The portfolio career is already here. Asking around the office we couldn't find anyone over thirty years of age with fewer than three distinct careers.

The idea of a career for life has certainly disappeared – witness the expectations of new university graduates. But the change is leaving a lot of bewildered people in its wake. One result is that consultancies like Management Futures find themselves working a lot with managers wanting to build or re-build their careers.

Sometimes they simply want to get ahead. Quite often, though, they are feeling stuck and fear they are not developing or being challenged. Sometimes they are becoming redundant as a result of merger or downsizing and sometimes they are tempted by the idea of self-employment but are anxious about how to approach it.
Perhaps half of the one hundred or so senior managers we are coaching at the moment fall into one of these categories.

Career coaching raises some fundamental questions such as:

We offer intensive help over a short period from one of our experienced coaches. Because each client is different it's important that the client and the coach get together to make sure they can work together. Before that first meeting though, we send you a package of exercises to start you thinking.

At the initial two-hour session, you and your coach plan the scope of the work and make a start on it, possibly taking advantage of psychometric instruments. A number of similar face-to-face sessions then follow, as many as you jointly feel necessary. Some of the sessions might be split up and held on the phone if that is more convenient.

If they are in the middle of preparing applications or want a quick word with their coach, clients may make contact (without additional charge) by phone or email.

The best of you

Management Futures offers a robust method of identifying what skills you have and what skills you may need to develop for the future. For example, vital networking skills are often overlooked. How do you do it and what benefits does it bring?

Many clients want help in targeting a company for whom they'd like to work. They do not appreciate, for instance, how many jobs are never advertised.

In particular we give a lot of help with CV writing and interviewing skills. There are fashions in CV writing as in everything else. After working with thousands of clients we are well aware of the common mistakes and have up-to-date information on what employers are looking for.

But however good your CV, if you fluff the interview then you may not get the job offer. We can help you avoid common mistakes and coach you in the techniques that will ensure that you give of your best.

How effective is our career coaching? We can report a very high success rate for our clients, 90 per cent of them finding jobs with which they are delighted. Of course it could just be that we attract the smartest clients in the first place!

For more information telephone Jan Campbell on 020 7242 9099 or email her on jan.campbell@managementfutures.fsnet.co.uk