Use reverse engineering to create multiple pathways to your target role (w/ an example!)

You have a career goal (target role) and are super motivated, but the pathway to achieving your goal seems unclear. And not knowing what steps to take can be frustrating. It can make your goal seem impossible to reach. 

The problem is that you may be looking for that one specific step or pathway – be it a college degree and/or job progression – to help you reach your professional goal, when in fact multiple pathways exist. 

And knowing that multiple pathways exist is key for planning and action purposes that suit your unique situation.

Instead of looking for one path forward, start with your end goal (target role) and reverse engineer your way backward. Reverse engineering will help you discover the professional steps it took others to reach your target role. This process will help you uncover the potential pathways you can take forward toward your goal.

Here’s an example of how to do so using LinkedIn:

Step 1: Determine your target role, industry, location etc. (In this example, we’ll be looking at Presidents/Executive Directors of Chambers of Commerce within 50 miles of Scranton, PA.)

Step 2: Determine which professional criteria will be used (In this example, we’ll use college degree and the professional jobs that led up to the target role; Please note that there are MANY other factors that contribute to attaining a particular job, including people skills, technical skills, volunteerism, networking, discipline, patience, motivation etc.)

Step 3: Search LinkedIn for the people in your target role, industry, and location, review their profile, and collect the relevant information. (In this example, we discovered Gina Suydam, Robert Durkin, Lindsay Griffin, Alice Mae Wanamaker, Michelle Mikitish, Fred Gaffney, and Mary Malone.)

Step 4: Input the information into a spreadsheet or some other document for easy analysis.

Step 5: Analyze the data to determine the various pathways others used to attain your target role. Notice if there are any common professional steps these individuals took.  

Step 6: TAKE ACTION – choose one (or more) pathways – or create your own.

The above example is just that – an example. And while the sample size is small, the criteria limited, and information was gathered from just one source, it is meaningful and insightful. For instance, we learned that a majority of these Chamber Presidents/Executive Directors do NOT have a business-related degree, which may surprise a lot of people. We also learned that a majority of these Chamber Presidents/Executive Directors are female. Additionally, while some people had executive leadership experience prior to assuming your target role, others did not. And while most worked their way up through the ranks of the Chamber they currently lead, some were outsiders.

Overall, through reverse engineering we learned that there is no “one pathway” to becoming a Chamber President/Executive Director – which is a good thing. It shows that someone with the right combination of skills, experiences, education/training (and many other factors) can land an important leadership role – your target role – in Northeastern PA using multiple pathways.

The pathway each individual took worked for them. They might work for you too, or they might not. Some completely different one might work. You’ll only find out if you take action and move forward on one or more pathways (after working backward from your goal).

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[This article was originally published on LinkedIn on 9/6/22: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/use-reverse-engineering-create-multiple-pathways-your-leonard-mhrm/?trackingId=23jkUvI9Qha3sImx%2Bm%2FHJw%3D%3D]