Jack of All Trades, or Master of One - CareerEnlightenment.com

Their  rotated around the country into widely disparate fields (from high finance to managing a wildlife preserve), slowly being promoted to increasingly high-level roles elsewhere during their rotations. Their career progression almost entirely consists of attaining or not attaining a promotion, rather than skipping around various firms. The insular nature of the agency provides a fantastic opportunity to isolate variables and carry out statistical analysis on whether or not a degree of specialization is an asset to career progression.Taking appointment to a prestigious central government position as their milestone, they set about analyzing how likely an officer was to be successful based on their specialization or lack thereof. Their conclusion: officers were TWICE as likely to attain the important promotion when they achieved just one standard deviation more specialization than their counterparts.It suggests that over time, and in aggregate, employees with more specialized experi ence were seen as being more capable than other candidates with more generalized experience.  Its  an important and data-driven example of a global trend in the economics of seeking employment.Familiarity is common. Expertise is rareThe idea of specialization being a desirable and hireable trait is nothing new. Naturally, companies will want to hire the best possible candidate for a job. It stands to reason (and the statistical analysis of some smart folks out of Stanford) that being a beacon of knowledge in a given field helps you stand out to your future employers.When applying and interviewing for a job, you find yourself face-to-face with the business end of an important economic principle: opportunity cost. Basically, its the trade-off the company makes by hiring you instead of the next candidate in line. Theyre forgoing the potential value of the other employee by hiring you, so youre on a mission to make it obviously worth their while.Ultimately, over-generalizing your expe rience minimizes the difference between your skills and the other candidates. It doesnt strongly make the case that they cant afford to pass you up.Unlocking your expertiseTailor your resume to emphasize how youre exactly what theyre looking for. Join industry associations. Get accredited in your specialty. Show off awards you may have won for your work or services. Write a guest blog post; start your own blog. Tailor your resume (did we say that twice?). Do whatever you can possibly to do prove your engagement with your area of expertise. Itís astonishing how far a touch of professional commitment can go in your resume.Youre  specialized. Unique. Worth paying well. Let them know  youre  a candidate they cant afford to pass by.Isnt  that what  its  all about?