Pontiac is no longer a brand you will see in the U.S. Here, the 1971 Pontiac Laurentian.
With news today that General Motors has been approved to start a new company, the automotive giant will also be selling off or killing some its major brands including Pontiac, Hummer, Saturn and Saab. The new GM, which was approved by a bankruptcy court, will be 60 percent owned by the U.S. government.
The new company will buy the remaining assets and still be called GM.
For those who have made their careers at GM and these brands, it’s yet another reminder of the challenges being faced in the automotive sector. It’s a reminder to all of us to take a very hard look at the industry we are in and examine if it may be time for a career change.
In the article, “Is Your Industry in Decline? Make It Work or Make a Move,” former Bear Stearns hedge fund manager Ron Dadina gives his advice for how he dealt with changes in his industry, and to his career.
Even if you can’t quite throw in the towel and admit you’re not going to work in a favorite industry again, you can still spend some time looking at new possibilities, Dadina said.
“I tell everyone to look under every rock,” he said. The key to making such a search work without wasting time is to figure out where your skills and experience could most easily translate.
Doing so means actually knowing objectively what your core skills are – which many people don’t – and whether they’re transferable to the industry you’re eyeing, Palmer said. There is a difference between a profession and an industry. Accountants work in every industry; glassblowers don’t. Figure out which you are and which of your skills can apply elsewhere, she said.
“My core would be strong analytical skills and understanding emerging markets,” Dadina said. “It takes time to come up with that knowledge. In the six months I was out of work, I had this summary, a few lines describing the core skills I brought to the table. I used to change it almost every day; eventually I came up with the ones that were really accurate. When you do that, you have to stick to it.”
Dadina was able to transfer his core skills in to a job that has a lot less to do with predicting upward and downward trends in the stock market. He’s now working in the emerging field of micro finance-which is the small lending to companies in emerging markets.
While that article goes on to say that it is not easy to change careers, and there is bit of mirror-gazing at yourself and your position in your industry. Finding your core skills will help in discovering what is transferable.
Need more help with assessing your career and industry? Look here:
How Specialists Switch Markets
Change Your Industry, Change Your Luck
Around the Web: Changing Industries
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