I think Sonya Webb's advice is great, to find a smaller, more flexible firm. The larger the company, the more their established standards are entrenched. That said, often all it takes to get that movement/flexibility in a larger company is to establish a relationship with someone in a high enough position that they have the authority to make bigger decisions with more autonomy. COVID has made relationship-building quite tough for extroverts like me.
One thing I'll add to Sonya's comment about a small company potentially seeing your broader experience as a benefit is that *any* company should be able to see broad experience, or varied experience, as a benefit. If they don't, it's not a great fit. Also, it can very much be a matter of "sales" for you to sell your varied experience as a benefit. For me, this is personal.
I graduated with my Bachelor's at the age of 35. But I had been working on and off since I was 14. I've been a mechanic, a teacher, a construction worker, a massage therapist even, and when I graduated I went straight into construction management. This wasn't a difficult step because I was fresh out of school with a BSCE and a little construction experience already. But when I wanted to transition into design, I thought I'd have some difficulty compared to those with more (any) design experience. The fact that I had practical experience managing the construction of projects was actually a big benefit for the company I went to, because they were getting into engineering design and construction management, rather than just the planning and concept design they had been doing. I was lucky, and didn't have to do a lot of research or looking to find this opportunity, but these perfect fits are out there.
It has always been networking that really got me the good positions at the right time. And, a *good* recruiter can be a valuable aid. Bad/lazy recruiters are just a waste of everyone's time.
Good luck!
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Ari Daniels, P.E., M.ASCE
Outland, LLC - Owner/Principal
Center for Watershed Protection, Inc. - Water Resources Engineer
Monterey, Virginia, USA
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Original Message:
Sent: 01-03-2021 10:21 AM
From: Bernard Nartey
Subject: CAREER REBOOT & RE-ENTRY PROGRAM OPPORTUNITIES
Happy new year greetings to you'll. I am a civil engineer with over 25-years of experience. My career took a long detour into project management and I am looking forward to reboot and re-launch my career in civil engineering. How can I shift my career back to civil engineering? I look forward to reading your suggestions!
Bernard Nartey, BSc,MPM, P.E.,M.ASCE,PMP
Brownsburg, Indiana
linkedin.com/in/bernard-jb-nartey-bsc-eng-mpm-up-pe-m-asce-pmp-7877b818
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Bernard Nartey P.E.,M.ASCE
Project Manager
Brownsburg IN
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