Flying high with successful projects under your belt — that is the correct time to consider your career. But often you don’t have the time or the inclination to embark upon the convoluted processes involved in a well-managed career move. However, if you are elated with your latest successes and reaping the rewards, you may well be ready for your own personal challenge — Project Career Move.

The Passive Stance: prepare to be contacted, review advertisements. It is recognised that most resourcing is undertaken through personal contacts and networking; as little as 25 per cent is achieved through overt processes. Headhunting is often disconcerting, albeit flattering. How do they know so much about you, who is going to such lengths to attract your attention? More often than not, these calls occur when your timing is not right — in the midst of major and complex projects or personal trials.

The Pro-Active Approach: Are you prepared? Have you evaluated your career and personal goals — do they dovetail? Would some assistance from a personal coach or a career specialist be helpful? Is a move away from your current organisation the best option? How does your curriculum vitae stand up in the market — this is your personal marketing statement — does it express your key achievements and your desires for your future career — are there significant hooks to intrigue and entice potential new employers?

You need to take control of this project: acquire comprehensive knowledge of the appropriate sector(s), key organisations, their business leaders and projects. You have to treat this challenge with the due diligence and the professionalism that you would apply to any corporate project — this is your future.

Research, plan and prepare: Information will reinforce your decisions — the organisations to approach and how to encourage them to buy into your skills and experience. You need to cultivate your networking contacts — these people will assist in your information gathering and initiate further contacts, even introducing you to your chosen organisations. Large organisations easily gain knowledge about individuals in competitor organisations through their connections: it is challenging for individuals to make efficacious enquiries about a business, culture, ethos and characters in a particular team. It is universally recognised that “networking” provides considerable professional and personal advantages, particularly in career development.

For successful organisations, recruitment of additional expertise is inevitable. People are the largest, most valuable and truly unique asset of any organisation. The right people are hard to find, you must therefore make the ideal approach to your target organisation(s) — the CEO, business unit leader or resourcing partner.

The interview process creates challenges for both the parties — pressures to meet discretely and the many necessary formal meetings supporting the structured corporate process. A strategic, criterion based interview will need to be planned — often, much to the surprise of the interviewer! Your focus on differentiation; demonstrating your ability to add value through your knowledge, skills, experience and confidence is essential. The research will provide vast quantities of market information — use this prudently. Take time to consider if there is an appropriate “fit” with the organisation and their people: the litmus test of the first meeting is invaluable — if the fit is not right, do not waste time — move on to the next opportunity.