Deborah M.’s Post

When I was a Higher Ed Professional, I always believed in a holistic approach to education which means focusing on a person's physical, emotional, social, economic, and spiritual well-being collectively. All of these things make up who a person is and can help you advise students on their academic journey. By doing this I connected better with my students and didn’t view them as another box checked off for the day; they are people 😊 As a Campus Recruiter, I still believe in this approach meaning, I believe in not only looking at a candidate’s experience and if they are qualified, but I’m also taking into account a candidate's potential for growth and development, especially as a student, what they mention they are seeking in their next opportunity, diverse skills they have, and what they need to feel successful, empowered, and valued. It can be so easy to get caught up in only wanting to move forward with the most qualified candidates, but sometimes it’s the candidates you least expect that end up surprising Hiring Managers the most and crushing the role. If you take away anything from this post, I hope it’s to remember that no matter how data-driven the world becomes, we never forget to incorporate the human-centered approach. By centering both data-driven insights and meaningful human interaction, we can cultivate a workforce that not only thrives on informed decision-making but also fosters collaboration, empathy, and innovation, laying the foundation for sustained success. #career #education #data #humaninteraction #careersuccess #ai

In academia, my tendency to challenge the status quo sometimes caused me problems. Universities are steeped in red tape, and I was always asking, "How do I go over it – or cut it?" Now, in industry science, that tendency is what makes people hire me. It shows up in my day-to-day work- just yesterday, someone gave me a “no.”  I was polite but persistent. I made my argument and asked that it be considered. The jury’s still out.  I don’t know which way it will go. But I do know that “nothing ventured, nothing gained” is central to the work we do as scientists. And I also know it’s a skill that you have to practice. Practice stepping out of your comfort zone. Practice looking for ways around the barriers you’re facing. Practice thinking outside of the box, not taking things at face value, and bending the rules when you need to. Academic science is about following formulas- but this is business, and we industry scientists sometimes need to develop new ones. (And if you, too, always felt a little constrained in academia, keep an eye out for job postings – you’re exactly the kind of scientist I like to hire.) #FractionalCSO #IndustryScience #OutsideTheBox

I once worked with a PhD in an industry role who was so meticulous that it took him weeks to do what others were able to do in days. Why? Because he spent a lot of time trying to get a low margin of error. But in industry, decisions don't often need the same level of precision as academic experiments. Data is used directionally in conjunction with opinion and experience to make decisions. So trying to get high precision/low margin of error slows the process down, which is a no-no with the speed of innovation in the current economy. Many industry hiring managers have run into this type of experience with a PhD at some point in their career, creating a bias that can be a barrier for PhDs trying to enter into industry positions. Elena Hoffer, PhD and I coach PhDs on this all the time. The trick to overcoming this bias is in how you position yourself for the job - less academic, more agile and results-focused: ✅ Share examples of how you can move from data/analysis to action ✅ Articulate how you take calculated risks based on partial information ✅ Show that you know when it's time to stop analyzing and start doing Hiring managers want to see that you're not someone who gets themselves (or their team) stuck in analysis paralysis. 🔁 If you found this helpful, repost to pay-it-forward. _______________________ Are you a PhD who is stuck unable to get a job in industry? I've been an industry hiring manager for 20 years. DM me, I can help. #phd #jobseekers #careers #humanresources Alma.Me

A discussion we had at one of our Early Career Researcher days recently surprised me a bit 😲   The topic was the transition from academia to industry and how challenging this can be for researchers, particularly at PhD/Post-Doc level, who do not have "industry experience".   The researchers demonstrated the resilience, the problem solving, the scientific brilliance and in-depth knowledge of the area needed to be a huge success for a particular role, but were "poo-pooed" because they had "only" ever been in academia.   To my industry peers, what's going on? 🤯   Are we really rejecting candidates JUST because they haven't worked in industry before?   In my opinion, this is a huge shame, and a way to miss out on brilliant talent, but I'm very happy to hear the argument from the other side!   & if you're an employer that does hire straight from academia, make yourself known below, I know there are academics out there would love to see you do exist! 🤗   Similarly, I know there are people out there who support researchers in this transition, please share your insights! ⬇️ #academiatoindustry #jobsearch #tips

Instead of limiting your job search or hiring, think beyond degrees and look for (or at your) soft skills like resilience, empathy, integrity, emotional intelligence, and more to stand out in a crowded marketplace via @Harvardbiz #DecodeYourValue #students #softskills #collegedegrees #hiring #jobs

Who do you think makes more money? Someone who spent 10 years working at McDonalds, or a scientist with a PhD who spent 10 years in academia? The answer may surprise you. It's McDonalds. Here's my story of how I learned that the hard way, and found a better solution for my life AND family. ---------- After nearly a decade of grinding away in the lab, I was at a dead end with no path to advance my scientific career in academia. Publications - REJECTED for political reasons. Grants - TRIAGED by my competitors Tenure - Not an option at this point If I did not find a solution soon, It would be another academic postdoc. Another "opportunity" to make $48k/yr as a "trainee" with a PhD. I couldn't keep going like this. I couldn't keep being someone else's cheap labor. Grad school and the "forever postdoc" was a horrible way to support a family. I was running out of time and I quickly realized that the biotech industry was my solution. My first biggest obstacle? 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗻𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴. I was constantly told by recruiters that all industry jobs required industry experience, and that I wasn't competitive for an industrial role. It felt like no matter where I turned, something was blocking me. The stakes were high and I desperately wanted to make my dream a reality. So I gave it my best shot anyway. ---------- 𝟱𝟬+ 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝟬 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀. Were the recruiters right? Would the rejection never end? I felt like giving up. It was then that a friend showed me that the problem was my resume, not my experience. You see, the gatekeepers didn't understand what I brought to the table, so they kept rejecting me. So, I learned how to write to my audience by speaking directly to the pain points that employers had, using language that they used. My written communication style shifted from complex and verbose, to clear and concise. Instead of listing descriptive activities, I highlighted skills and the outcomes of applying those skills. The result? 30 more applications, 12 screening calls, 7 hiring manager calls, 3 on-site interviews, 1 job offer. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗻. I took that step forward, and never looked back. ---------- Many of you bright scientists are in a similar situation now. It's even harder because there's more even more noise on linkedin, most of which comes from people who don't understand the biotech industry, or from those who are intentionally playing on your greatest fears to turn a scammy profit. Ignore them. They're FOS (I'll let you figure out what that means) Unlike them, I've done this before. I can help you through 1:1 coaching, or through my self-paced course. This year I've helped 18 scientists land jobs and produce >$2M of wealth for themselves. I don't intend to stop there and I want you to be the next success story. DM me and lets talk about future you.

A very thoughtful and well-informed piece by Matt Gandal on the state of skills-based hiring in Forbes. As my research at Project on Managing the Future of Work at Harvard Business School in partnership with Matt Sigelman, President and Founder of The Burning Glass Institute shows, eliminating degree requirements doesn't trigger much change in actual hiring. Let there be know doubt that removing gratuitous degree requirements is a step in the right direction and companies should be applauded for doing so. But, changing a corporate policy doesn't do anything to modify the behavior of individual hiring managers. Removing a prohibition on hiring non-degree holders does not provide a hiring manager with any active incentive to hire such candidates. Policy intentions have to be manifested in process reforms related to interviewing and defining skills standards. #skillsbasedhiring #jobs #skills

It's absolutely true that removing degree requirements alone doesn't drive significant change in hiring practices, but maybe we need to think again about how we got here and why? Historically, could part of the cultural challenge be etymological? We understand 'Skills' as practical knowledge—developed through learning, discernment, and hands-on application. The academic 'degree,' was mostly a 'step,' signifying progression toward something larger. Over time, degrees have come to symbolize everything and nothing; social and professional standing, status, the evergreen ability to learn, the ability to collate disparate information, projects, portfolios, simulations that replicate actual workplace scenarios, and the agility to acquire knowledge under time bound conditions. The crux of the argument we've had in higher and corporate education over the last 10, 15, 20 years is that we've over-indexed on the value of degrees as indicators of potential and adaptability while neglecting practical skills themselves. This has resulted in considerable and frequently adverse secondary effects. But maybe degrees still matter despite their many problems and the considerable challenges we face in higher education. If you can get it right, you still can provide a structured environment for developing critical thinking, broad knowledge, and yes essential skills that prepare individuals to thrive. #skillsbasedhiring #jobs #skills"

🤔 Feeling uncomfortable as a PhD looking for industry jobs? Well, this might be cognitive dissonance. 📚 Cognitive dissonance is a quite famous idea in psychology where you feel uncomfortable when your behavior does not align with your values or beliefs. 💡 Think about this: - Have you felt unhappy that your friend at Google makes triple the salary you make as an academic researcher? - Have you been frustrated when your well-polished CV does not get even one interview invitation? - Have you been shocked at the low response rate after you position yourself as well-qualified for many jobs based on their job descriptions? ❗ Typical coping mechanisms of cognitive dissonance then follow: - You avoid networking and cold applications, thinking that they are just useless. - You delegitimize the companies, thinking that they don't deserve someone as great as you. 💡 One good coping strategy of mine, while cliche, is to be always patient and open to anything that comes. - Networking and application might not have an immediate impact, but that's okay, keep doing it. - You feel unhappy, and that's normal, just keep doing what you think are the right things to do. - You think PhDs are underpaid or overqualified for certain jobs, that's also okay -- your ideology will lead you to make some changes, and you will eventually figure out the balance. Hope that helps ease the dissonance. #job #phd #jobsearch #phd #phdstudents #industry #academia

🎓 How can a PhD advisor help prepare their students for the industry careers that most of them will have? 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙮.   When your research group collaborates with a company to help them solve the problems they have getting their technology out to their customers, your students get to see first hand how industry teams function: 📍 What matters and what doesn’t 📍📍 How decisions are made 📍📍📍 Why the environment is so different than an academic research lab. This is a valuable introduction that will pay off big when your students graduate and begin looking for their first job. They will interview better, because they have learned how industry functions. And they will perform better in that job, because they will understand what their manager needs from them. 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲?  DM me with the question: ‘How can I connect with industry? And if you missed my posts on the other two benefits: Benefit #1 is more #researchfunding: https://lnkd.in/gKW_mZrr Benefit #2 is more commercially viable research/better #techtransfer : https://lnkd.in/d8T8_hkY #industrycollaboration #scientists #industry #phdcareers #postdoc