Career change for seniors: leverage your strengths to bounce back

Why this matters

We keep pushing the official retirement age higher, and the country’s talent shortage is widening. Yet hiring managers still screen CVs with a mental stopwatch on age. If you have 20–30 years of experience and want to change lanes, you need a plan that is sharper than the bias you’ll meet.

Below is the straight, field-tested playbook I give senior clients at Jobprofile when they decide to pivot late in their careers through our coaching programs.

1. Stop apologising for your age

Swiss employers don’t pay premiums for tenure—they pay for risk reduction and faster ROI. Own that value. When you introduce yourself, lead with proof that your learning curve is already behind you.

Your 30-second elevator pitch

1. Past → Future
   “I’ve spent 25 years scaling regulated med-tech operations across Europe; I’m now moving into digital health compliance.”
2. Hard proof
   • Closed FDA inspection with zero 483s
   • Drove ISO 13485 cert in two sites (Neuchâtel & Zug)
   • Completing CAS in Digital Trust at EPFL Extension School
3. Ask
   “I’m looking for a compliance lead role in a Series B digital-health startup—ideally at Campus Biotech or Biopôle.”

Say it out loud until it sounds like you.

2. Build a multigenerational circle—fast

Your next job will almost certainly come via referral, not a portal. Map three sets of contacts and set weekly targets:

Add five names to each list every week until you hit 100. That’s the 10X rule in practice.

3. 10X every action

Grant Cardone’s math works in the Lémanic labour market, too.

• CV drops — If you think three tailored applications a week is plenty, send 30.
• Informational calls — Book one? Book ten.
• Learning modules — Enrol in a single CAS? Stack a micro-MBA on top.

Massive action neutralises age bias because volume creates optionality: you care less about each “no”.

4. Master the tough interview questions

Expect—and invite—scrutiny. Prepare concise, data-rich answers to these:

1. “Why leave a secure track now?”
   “Because the regulated-to-digital pivot is where my compliance depth pays off biggest. That’s also where Switzerland is pouring R&D francs.”
2. “Do you have hands-on experience with ?”
   “No, and I’ll be up to speed in 30 days. I led three tool migrations before: SAP → Oracle (120 users), Jira rollout across CH-DE sites, and a CSV cloud re-validation. The methodology is identical.”
3. “How long do you plan to stay?”
   “Long enough to deliver the strategic inflection you hired me for—typically 4–7 years. The pension label ‘65’ is irrelevant; Swiss law lets me work as long as my contribution justifies the salary.”

Write your answers, time them, polish them.

5. Leverage Swiss up-/re-skilling subsidies

Cantonal programmes (e.g., FORMATION Continue Canton de Vaud) cover up to 50 % of fees for job-related courses. Use them:

• CAS in Data & AI Strategy – HEIG-VD
• DAS in Sustainable Finance – University of Geneva
• Federal Diploma in Digital Leadership – digitalswitzerland/ICT-Berufsbildung

You send a clear signal: Learning curve ≠ age. Learning curve = mindset.

6. De-risk the hire for your future boss

Offer a 100-day value map during the final interview: three actions you’ll take by day 30, 60, 90 to solve their highest-cost problem. It shows urgency and makes the “overqualified” label absurd.

7. Build stamina for ghosting

Even in Switzerland’s well-mannered market, messages get ignored. Treat every silence as background noise, not rejection. Keep the cadence:

• Follow-up once after five business days.
• If no response, add the contact to your quarterly value-share list (send them a relevant white paper, invite them to an event, etc.).
• Move on without emotional overhead.

Conclusion

The Swiss market thrive on precision and pragmatism. Bring both to your pivot. Your experience is prepaid capital; deploy it like a Swiss fund manager—focused, data-driven, and impatient for returns.

No excuses, just execution. See you on the other side of your career curve.

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