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Industry |
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Top organizations Market characteristics Growth prospects Upcoming challenges Trends |
An accountant for a media company has a different job than an accountant for a nonprofit or a school or a toy store. Some things will be the same (e.g., working with numbers, the overall accounting standards and regulations), but there will be nuances (e.g., types of transactions, types of reports to file). The industry impacts the job responsibilities, day-to-day activity, growth prospects, compensation and lifestyle, and the backgrounds of the people in those jobs.
The industry also impacts the organizations within it. Disney ABC is a stand-alone organization within media, and it has its own financials, staff, structure, culture, strengths, and challenges. However, the media business as a whole has a financial picture, a type of person it attracts, a culture, strengths, and challenges. What is happening with media overall impacts each individual organization, and therefore, to understand Disney ABC or any stand-alone media organization, you need a grasp of what is happening in the media industry:
- Who are the top players?
- Are there few, but very large top players? Are there many smaller players?
- Is the industry new or very established?
- Is the industry growing or shrinking?
- Is the industry experiencing many changes? Are new competitors or new technologies changing the way business is done? Are there more or fewer customers? What is happening to prices?
Understanding the industry will give you more organizations to target. It will enable you to better understand the individual organizations and the job. At a minimum, industry knowledge will help you confirm that the industry is healthy and solid for long-term career prospects. Furthermore, industry knowledge will help position you as someone who thinks more broadly than just his or her specific role and therefore can make higher-level contributions.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Job seekers need to research information about specific jobs, specific organizations, and the overall industry.
- The information you gather enables you to confirm your targets from step 1 and tailor your marketing from step 2 to match the jobs, organizations, and industries you want.
EXERCISES
- Review the questions that apply to each job, organization, or industry in your areas of interest. How much do you already know about your areas of interest?
- Have you discovered areas of interest you were unaware of or did not consider, yet now want to research in depth? Where might you need to focus your research—understanding the job more, finding more organizations or deeper knowledge about individual organizations, or learning about the industry as a whole?
- How will you incorporate research into your job search going forward?
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