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I am looking for some solid, practical, realistic & down to earth advice here.

Andre

How easy, difficult or virtually impossible is it in reality and practice to move from being an HR Administrator (as a mid career changer) starting out at the age of 45 to eventually becoming an HR Director / Head of People?

Is it a question of having entered the profession at least 20 years too late or just waiting to see where you are at in 20 years time, as one would need as an absolute minimum at least two decades worth of solid HR experience and an accompanying career track record to become an HR Director / Head of People?

Or alternatively, would it be that it’s not completely impossible per se, but as you entered the HR profession and sector later in your working life, you now need to extend it and your career at the same time to win back extra time and (health permitting), add on at least an extra 10-20 years with a possibility of eventually becoming an HR Director and Chartered Fellow in your 70s or 80s, as it does take time to reach the heights of any profession?

Along the way, is it possible to skip or jump over certain levels on a career pathway, or is it set in stone that one must be an HR Officer before coming an HR Advisor, and an HR Business Partner before becoming an HR Director?

Your answers will also give a wider clue about socio-economic mobility in general, as no exact, scientific or specific formula exists to make a career move from one end and level of a profession to the other.

Parents
  • First, the pathway from HR Administrator to HR Director falls into the "difficult" category regardless of age. Statistically, there are hundreds of lesser HR bods for every HRD worthy of the name, so the odds of making the journey are, statistically, less than 1%.

    Second, age plays a part because the law and increase in enlightened attitudes aside, there will always be options that are closed to you by prejudice and biased thinking. Then there will be options that are closed to you by your own different priorities. Speaking as an over-40, our energy levels are lower than they were; our expectations of life, leisure and employment are different. And that means that, prejudice aside, more options will be closed to us by our own priorities (I, for example, wouldn't take an overseas role or a role in London for [almost] any money).

    Finally, one cannot overestimate the influence of luck. Being in the right place at the right time is a crucial factor in a successful career path that most people disregard. You can influence luck with time and energy, but see above with regards to those over 40.

    So, as a straight question was asked, a straight answer I shall give: this definitely falls into the "almost impossible" category of career trajectories.

    However, on a more positive note, jumping steps is entirely possible. I re-entered HR in my mid-30s after a six year break and in a completely new sector. I took a temp contract in an admin role, turned it into a advisor role in a month, used that to leap into an HR BP role for 18 months and from there shifted to being an HR Manager. Four years later, I would say I could make a strong argument that I was qualified to apply for HRD roles in SMEs of 150-200 employees. A few years in such a role and I could hypothetically step up to a similar role in a much larger or higher-profile company and still be under 50 (just about).

    But I also had the advantage of being a white, male, middle-class, privately-educated Oxbridge/Sandhurst graduate. Socio-economically I am holding a golden ticket.
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  • First, the pathway from HR Administrator to HR Director falls into the "difficult" category regardless of age. Statistically, there are hundreds of lesser HR bods for every HRD worthy of the name, so the odds of making the journey are, statistically, less than 1%.

    Second, age plays a part because the law and increase in enlightened attitudes aside, there will always be options that are closed to you by prejudice and biased thinking. Then there will be options that are closed to you by your own different priorities. Speaking as an over-40, our energy levels are lower than they were; our expectations of life, leisure and employment are different. And that means that, prejudice aside, more options will be closed to us by our own priorities (I, for example, wouldn't take an overseas role or a role in London for [almost] any money).

    Finally, one cannot overestimate the influence of luck. Being in the right place at the right time is a crucial factor in a successful career path that most people disregard. You can influence luck with time and energy, but see above with regards to those over 40.

    So, as a straight question was asked, a straight answer I shall give: this definitely falls into the "almost impossible" category of career trajectories.

    However, on a more positive note, jumping steps is entirely possible. I re-entered HR in my mid-30s after a six year break and in a completely new sector. I took a temp contract in an admin role, turned it into a advisor role in a month, used that to leap into an HR BP role for 18 months and from there shifted to being an HR Manager. Four years later, I would say I could make a strong argument that I was qualified to apply for HRD roles in SMEs of 150-200 employees. A few years in such a role and I could hypothetically step up to a similar role in a much larger or higher-profile company and still be under 50 (just about).

    But I also had the advantage of being a white, male, middle-class, privately-educated Oxbridge/Sandhurst graduate. Socio-economically I am holding a golden ticket.
Children