|
HOME | What
is FMCG? | FMCG in Baltics?
| Career
in FMCG? | Career
in Retail? | Skills
and Competencies | Menu of
lecturers | 5
Day FMCG and Retail Course | Summer
internships | Other
forms of cooperation
* * *
Here are 8 (eight) good reasons:
1. Its a stable industry. There's a saying in the industry
that goes "everyone has to eat." To this I would add "and
wash their clothes and brush their teeth." Unlike some industries,
such as automobiles, computers, and airlines, FMCG does not suffer
from mass layoffs every time the economy starts to dip. You may
put off buying a car, but you don't put off dinner. This lends FMCG
a level of job security unknown in other industries.
2. Its a high profile industry. Everyone is a consumer.
This makes the industry personally relevant as everyone is personally
affected. Look at how many of the headlines in the papers over the
past six months have been about FMCG related topics: dairy issues,
protests against the genetic modification of foods, the growing
problem of obesity, the Chinese milk powder recall. People get more
excited about and care more deeply about the products they put in
their bodies or use everyday. This can be good or bad, but it's
never boring.
3. You get a depth of experience very quickly. Imagine you
and a friend both go to work in sales. They take a job selling cars
and make two or three sales a month if they're lucky. You take a
job selling wine and sell to ten or more accounts a day. Who has
more experience at the end of two years? No matter what area you
want to work in, sales, marketing, operations, accounting, etc.,
you will get more experience in less time working in FMCG than in
any other sector of the economy. Sometimes you may feel like you've
been thrown in the deep end, but you will quickly gain a firm grasp
of basic business skills.
4. You can get a wide range of experience. You have a wide
range of choices when it comes to jobs and career paths in FMCG.
You can also work for a large multinational or a small local company
and everything in between. In addition, most people who have been
in FMCG for any length of time have worked in a wide range of roles.
The "fast moving" part of FMCG requires people who are
flexible. Flexibility requires a wide toolkit and a range of experience.
Progression from operations to sales to marketing are not uncommon;
in smaller companies all three may occur in one role.
5. Its an industry that thrives on innovation. FMCG offers
you an opportunity to express your creativity through developing
new ideas for products, packaging, branding and advertising. There
is a constant cycle of regular product improvements and updates
as brands compete head to head on the shelf. There are also the
new products that come out of nowhere to define a market
6. There are opportunities nationwide, both urban and rural.
Unlike some industries that are concentrated in the major cities,
FMCG offers opportunities nationwide to those that are interested.
FMCG, through its connection to the primary sector, offers opportunities
in smaller cities and rural areas. So the next time you are sitting
in Riga, Tallinn or Vilnius traffic dreaming of a better lifestyle
in Sigulda, Otepaa or Palanga, do something about it!
7. Your job can take you around the World. Baltics people
are well educated and is becoming a highly respected training ground
for FMCG skills and experience. There is a demand for the skills
you learn here either close to home in Europe or further a field
in places like the USA, Thailand or Australia. The International
offices of most FMCG multinationals regularly recruit staff from
all around the World, either for short projects or for longer stints.
8. Lots of choices and opportunities for advancement. It’s
generally accepted in the industry that people move around. Someone
takes a new role to broaden their experience in a new area and someone
else takes their job. Opportunities create opportunities. So whether
you're a new graduate with no idea what to do next or a experienced
hand looking for a change, consider a career in the FMCG sector.
Next: Why
should you consider a career in Retail?
* * *
HOME | What
is FMCG? | FMCG in Baltics?
| Career
in FMCG? | Career
in Retail? | Skills
and Competencies | Menu of
lecturers | 5
Day FMCG and Retail Course | Summer
internships | Other
forms of cooperation
|