City councillor to secretary of state
A city councillor already meets 46% of what the secretary of state role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.
51.9/ 100
1 How much of what a secretary of state is expected to do is already part of a city councillor’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the secretary of state role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A secretary of state role treats 6 of its required skills as things a city councillor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on legislative acts
- analyse legislation
- budgetary principles
- good governance
- perform political negotiation
- public administration
What stands in the way is 8 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A secretary of state role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a city councillor background worth leading with.
- already held write meeting reports communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held analyse legislation information skills
- already held perform political negotiation communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held good governance social sciences, journalism and information
- already held public administration social sciences, journalism and information
- already held public finance business, administration and law
All 14 carried skills, including the 6 the secretary of state role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 15 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn present legislation proposition required
- still to learn advise legislators required
- still to learn implement strategic management required
- still to learn liaise with local authorities required
- optional, not held advise on public finance optional
- optional, not held apply conflict management optional
- optional, not held ensure cross-department cooperation optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held represent the organisation optional
- still to learn audit techniques required
- still to learn legislation procedure required
- optional, not held constitutional law optional
- still to learn conduct financial audits required
- still to learn prepare legislation proposition required
- optional, not held government representation optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a secretary of state role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 prepare legislation proposition practise this
- 02 present legislation proposition practise this
- 03 advise legislators practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held advise on legislative acts skill
- already held analyse legislation skill
- already held budgetary principles knowledge
- already held good governance knowledge
- already held perform political negotiation skill
- already held public administration knowledge
- already held government policy implementation knowledge
- already held manage administrative systems skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage government policy implementation skill
- already held perform project management skill
- already held project management principles knowledge
- already held public finance knowledge
- already held write meeting reports skill
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on public finance optional
- optional, not held apply conflict management optional
- optional, not held constitutional law optional
- optional, not held ensure cross-department cooperation optional
- optional, not held government representation optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held represent the organisation optional
13 held skills the secretary of state role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse community needs skill
- not needed by the target role bookkeeping regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role build community relations skill
- not needed by the target role election law knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect government expenditures skill
- not needed by the target role inspect government incomes skill
- not needed by the target role maintain relations with local representatives skill
- not needed by the target role maintain relationships with government agencies skill
- not needed by the target role manage staff skill
- not needed by the target role observe confidentiality skill
- not needed by the target role political parties knowledge
- not needed by the target role promote political campaign skill
- not needed by the target role public law knowledge
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn audit techniques required
- still to learn legislation procedure required
- optional, not held constitutional law optional
- optional, not held government representation optional
Other moves recorded from city councillor
Common questions about this move
Can a city councillor become a secretary of state?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A city councillor already covers 46% of what a secretary of state is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 6 of which the secretary of state role treats as required.
What skills does a city councillor need to become a secretary of state?
8 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is prepare legislation proposition.
How hard is the move from city councillor to secretary of state?
Its learning distance is 51.9 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.