Secretary of state to secretary general
A secretary of state already meets 61% of what the secretary general role asks for. The move turns on 5 required skills not yet in the profile.
38.4/ 100
1 How much of what a secretary general is expected to do is already part of a secretary of state’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 general role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A secretary general role treats 8 of its required skills as things a secretary of state already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply conflict management
- audit techniques
- budgetary principles
- conduct financial audits
- good governance
- perform project management
What stands in the way is 5 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 17 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A secretary general role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a secretary of state background worth leading with.
- already held implement strategic management communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held legislation procedure business, administration and law
- already held good governance social sciences, journalism and information
- already held public finance business, administration and law
- already held conduct financial audits information skills
- already held audit techniques business, administration and law
All 17 carried skills, including the 8 the secretary general role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 11 missing skills fall into 3 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 coordinate government activities in foreign institutions required
- still to learn represent national interests required
- still to learn maintain relationships with government agencies required
- optional, not held apply diplomatic principles optional
- optional, not held build community relations optional
- optional, not held build international relations optional
- optional, not held establish collaborative relations optional
- optional, not held prepare presentation material optional
- still to learn manage staff required
- optional, not held develop international cooperation strategies optional
- still to learn bookkeeping regulations required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a secretary general role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 coordinate government activities in foreign institutions practise this
- 02 represent national interests practise this
- 03 bookkeeping regulations study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 17 skills that carry over
- already held apply conflict management skill
- already held audit techniques knowledge
- already held budgetary principles knowledge
- already held conduct financial audits skill
- already held good governance knowledge
- already held perform project management skill
- already held project management principles knowledge
- already held represent the organisation skill
- already held advise on legislative acts skill
- already held government policy implementation knowledge
- already held implement strategic management skill
- already held legislation procedure knowledge
- already held liaise with local authorities skill
- already held manage administrative systems skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage government policy implementation skill
- already held public finance knowledge
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held develop international cooperation strategies optional
- optional, not held apply diplomatic principles optional
- optional, not held build community relations optional
- optional, not held build international relations optional
- optional, not held establish collaborative relations optional
- optional, not held prepare presentation material optional
12 held skills the secretary general role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise legislators skill
- not needed by the target role advise on public finance skill
- not needed by the target role analyse legislation skill
- not needed by the target role constitutional law knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure cross-department cooperation skill
- not needed by the target role government representation knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform political negotiation skill
- not needed by the target role prepare legislation proposition skill
- not needed by the target role present legislation proposition skill
- not needed by the target role present reports skill
- not needed by the target role public administration knowledge
- not needed by the target role write meeting reports skill
1 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 bookkeeping regulations required
Other moves recorded from secretary of state
Common questions about this move
Can a secretary of state become a secretary general?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A secretary of state already covers 61% of what a secretary general is expected to do: 17 skills carry over, 8 of which the secretary general role treats as required.
What skills does a secretary of state need to become a secretary general?
5 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is coordinate government activities in foreign institutions.
How hard is the move from secretary of state to secretary general?
Its learning distance is 38.4 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.