Careers are no longer narrowly defined by a specific tile and set of skills tied to that title.  In the current ever-changing environment, having a T-shaped career can make it easier to adapt. The term was first used in-house at McKinsey & Company; it was popularized by David Guest and IDEO CEO Tim Brown.

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What is T-Shaped Career?

T-shaped professionals are:

1. Experts in one or two disciplines (the vertical bar) 

2. Mastered other complementary skills (horizontal crossbar)

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Benefits of having a T-Shaped Career

• Avoid pitfalls of being a generalist or a specialist 

• Better communication and collaboration 

• Variety helps you stay interested 

• Flexibility to change careers/jobs

• Experience the satisfaction of depth 

• Heightened creativity and critical thinking 

• More attractive to employers

• Big picture thinking 

• Being a valuable resource and connector 

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Example of T-Shaped Career

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How to have a T-Shaped Career

• Build out the T-Shape for your career profile

• Identify where you have deep knowledge vs. limited knowledge

• Start learning about other things on the horizontal axis to broaden your knowledge and skillset

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