A recent survey shared that Singaporeans are willing to retrain for new roles. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, workers should aim to acquire new and transferable skills. Attending a Career Resilience Executive Workshop (CREW) with e2i can be the first step in a mid-career change journey.

According to a recent Decoding Global Ways of Working study by SEEK Asia, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network, about six out of ten Singaporean workers are willing to retrain for new jobs as the country moves into pandemic recovery phases. An additional 36 percent shared they are willing to retrain as and when the need arises. 

Willingness to retrain important for a post-pandemic future

Workers that are willing to retrain come from a variety of industries including the public sector (69 percent), travel and tourism (68 percent), insurance (66 percent), retail (66 percent) and media (64 percent). From an age perspective, Singapore respondents are willing to train as they get older.

This willingness can be viewed from the perspective that job security is no longer a guarantee in a post-pandemic environment and that their future employment depends on having the right skill sets. 

The pandemic is another reminder— after the 2008 financial crisis—that there are always going to be events that threaten economies and require workers to adjust. Workers have come to accept that their only real job security lies in their adaptability, which sometimes means shifting roles or even careers. – Kate Kavanagh, co–managing director of The Network and a coauthor of the report.

To future-proof your career means going beyond just being good at a job 

As we continue moving towards pandemic recovery, it is important for workers to go beyond thinking about job security. Instead, there has to be a mindset shift towards future-proofing a career. This means taking extra steps to prepare themselves for a changing workforce and workplace, especially one that will increasingly be reliant on automation and technology. 

In this career journey, there will be many challenges such as a resistance to change, frustration over unsuccessful attempts and even loneliness arising from the lack of companions that are going through the same life chapter. 

For some workers looking for a mid-career change, a critical first step is to make a commitment towards finding out as much relevant information as required to help make a decision. The decision might not necessarily be about looking for a new job yet; instead it can be about understanding what a new industry or job scope is about. This is a pre-step towards goal-setting. 

What can attending CREW by e2i do for me?

Once a commitment to gather information has been made, a possible avenue to consider is a CREW session by e2i. The workshop is guided by an Employability trainer. During the workshop, the trainer helps participants:

• Understand the mid-career transition process 
• Identify and resolve frustrations
• Introduce fellow jobseekers into a ‘journey companion’ network
• Create an action plan

The workshop agenda is crafted specifically to manage a participant’s frustrations and stresses associated with seeking a mid-career change. Goal setting and creating an action plan helps participants identify what’s important to them, and how to build steps that will lead them there. 

There is recognition of the various frustrations jobseekers face. The trainer provides recommendations and suggestions on how to maintain a positive mindset, overcome anxiety and seek out fellow companions for support. While a job search is personal, the journey of seeking a job can be shared with like-minded companions. Building a network is also an advantage of cultivating relationships across different parts of a career journey. 

Importantly, the workshop looks to equip participants with context and perspective regarding the need to keep learning and acquiring transferable skillsets. 

Ms. Tan Fang Fang, a participant shares with us about her experience a recent CREW session

Ms. Tan attended an e2i CREW session in May 2021. She shares about her initial hesitation to attend as it was a full day workshop. However, the workshop has been the most fruitful one she has attended in over 10 years!

According to Ms. Tan, she was amazed at the light-heartedness of the workshop, with an outcome being she no longer felt alone in her mid-career change journey. 

The workshop contributed to reigniting her love for learning, and made her consider how important learning is despite growing older.

From her perspective, people who have been working for a long time develop a fixed mentality, and settle into a routine especially when they get busy at work. When moving out of a comfort zone to seek a new job, she feels people lack confidence and can grow demoralised when there are no responses.

Ms. Tan concludes by complimenting the CREW session for providing her with a good break from the stresses of a job. She adds that the session helped to motivate and encourage her by demonstrating that she and her fellow job seekers are not alone in their journey. 

How do I attend a CREW session by e2i?

More information about CREW workshops can be found here. 

Participants will have to go through a round of assessment with a career coach prior to attending the workshop. These workshops are designed for PMETs.  Non-PMETs are welcome to check out e2i’s Employability Camp.