The Future is Transferable: Building career and workforce longevity in an uncertain world

What skills are critical to success in your current job? It could be something highly technical like coding or mechanics, or what have historically been called “soft skills” such as communication and time management. Probably it’s a combination of both.

What skills will be critical to your next job? And the one after that? Looking five, 10, or 15 years down the line, it gets murky. The road to now is littered with skills that didn’t make it — punch card programming, typewriter repair, writing and memorizing epic poems all used to be reliable ways to make a living.

Planning ahead in a time when the pace of change is constantly increasing can feel overwhelming, but there are best practices we can stick to that will benefit ourselves, our teams, and our workforces.

The golden middle way: Transferable skills

The concept of “soft skills” was created decades ago by the US Armed Forces to try and differentiate between the literally “hard” skills such as firearm use and repair or truck mechanics versus the things that made good teammates and leaders.

In a previous life I was an HR reporter (more on that in a minute) so I know that as a society we’ve been talking about the underappreciation of soft skills for at least 15 years. But I don’t want to talk about soft skills. Communication, accountability, collaboration; these skills will help you in any role, but they won’t usually get you from one step to the next.

Whether you’re an artist who wants to transition to corporate, or a journalist transitioning into marketing and then research (*waves hand*), transferable skills apply to many different types of roles, which can be leveraged to move between functions and industries throughout your career. They can be learned formally or informally, are often testable or measurable, and can be applied to multiple types of jobs or tasks.

A personal journey in transferable skills

I started my career in journalism waaaaaay back in 2008, volunteering one day a week at my local weekly community paper (shoutout to The Christchurch Star!) I did a post-grad diploma in journalism and got a job at a daily newspaper before moving to Toronto, where I ended up being the founding writer and editor for Key Media’s Canadian arm of HRD, then called HRM.

A few years later I was looking for something new, outside journalism. I took a PR certificate at University of Toronto and started applying to MarComm roles. After a couple not-great interviews while I found my feet around selling my value, I ended up at Hays Canada as part of a scrappy but mighty marketing team of four. In 10 years I went from writing for HRD to being quoted in it talking about the risk of underrecognized workers!

What got me that first marketing job? Transferable skills and knowledge.

1. Professional writing

This has been the cornerstone of my career. Being able to write quickly, clearly, and concisely, as well as adjusting tone to medium, is something that is sought after in many roles. I’m sometimes surprised by how many people are intimidated by writing. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT have had some success in democratizing this skill, but if you want creative and engaging writing you need more than spicy autocomplete.

2. Industry knowledge

Writing for the HR industry for more than two years gave me insights into the function’s priorities and interests that were very useful when moving into a role marketing for a recruitment firm. This let me jump into helping write the 2014 Hays Canada Salary Guide within my first two months on the team.

3. Data analytics

Speaking of the Salary Guide — my undergrad degree in psychology was finally coming in useful! I knew how to read a spreadsheet and work with percentages. My ability to spot trends and add valuable industry insights was one thing that tipped me over in the interview. This was a skill I quickly honed, which has become a second cornerstone in my career.

4. Project management

From managing a daily newsletter to 40,000 subscribers to supporting the quarterly print magazine editorial process, my ability to manage stakeholders, multiple deadlines, and the review process was invaluable when moving from editorial to communications.

5. Audience targeting

Whenever I’m mentoring someone new to marketing I tell them: you have to start at the end. Who is reading this and why should they care? Journalism naturally leads to this kind of thinking because you’re always focused on the hook — on why the reader should pay attention.

The challenge for managers: Hiring for transferable skills

As I know from being on the other side of the hiring process, it’s tough to hire for transferable skills sometimes. It’s no wonder we often look for candidates that have done the exact tasks before — there’s no easy way to filter applications for transferable skills, and some of them can be difficult to test for. However that doesn’t mean we give up!

The first suggestion I have is to take a step back from the job description and think about the skills behind the tasks. Instead of saying someone needs to have managed a new software implementation, maybe you need someone who has managed multi-step projects with many stakeholders. Being clear in the job description will encourage people to apply who may not have the exact match but could do the job well. This can also increase applications from women, who are less likely than men to apply to a job where they only have 60% of the required traits.

Next, when you’re reviewing resumes, especially if you’re using an Applicant Tracking Software (ATS), consider the key words that matter most. Instead of looking for job titles, look for skills. Consider people from outside the function or industry who may have the right skills, if not the exact experience. For example, you might search for writing or leadership instead of marketing or manager.

Finally, ask behavioral questions in interviews that will help you assess just how transferable those skills will be. “Tell me about a time you had to learn a new process. What challenges did you face and what did you learn?” will help you dig into a candidate’s approach to problem solving and new practices.

The future is transferable

We’ve all seen job ads asking for 10 years of experience on a five year old technology. When new skills become important and old ones become obsolete, finding jobs or candidates that are an exact match is an impossible ask. By focusing both as individuals and hiring managers on the skills that have broad impact across many possible functions and industries, we futureproof our careers, our teams, and our workforce.

Are technical skills overrated? Join the conversation on LinkedIn!