoriously not specific enough—what does it mean to say that you manage? Instead, Vince made a detailed list of his twenty-four achievements, and once he looked at the patterns in these he noticed an interest and talent in turning around crisis situations, raising money, and creating new operating procedures, including working with regulatory and compliance issues. He now positions himself, not just for management in general, but for managing crisis situations or new situations where processes need to be worked out. He has moved from a general manager to an operations and turnaround specialist.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • You need to translate the three-element structure to your interests.
  • Geography targets can be as narrow as a specific neighborhood or as broad as multiple countries.
  • You want to look not just at the job market but also at living conditions when selecting your geography targets.
  • Industry targets can be uncovered by looking at industry lists, general news and business magazines, and your own interests. Look at all the different products and services of a particular industry to identify possible subcategories.
  • Function targets can be uncovered by looking at problems to solve or needs to fill.

EXERCISES

  1. What are your initial industry, function, and geography targets?
  2. Are you comfortable with your choices? What information do you still need? Can you talk to people in those jobs? Can you shadow someone in that job? Can you read a biography of someone doing a function or working in an industry of interest to you? Remember that business magazines often profile people’s backgrounds.
  3. Are you specific enough in your targets, or can you still break down any of the three elements into smaller, more specific categories? Does your interest have two geography components?
  4. Review the different suggestions throughout the chapter for how to get more specific on your industry, function, and geography selections.