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Should I take a promotion that might alter my career path?

Colene154·Sep 29, 2020

Posted in:Advice Early Career Career Growth

I am in a data science consulting role, but due to the nature of consulting, haven't been on any data science projects in the 1.5 years that I have been with my firm.I have the opportunity to move into a more general technical consulting role and be promoted to Senior Consultant. There does not seem to be the ability to promote easily within Data Science Consulting role, since they are not selling loads of data science work.My long term vision is to be head of AI Business development (or something of that nature). I am worried that moving away from the "Data Science" title will hinder my ability to move towards my goal, but at the same time I have not had data science experience at this firm anyway and there is not as much room for growth in this role.Any and all thoughts welcome!

teresaman·Sep 29, 2020

Congrats on the opportunity! I don't have the full details but a thought I have is: what if you take the promotion, but keep an eye out actively for positions that serve you better in a data science context at other companies? I'm not in data science, but my gut sense is that if your roots are in data science and you take on a new role with more seniority, albeit generalized, you would be viewed as someone who is knowledgeable in the original craft, PLUS being well-versed in other traits in a senior role such as team management, strategic planning, etc. (which, to me, is an added bonus instead of a detractor).PS. As a housekeeping note, I've also removed your duplicate post from yesterday!

Vida169·Sep 29, 2020

I am about two years past making a very similar decision (revops/marketing ops and analytics to taking on leadership in ads because we badly needed it and I had the experience/could handle leading technical engagements). I did take the 'promotion' - and I will say it's been surprisingly hard to figure out how/if to transfer back within my own company, so I'm looking around. It definitely burned me out trying to keep up with two specialties and not collapse.

Kera·Sep 30, 2020

Ultimately I think it's important to follow your gut when it comes to these big decisions. If taking the promotion doesn't feel right to you, turning it down and looking for something that has more growth opportunities in Data Science is completely understandable.That said, my instinct is to encourage you to take the promotion. The reason: growing is better than not growing. And if the opportunities in Data Science aren't presenting themselves, and if you can't manufacture those opportunities yourself, perhaps this is the universe's way of taking you on a path that you weren't expecting (but might still be incredibly fulfilling).Is there an opportunity to take the promotion and keep your finger in the Data Science pie at your current company? As someone with more authority on the team, could you use the position to your advantage and prioritize Data Science within the org?

Colene154·Oct 01, 2020

Hi Kera! Thanks for the guidance. This is exactly the conversation I plan on having with my possibly to be manager today.

Kera·Oct 02, 2020

Good luck!