Use Your Current Experience to Find New Opportunities
By Dave Loebig
This is the last of three excerpts from a conversation with Frank Wood, President of Phoenix
Resources, an IT recruiting firm. He has 30 years' experience in human resources and senior
management.
According to Wood, experience is important in all areas of CRM. The good news is that the technical
skills are transportable from other industries. So if you have programming, database,
telecommunication or networking experience, you have an advantage.
If you lack experience in one of these fields but have experience in another, look for a company
that needs help in the area you want to pursue but has an opening for which you are
qualified.
You will probably have to get a position based on your current strengths and experience, according
to Wood. "A company wants someone who already has the needed skill set (for the immediate job
opening). So to make a career change, you are better off transferring within your present company.
If that is not an option, you can look for a similar position with a company that is more
flexible," he said.
He added, "The interview process is the best time to put out feelers to see if there's some
flexibility or future opportunity within the new company."
What kinds of companies are likely to have more CRM opportunities? According to Wood, companies
that have call centers are good
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choices. The companies with CRM opportunities "are customer
centric, so we're probably talking about consumer products. However, a manufacturer that has a
warranty is ripe for CRM," he said.Wood also suggested that there are more opportunities for employees than for independent consultants. "CRM is just like all the other software-dependent professions. When the economy gets soft, companies stop using external consultants. They cultivate that skill set internally. Right now, there are more positions available in staff level positions within companies than in consulting firms. Of course, the salary is significantly lower in a staff level position, but sometimes corporate benefits can make up some of the difference," Wood said.
Information about Phoenix Resources is available at http://www.phnxres.com. Frank Wood can be reached at fwood@phnxres.com.
Dave Loebig, of BrandonBusiness.com, is a writer, web developer, graphic designer and instructor out of Tampa, Florida. Feel free to send comments, questions, ideas, innuendo and rants to D_Loebig@brandonbusiness.com. You can visit his web site at http://www.brandonbusiness.com.
This was first published in March 2001
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