Can’t get a senior position!

[Talkingtomyhouseplants]

I have been applying on and off for a new job for the last year because there is very little progression in my current role. I have been looking for roles in middle leadership or strategic development in my field as this is the next step for me. I do not currently line manage anybody.

I have applied for 8 jobs and had 5 interviews but I just can’t seem to get anywhere. The feedback I always seem to get is “you interviewed well but you don’t have any experience of management”. I know I don’t - someone needs to give me some.

I used to be so good at interviews and all this rejection is really knocking my confidence. I have this morning been rejected for a job I was really interested in that I interviewed for last week and I’m feeling a bit bruised.

FAQs

• I am 30
• I have been in my current role 3 years
• I know 8 jobs isn’t a whole load to apply for in a year but my current job is a bit overpaid and the flexibility and working conditions are very good so I am loathe to jump ship for just “anything” and am only applying for things I really want.
• My fiancé has just got a new job paying about £10k more than he was on before so I am prepared to take a slight pay cut for the sake of progression.
• I am public sector so very little possibility of a management experience being created for me, due to fairer recruitment processes.

Any advice? How are you supposed to get management experience if no one will give you any?

Do you informally oversee the work of anyone? Have you ever been in a role (paid or unpaid) where you’ve had to evaluate someone’s performance? Are there opportunities within your current set up to do any mentoring for anyone in the team? I’d be looking for these types of opportunities to give you some experience to use.

Also, are you being asked questions at interview which are specifically related to certain management-type skills you’re missing? If so, what are you drawing upon to answer them?

Are you engaging in training to add to your skills - e.g. Change Management etc? and is there any project work available in your current role? I stepped up to management with gaining a masters in leadership skills and asking for Project manager roles - small projects at first then bigger. This provided the opportunity to show my potential for management - Public Sector in Ireland I am imagine there may some alignment to the UK Public Sector?

I am assuming you are EO/HEO level. In which case apply for a vacancy at the same level that includes management. This will give you the experience.

As a pp said when answering interview questions you need to answer them like you are a manager. This changes the narrative from “I did” to I directed x to do y” “I delegated” etc.

Quite a few very good suggestions here, but I would add a very practical point - in local authorities currently there is very little movement and very little recruitment (unless you are in an area such as social care). If you are loathe to apply for "anything" then you are setting yourself up against a formidable group of people with skills and experience who will be applying for the next stage of progression, who also want the jobs you are looking at - plus others.

Like others, look at what training may be available, but also look at what the "in vogue" training is currently. For example, where I am there are a range of apprenticeships in management and leadership. Anyone on those courses gets an "invisible lift" on applications - whether they are any good or not, they are the "in thing" at the moment. If you have in vogue things at the moment - and I don't know any local authority that doesn't - make sure you are there!

Public sector covers a lot of areas, which specifically? NHS, Civil service, local govt?

What kind of role do you do and what are you looking at?

Thank you for replies so far. I work in local government.

I would try to side step at your grade to a role involving management, and go up from there. It's a PITA but could be worth it.

Any secondments or short projects looking for a locum manager? In the civil service I found several opportunities to fill gaps in my experience CV like this. Getting a mentor or being a mentor to someone else, was also an area that was looked on favourably where I worked. Particularly upwards mentoring where junior staff help senior staff stay aware of current issues or changing attitudes. As PP suggested formal leadership training or more informal volunteering activities are useful for skills not being developed by work. One of our managers was a referee for a sport in the Olympics, another trained as a therapist, so lots of skills there and all useful in senior roles and gives great examples at interviews..

Can you talk to your current manager about wanting to progress? I moved into management through stepping up from my current job in my organisation. I think that's often the case for people's first management role, then once you have that experience you can move to another company.

It's harder to walk into a new job as a manager with no experience at all.

If your workplace truly offers no progression, maybe look at a side step into another company that has better career development opportunities, work there a year or two and then you could progress.

Having manager in your job title isn't the only way to get leadership experience. It's about overseeing projects, mentoring/coaching others, leading strategies and having leadership qualities. You need to find a way to do this in your current role and then talk those things up in your interviews. Being a leader and getting a step up is not just about being really good at your current job and wanted to be paid more.

@ilovemydogmore is right

A sideways move with line management is good advice. The latest Squiggly Careers podcast is on how to progress when you can’t get promoted.

One of them mentioned really, really wanting to be a manager towards the end of the podcast. Her way around not having management experience was to project manage and to do bigger and bigger projects, where she was effectively managing the work of more people.

It's worth a listen!