From College Leaver To Business Leader And Everything In Between

If you’ve been studying business administration for the past three or four years and you’ve finally been able to throw that mortar board high into the sky, the chances are that your now eager to find your first graduate position. You might yearn to work in a blue-chip corporate environment, working your way up into the upper echelons of senior leadership in the fastest time possible. However, when you venture into the world of business, you cannot simply rely upon your good grades at college.

Obtaining a graduate position is becoming harder for college leavers. Those roles designed specifically for people who have undertaken a degree are becoming fiercely competitive. The application process can be demanding, interview days are taxing and the rejection can be soul destroying. There are other ways you can get your foot in the door. Just because you may not secure a graduate position, you can still find yourself working alongside industry gurus and learning from them. You need real-life experience within the workplace, and you need to prove your worth. Take a look at this guide that will help you outperform your peers and see you as a business leader in the quickest time possible.

Skill Up

It doesn’t matter at which stage you are in your career, it’s vital that you remain a learner throughout your working life. Stagnating and allowing old ways to creep in shows a resistance to change that employers don’t like. Ensure that you are always welcome to new technologies, methods of working and new staff. You don’t want to be the person who sits at their desk always asking for help because they didn’t attend a training session or didn’t see the value in learning a new concept.

By upskilling yourself, you are adding many strings to your bow leading to you becoming a more resilient and flexible member of staff. Institutions like the University of Alabama even allow you to take MBA qualifications online meaning that study doesn’t have to encroach upon your day to day working life. You still get quality time with your tutors, take part in seminars and tutorials, merely from the comfort of your own home. Keep abreast of industry development and become knowledgeable in your chosen field.

Welcome Responsibility

Those that shirk work, become complacent and don’t actively choose to seek our greater responsibility will find their careers stalling. It’s a good idea to welcome any added responsibility as it becomes available. Be the individual to offer to lead an important presentation, organize a trade show stall or take part in a mundane half day’s worth of training. You might not be financially rewarded for your efforts immediately, but you will be showing your boss that you can be relied upon, you are eager to enhance your skill set and that you welcome responsibility. This means your employer will be less inclined to let you go when you inevitably want to seek out a promotion. It’s not unheard of for some companies to create positions for individuals they do not want to lose. Make yourself a seemingly irreplaceable asset and you could be in luck.

Know When It’s Time To Move On

Lifelong jobs are few and far between now. More often than not, people spend three or four years at a time in any one position before moving on, especially after leaving college. This gives you a chance to work in a variety of environments, see what sort of business structure suits you and allows you to become more confident with different sorts of stakeholders. You may wish to gain experience overseas, learn a new language or take time out to see the world. Knowing when it is time to move on can be tricky to deduce. If you find yourself able to fulfil your duties without any sort of challenge and you find some long gaps emerging in your working day as you are no longer challenged, it may be time to look for a new job. Always seek the next rung on the career ladder, taking on more responsibility with an eye on reaching that senior leadership position.

It can be challenging to plot a career path when fresh out of college. Just because your fellow students may be beginning work placements with the big six accountancy firms doesn’t mean your final destination will be any different if you begin your working life in a smaller, more modest company. By following this advice, proving your value and making an effort to upskill yourself continually, you will soon find yourself leaping up the career ladder.