Once upon a time, long, long ago, all you needed to enjoy a rewarding career in engineering was a basic qualification, your toolbox and a nose for staying out of trouble with the gaffer.
Or, as Grampa Jack likes to remember his time on the tools, all you needed were your papers and a whole lot of patience – after all, 40 years in and you were almost guaranteed a good pension and retirement bliss.
Yes, the past may have been a simpler time but, with all its complexities, the present is much more exciting – and it’s a time when a job is no longer seen as a necessity to be waited out, but aa part of daily life we should enjoy immensely.
Today, when digital innovation is pioneering projects in a planet-sized workplace, who wants to spend their entire engineering career stuck in one job or in one place or even in one country?
Continual technological advances mean the simple, straightforward and very successful set of technical skills Grandpa Jack had in spades (or rather spanners and screwdrivers), needs to be constantly upgraded.
Upskilling is a process that challenges and motivates those who embrace it and allows them to become more successful in their career.
What’s also true is across all engineering-related industries today employers are keen to hire candidates with a full set of soft skills.
The engineer who can blend technical know-how with personal dynamism is more attractive as a job candidate.
For example, engineers who can adapt communication styles to connect with all kinds of colleagues – from software engineers to architects – are valuable to project managers who deal across many sectors every day.
So being able to express yourself clearly and professionally in every situation will give you a huge advantage when going for a new role.
It means you will be better able to bring team members together . . . making you a prime candidate for the position of chief engineer.
Similarly, creative thinking and a passion for innovation show you’re not going to be stuck when a problem arises that can’t be solved by technical skills alone.
Computers have been part of engineering for years but increasingly cloud-based communication systems are becoming crucial in keeping everyone working together with common goals.
Are you up-to-speed with the latest systems? If yes, make sure you highlight this on your CV. If not, it will pay in the long-term to upskill in this area.
Modern engineering: it’s not about survival of the fittest, it’s about the evolution of the bold and the brave.
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