Plus, learn how to handle vacation time in a new job and navigate the stress of a recent promotion to leadership.
Welcome to Career Coach, a column for job seekers and employees navigating the ins and outs of finding, landing and succeeding in jobs in the biotech industry. Each month, Carina Clingman, founder of The Collaboratory Career Hub and host of the “Biotech Career Coach” podcast, answers questions from the community. You can email her questions at hello@collaboratorycareerhub.com.
In this column, we’ll discuss how to transition from academia to industry, navigate vacation time in a new job and manage the challenges of a recent promotion to a leadership role.
Q: I’ve been in academia my whole career, most recently as an assistant professor. I want to move to industry and close down my academic lab. I’m struggling to condense my experience and publications into your guidelines for an industry resume. How can I do this without losing the core of my work?
CC: This is a very exciting (and also scary) time. Let’s reframe how you’re thinking about creating an industry resume from “condensing” your experience to creating an “abstract” for it. You’re no stranger to writing papers and grants, so that might help you envision the final resume document’s purpose. A great abstract captures attention, gives a high-level overview and tells the reader why they should care. Let’s do that for your career!
Start by carefully analyzing job descriptions for the industry positions you’re targeting. Identify the key skills, experiences and qualifications these companies are seeking. Your resume must highlight how your academic experience translates to these industry needs.
- Craft a strong headline: Place this at the top of your resume to succinctly summarize your expertise and career goals. For example: “Collaborative Neuroscientist With 10+ Years of Research Leadership Bridging Innovation and Drug Discovery.” Refer back to one of my previous columns where we go over how to create great headlines using the language of the job description.
- Focus on achievements: Instead of listing every responsibility, highlight concrete achievements and quantify them where possible. “Led a team of 5 researchers and 3 technicians, securing $2M in grant funding over 3 years” is more impactful than “Research lab management experience.”
- Be selective with publications: Choose the most impactful and relevant ones. You might include a line like “Authored 30+ peer-reviewed publications, including 5 as first author in high-impact journals (Nature, Cell, Science).” Provide a link to a full publication list on your LinkedIn profile, ResearchGate, PubMed or a personal website.
- Highlight collaborative experiences: Emphasize instances where you’ve worked with diverse teams or across disciplines. Almost every industry job description emphasizes teamwork, cross-functional collaboration, managing competing priorities and excellent communication skills. A career in academia provides an excellent foundation in all of these areas, so articulate that clearly!
- Use relevant keywords: Include keywords directly from the job description within the body of your resume—not just in a list at the end! This will help your resume pass initial screening by technology (the applicant tracking system) and recruiters who are most likely not scientists.
- Keep it concise: Aim for a two- to four-page resume, which might feel impossibly short compared to your academic CV. The goal is to pique interest and secure an interview, not to document every detail of your career.
Finally, seek feedback from industry professionals or recruiters (like me!). They can provide valuable insights on how to further refine your document. Your research skills, analytical abilities and capacity to innovate are highly valuable in the biotech industry. You’ll just need to frame your experience in terms of the things companies care about. Remember, think of this as the abstract to your career, and focus on the impact.
Q: I’m starting a new job in a few weeks. I have a family vacation coming up in two months. I feel awkward about taking that time off so soon, but it’s been booked for a long time. What should I do?
CC: Congratulations on your new job! It’s natural to feel uneasy about taking time off so soon after starting. However, preplanned vacations are fairly common, and most employers are understanding.
The key here is clear, proactive communication. Ideally, you would have mentioned this vacation during the offer negotiation stage, before formally accepting the position. This timing shows you’re serious about the role while also setting clear expectations from the start. If you haven’t done so yet, don’t worry. It’s better to bring it up now than to wait until the vacation creeps closer.
Schedule a conversation with your new manager ASAP. Be up front and stay positive by saying something like, “I’m really excited to join the team. I wanted to let you know that I have a preplanned family vacation from [date] to [date]. I’m committed to ensuring a smooth onboarding and minimizing any impact on the team. Can we brainstorm on how to best manage this?”
This approach shows that you’re responsible, considerate of the team’s needs and committed to success in your new role. It also allows you to co-create a solution with your manager.
Come to that meeting prepared with solutions. Perhaps you could do some “take-home” onboarding the week before your official start date so you hit the ground running. Or you could propose working extra hours before or after your trip to catch up. Be flexible and open to suggestions from your manager as well.
Enjoy your vacation! You’ll return refreshed and ready to kick butt in your new role.
Q: I recently got a promotion and am leading a team. It’s more demanding than I anticipated, and I’m feeling very stressed. It’s affecting my personal life so much that I’m considering moving back to an individual contributor role. Is that the right call, or is there a way to make this easier?
CC: I’m sorry to hear that you’re feeling stressed and unhappy. The transition to a leadership role can be overwhelming, but before you make the decision to step back, let’s explore a few strategies that might help.
First, let me reassure you that feeling stressed when stepping into a leadership role is very normal. You’re not alone in this experience, and it doesn’t mean that you’re failing or unsuited to lead a team. Leadership skills develop over time, and this discomfort is likely a signal that you’re growing. I suspect two main skill gaps might be at the root of your anxiety.
One of the most important (and hardest) skills to develop as a new leader is delegation. Many new managers struggle with this, feeling like they need to see, approve, do or redo everything themselves to make sure it’s “done right.” However, delegation not only lightens your workload but also empowers your team members so they can grow. It leads to mutual trust and confidence as well, but you’ll need to learn to do it effectively.
Establishing clear boundaries between work and personal life is perhaps the second-hardest skill to learn. It’s important, as it will help you maintain your sanity. Communicate your availability clearly and stick to it. This might mean setting specific “off hours” during which you don’t check emails or take work calls.
Remember, as a leader, you set the tone for your team. By modeling clear boundaries, you’re also giving your team permission to maintain their own work-life balance, which can lead to more productive and satisfied employees overall.
Don’t hesitate to seek support and training to learn these two essential skills. Asking for help is a sign of strength and commitment to your team, not weakness. And as I just mentioned, you set the tone. You’d want your team members to seek help rather than muddle through (and potentially bungle) an important part of their job, right?
Many organizations offer leadership development programs or mentoring opportunities. Take advantage of these resources if they already exist. Otherwise, request a budget for outside coaching. Additionally, connect with other leaders in your organization or industry to share experiences and advice.
Give yourself time to learn. Leadership skills develop with knowledge, practice and mentorship, and what feels overwhelming now may become more manageable as you gain experience. However, if after giving it your best effort, you still find that leadership isn’t the right fit for you, there’s no shame in recognizing that. Many successful careers are built on individual contributions rather than management roles.
