Recently, I had the good fortune to attend a dinner gathering in New York hosted by John Sumser the founder and CEO of Interbiznet and currently the editor of HR Examiner, a weekly publication which focuses on the people, technology, ideas and careers of senior leaders in human resources and human capital, all subjects on which he is a respected expert. It is a newsletter I always look forward to reading.

I was fortunate enough to be seated next to Peter Clayton, the voice and engine behind Total Picture Radio, which is interested in career trends and thought leadership in that arena. It is a site I would suggest you visit regularly.

To be honest, I have forgotten how we got on the topic of job tenure, etc., but Peter said he had just read an article in the Harvard Business Review entitled: "Job-Hopping to the Top and Other Career Fallacies." He gave me a copy to read on the train going home, and I was very glad to have the reading too! Not only was the article was very interesting, but I enjoyed it so much that it distracted me from the weather; it was one of those 95 degree, high humidity nights and the AC on Metro North wasn't even a reasonable facsimile of what AC is supposed to be.

In any case, there were several "fallacies" described by the article's author Monika Hamori:

1. Job hoppers prosper.
   
   
2. A move should be a move up.
   
   
3. Big fish swim in big ponds.
   
   
4. Career and industry switchers are penalized.
   
   

The data she shares from her research (e.g. 24 percent of those who moved from a small company to a big name company involved a step down) included reviewing the career histories of some 14,000 executives in four sectors of the financial services industry as well as the career histories of the 2005 Financial Times Europe 500 and the S&P's 500.

What I found almost as interesting as the data were the portions of the article that she called "Lessons for Executives." I think those who are currently either in transition or thinking about making a change would find the short time it takes to read the article time well spent.

I can only go by the anecdotal data collected over the years of dealing with executives across different industries, which is not nearly as scientific as what Monika Hamori presented, but can certainly concur with her finding: "Look for industries where your skills represent a genuine asset. Every career is unique; what's important is to look at each move with a critical eye."

Has your career experience proven these false? I would be interested in what you think about what she has to say.

Dave Opton
Dave Opton founded ExecuNet in 1988 to provide a trusted environment where senior-level executives could build career opportunities by facilitating connections to other executives, experts and key market insights. Dave has drawn upon his 35 years of experience in human resources to develop and grow what has become the leading business and career membership network for executives and senior managers. A widely recognized executive career management expert, Dave is regularly quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Business Week, Fortune, Fast Company, and other leading business publications. Mr. Opton received his BA from Indiana University. Dave blogs at Six Figure Learnings

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