In college I interned in the production department of a small garment
manufacturer in NY.  Subsequently I became employed in the production
department of a much larger garment  manufacturer in NY (very similar
to Liz Claiborne) that primarily makes denim jeans.  I am involved in
the design and
pre-production phase, costing and pricing, and placing orders with
factories in China, India, Central America and South Africa. I travel
extensively throughout the year, visiting factories and mills in
various countries to oversee all phases of production of multi-million
dollar orders. I am also responsible for working with law firms to
anticipate and resolve quota issues.  I have been working for 8 years
in this field.  Although I make a substantial amount of money for
someone under 30 I have recently decided that I want to switch
careers, i.e. leave the garment industry
entirely. I am interested in figuring out what careers exist in other
fields for someone with my background and very strong college grades
but no MBA.  Specifically, are there other fields where my extensive
knowledge of sourcing in China and India would be useful?  Are there
certain industries (cosmetics etc). where production managers
can make a decent living (i.e. above 75k). Due to family
considerations I cannot afford to "start over" salary wise.

---

Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 19 Jul 2005 02:44 PDT

Hello zabar1511-ga,

I will be very happy to help you with figuring out your options for a
career change. In order to be able to give you appropriate resources
and guidance it would be helpful to have some additional information
about you.

It sounds like you have an interesting background and a strong track
record in your current field so the first question that comes to mind
is, ?Why do you want to change??

What are the reasons you?re thinking about changing fields? Do you
have personal reasons (i.e., too much travel) or do you have
professional concerns? Do you think you?ve reached a dead end? Have
you lost interest in the industry? Do you think that the industry will
not afford you career growth? It would be very helpful if you could
explain why you want to leave?

Have you done any exploration of what field you want to transition
into? What new jobs, companies, industries are you considering and
why? Please fill me in on anything you?ve already researched and
decided about.

What do you consider to be your strongest assets as you transition to
something new? What are your best skills and talents? Do you want to
keep using them in your new job? If not, why not? What are you very
good at? What are your personal qualities that are important in your
job? What is important to you in a job? What are your values for the
type of work you want to do and will not do? What would you like to
learn on your next job? Will you consider additional education?

You mention family considerations influencing your career decisions.
In addition to the salary requirements you mentioned, what other
considerations come into play?

The more you can tell me about your situation, your experience,
skills, values, interests and future hopes and dreams, the more likely
I will be able to help you with developing a plan to make a successful
career transition.

I look forward to your clarification.

~ czh ~

Hello zabar1511-ga,

Making a career change is a big step. Fortunately, there are thousands
of career guidance and job search resources on the Web. There are many
different ways to explore the possibility and ?how to? of career
change depending on your individual situation. I?ve organized some
relevant resources to help you get started.

I?ve first summarized what you said about your experience, skills and
interests. These will go into building your resume. Next, I looked up
some occupational outlook information for you so you can see the big
picture. Then I suggest you look at what?s available in current
opportunities by reviewing up-to-date job postings. Since you?re
looking for a career change, I also included lots of resources to help
you explore the important activities involved in a successful career
transition. Finally, I provide you with some general career
development guides.

I trust that these resources will help you organize your thoughts
about your contemplated career change and provide you with the
necessary information so you can develop your job search strategy.

Best wishes for your continued career success.

~ czh ~



============================
WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT YOURSELF
============================

EXPERIENCE
----------

Small garment manufacturer
Large garment manufacturer (jeans)
Oversee all phases of production
Multi-million dollar orders
Anticipate/resolve quota legal issues
8 years in garment industry

SKILLS
------

Involved with clothing manufacture/production
Design
Pre-production
Costing and pricing
Placing orders (China, India, Central America, South Africa)
Foreign travel visit factories
Very strong college grades (no MBA)
 
INTERESTS
---------
Sourcing in China and India
Cosmetics
Production Manager


==========================================
OCCUPATIONAL OUTLOOK ? PRODUCTION MANAGERS
==========================================

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos016.htm
Industrial Production Managers

SIGNIFICANT POINTS
 -- While there is no standard preparation, a college degree is required. 
 -- Applicants with a college degree in industrial engineering,
management, or business administration, and particularly those with an
undergraduate engineering degree and a master?s degree in business
administration or industrial management, enjoy the best job prospects.
 -- Projected slower-than-average growth in employment reflects
increasing productivity.

***** Be sure to read the whole profile, especially the sections on
Job Outlook and Earnings.

-------------------------------------------------


http://www.iseek.org/sv/13000.jsp?id=100106
Career: Industrial Production Managers

***** This is a more detailed description of this job. The Work
Activities, Skills and Abilities, Knowledge and Interests sections
should be very helpful for reviewing your qualification against the
general qualifications so you can decided what you want to leave
behind and what you want to keep doing in the future.

-------------------------------------------------


http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos023.htm
Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents

SIGNIFICANT POINTS
 -- Forty-two percent are employed in wholesale trade or manufacturing
establishments.
 -- Some firms promote qualified employees to these positions, while
other employers recruit college graduates; regardless of academic
preparation, new employees need 1 to 5 years to learn the specifics of
their employer?s business.
 -- Overall employment is expected to be slower than the average, but
the projected change in employment varies significantly by
occupational specialty.
 -- Opportunities should be best for those with a college degree. 

***** Your experience and skills in the area of sourcing and costing
and pricing may be transferable to purchasing. The salaries may not be
high enough, however.

------------------------------------------------- 


http://www.bls.gov/oco/oco1001.htm
Management and business and financial operations occupations

***** This page provides links to about three dozen jobs. Some of them
might be suitable for someone with your skills. I suggest that you
review the ones that appeal to you for any reason and explore how your
skills and experience might be useful in a new profession or job.



=============================================
SEARCHING FOR PRODUCTION MANAGER JOB POSTINGS
=============================================

http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/

-------------------------------------------------

http://jobs.careerbuilder.com/?sc_cmp2=JS_HP1_Nav_FindJobs

-------------------------------------------------

http://jobsearch.monster.com/

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.indeed.com/


***** I suggest that you use one or more of these major job posting
boards to explore the possibilities available to you. If you haven?t
looked for a job for a while, you will have to familiarize yourself
with what?s going on in your target field, industries and companies.
You can search by many different filters and explore many
possibilities. Pay attention to what appeals to you and save the names
of companies, job titles, recruiters and anything else that you might
be able to use in the future.



===========================
HOW TO MAKE A CAREER CHANGE
===========================

http://www.careerknowhow.com/guidance/career-change.htm
How You Can Confidently Make a Career Shift
10 questions to ask yourself before making a change 

-------------------------------------------------

http://change.monster.com/articles/seasoned/
Career Change and the Seasoned Worker

-------------------------------------------------

http://change.monster.com/articles/golower/
When to Target a Lower Position

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.martynemko.com/articles.shtm
Career Columns

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.quintcareers.com/career_change_mistakes.html
10 Career Change Mistakes to Avoid

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.socrates.com/newsletters/0205_CareerChange.aspx
Ready for a Change? Top 10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Jump
to a New Career or Start Your Own Business

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.workopolis.com/servlet/Content/resumedoctor/20040105/dr_careerchange?section=resumedoctor
8 Tips to Making a Successful Career Change

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.careerjournal.com/jobhunting/change/
Career Change Articles



***** These articles will give you a good introduction to the subject
of how to make a career change. You will notice that they tend to
cover the same territory and give similar guidelines. I suggest that
you review them quickly and concentrate on the ones that take an
approach that makes sense to you. If you feel you need more
information go to your local bookstore or library and browse the
career section. You will find hundreds of titles encompassing every
aspect of career choice and job search. Browse for titles that appeal
to you. The career change books tend to all cover the same territory
and vary mostly in style, not substance. Choose resources that fit
your style. While browsing the career books look over the titles that
specialize in industries or professions that you?re considering for
your job search. As you continue your explorations, you will be
attracted to some things more than others because there will be a
better fit. Use the written materials as a jumping off point for
developing a personal marketing plan.


===================
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS
===================

http://www.quintcareers.com/transferable_skills.html
Transferable Job Skills
A complete collection of transferable job skills resources for job-seekers.

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.placementmanual.com/career/career-11.html
Transferable Skills

-------------------------------------------------

http://careerplanning.about.com/od/careerchoicechan/a/transferable.htm
Transferable Skills
Bringing Your Skills to a New Career

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.pch.gc.ca/Cyberstation/html/szone2_e.htm
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS : What you'll need to get ahead

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.nextsteps.org/career/transfer.html
Skills

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.oln.org/student_services/plan_your_education/assess_abilities.php
Transferable Skills Survey


***** As you prepare for a career change it?s important to evaluate
your work history and experience and come up with a list of
transferable skills that you will want to keep using in your new job.
There are lots of exercises, articles, worksheets and other resources
on the web to help you with developing your list of transferable
skills.



============================
CAREER DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES
============================

http://www.cdm.uwaterloo.ca/index.asp
Career Development eManual

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.rileyguide.com/index.html#top
The Riley Guide 
Employment Opportunities and Job Resources on the Internet 
http://www.rileyguide.com/prepare.html
Prepare to Search 

-------------------------------------------------

http://jobstar.org/index.cfm
http://jobstar.org/tools/career/index.cfm
http://jobstar.org/hidden/index.cfm
Jobstar from the Public Library


***** These comprehensive career development websites will help you
explore the big picture if you want to go beyond simply exploring the
issues in career change.



===============
SEARCH STRATEGY
===============

"production manager" jobs
production manager occupational outlook
how to make a career change
transferable skills.

Hey zabar1511-ga, how are you doing?

What duties of a Garment Industry Production Manager did you like?
What duties did you not like?

REFERENCE
Amazon.com: Books: Do What You Are : Discover the Perfect Career ...   
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0316880655?v=glance

Best wishes,