The myth of changing career paths: it's often easier than you think

EQS-Media / 11.02.2025 / 09:05 CET/CEST

Press release

The myth of changing career paths: it's often easier than you think

• Three quarters of career path changers are satisfied in their new job
• More than 38 percent do not experience challenges when changing careers
• 2 out of 3 choose to work in a job outside their field today
• Courage pays off: career changers cite their own doubts as the biggest obstacle

DÜSSELDORF, February 11, 2025 — Changing careers is booming: in the last five years, the number of job advertisements on Stepstone.de explicitly looking for people with experience from other fields has more than quadrupled. And career change is often easier than expected: according to the survey, 48 percent of respondents have already moved into a new career. This means that they were or are working in a profession that does not correspond to their original educational path. This is the result of a recent, representative online survey by The Stepstone Group of almost 6,300 employees in Germany.

Almost two thirds (69 percent) of those surveyed still work in the job for which they once ventured into as a career change. And they are happy with their decision: Three out of four (74 percent) are happy with their job after changing career paths.

Trust in your own abilities and develop yourself further
In retrospect, taking the plunge into a completely new career path generated insecurities and doubts for around a fifth of career changers (22 percent). One in eight (13 percent) had to complete additional training for the new job and 12 percent found the change challenging because they did not yet have a network in the new job environment.

But: the vast majority had no difficulty whatsoever when changing careers (38 percent).

“The job for life has had its day,” says Dr. Tobias Zimmermann, labor market expert at The Stepstone Group. “The workplace is changing faster and faster, and so are the tasks and skills that are needed. In terms of careers, this will pay off for more and more people. There is already a shortage of workers today, which is why adaptable experienced professionals are particularly valuable. The recipe for success for career change is based on two factors: continuous development and confidence in your own abilities.”

The future labor market is flexible
A willingness to change can pay off - for employees and companies alike: Many employees feel underchallenged in their job and are dissatisfied with how they can contribute their skills (43 percent), while companies are desperately looking for suitable specialists. Nine out of ten of the recruiters surveyed at the same time (88 percent) cannot find suitable candidates with the required skills. It is becoming increasingly popular to rely on career changers.

“Skilled workers feel they are being misused, while companies are missing suitable candidates. This shows that qualification and further training are becoming a key success factor. Businesses should continuously and systematically train key skills - for new and existing employees. Employees will continue to develop their skills and talents. This is the key to a flexible and versatile labor market and therefore to our future viability,” says Dr. Tobias Zimmermann.

About the study
The “Hiring Trends Index” survey series is a quarterly study published by The Stepstone Group. In the period from January 9 to January 20, 2025, 6,300 German employees and 700 recruiters were surveyed online. Among other things, the current survey examined employees' willingness to look for a new job, their experience in previous application processes and the topic of changing careers. The results are representative of the German working population in terms of age, gender and education.

About the analysis of job ads on Stepstone.de
The data basis for the analysis of career changer jobs is the average number of daily job advertisements on Stepstone.de that included this keyword. The analyses relate to the period from 2019 to 2024.

About The Stepstone Group
The Stepstone Group is a leading global digital recruitment platform that connects companies with the right talent and helps people find the right job. AI-driven job marketplaces and programmatic-powered marketing solutions connect more than 130 million job applications with around 140,000 employers every year. In 2023, The Stepstone Group generated revenue of around €1 billion. The Stepstone Group operates in more than 30 countries - including Stepstone in Germany, Appcast in the USA and Totaljobs in the UK. The company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany and employs more than 3,500 people worldwide. For more information: http://www.thestepstonegroup.com/en/

Contact
The Stepstone Group media relations
press@stepstone.com

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Language:

English

Company:

The Stepstone Group

Völklinger Straße 1

40219 Düsseldorf

Germany

Internet:

https://www.thestepstonegroup.com/de/

EQS News ID:

2084001

End of News

EQS Media

2084001 11.02.2025 CET/CEST