The Coach: Made redundant? Make it a career turning point

Nobody enjoys being made redundant. However, many people feel on reflection that being laid off was a positive turning point. In an economically sensitive profession, redundancy is an unfortunate fact of the cycle, rather than a reflection on your abilities.

So how do you make the pain become a catalyst for positive change? Redundancy can force you to re-evaluate and spur you on to find something that suits you better, whether it is a role that plays more to your strengths, a healthier working environment, or improved job prospects.

Review your options. Even if you are looking for a role similar to the one you’ve just left, this is a great opportunity to explore what other possibilities are out there. Make a list of your key skills and experience and think through the options that might match these, and you could find a new career direction that fits you better.

Then there is the structure of work. You may feel reluctant to go back to the five-day-week commute ever again. Or you may have realised that you miss the office, the social elements and clearer boundaries around work. Practices offer a variety of working patterns; this could be the chance to move to the right one for you.

It can also be a great time to consider concerted professional development. Think about what interests you and will make you more valuable to practices. This might be a project management course, influencing skills, learning new software, or updating yourself in another way. This is going to impress practices that increasingly need an agile workforce able to keep pace with a rapidly changing workplace.

Depending on the size of your redundancy settlement, it could be that it now becomes possible for you to consider setting up on your own, in a way that just wasn’t financially feasible before. You could perhaps use your redundancy monies to cover your business set-up costs, as a financial cushion while you get established.

Instead of one job, perhaps your redundancy could allow you to experiment with a portfolio career, whereby you work for a number of different employers. This might be one or two part-time or project-based roles that bring in your core income, along with others that are more in line with more personal areas of interest.

Put aside any negativity and talk with enthusiasm about what you can offer

Finally, the way you talk about your redundancy to potential employers and professional contacts is important. Put aside any negativity about the past and talk with energy and enthusiasm about what you can offer for the future. 

Practices want to hire architects who’ve had good relationships previously and who are genuinely interested in the job they are applying for.

AJ Coach Matthew Turner is an architect and careers consultant who runs the Building on Architecture consultancy. Email him in confidence at
hello@buildingonarchitecture.com