Timber trader to forester
A timber trader already meets 18% of what the forester role asks for. The move turns on 16 required skills not yet in the profile.
81.9/ 100
1 How much of what a forester is expected to do is already part of a timber trader’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 forester role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A forester role treats 4 of its required skills as things a timber trader already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- manage forests
- monitor forest health
- monitor forest productivity
- write technical reports related to trees
What stands in the way is 16 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 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A forester role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a timber trader background worth leading with.
- already held coordinate timber sales communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage forests management skills
- already held monitor forest productivity information skills
- already held write technical reports related to trees communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held monitor forest health information skills
- already held advise on timber harvest communication, collaboration and creativity
All 7 carried skills, including the 4 the forester role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 36 missing skills fall into 10 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 forestry regulations required
- still to learn plant disease control required
- still to learn reforestation required
- still to learn sustainable forest management required
- still to learn agronomy required
- still to learn pest control in plants required
- optional, not held animal hunting optional
- still to learn supervise forestry workers required
- still to learn organise labour required
- optional, not held coordinate forestry research optional
- optional, not held organise harvests optional
- optional, not held develop natural areas works programmes optional
- optional, not held manage time in forestry optional
- optional, not held work independently in forestry services optional
- optional, not held manage production enterprise optional
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- still to learn animal welfare legislation required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- optional, not held business management principles optional
- still to learn organise tree plantations required
- still to learn de-limb trees required
- optional, not held harvest timber optional
- still to learn promote environmental awareness required
- optional, not held interact with clients in forestry optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held use communication techniques optional
- still to learn conserve forests required
- optional, not held apply forest legislation optional
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a forester role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 organise tree plantations practise this
- 02 conserve forests practise this
- 03 de-limb trees 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 7 skills that carry over
- already held manage forests skill
- already held monitor forest health skill
- already held monitor forest productivity skill
- already held write technical reports related to trees skill
- already held advise on timber harvest skill
- already held coordinate timber sales skill
- already held manage budgets skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn environmental policy required
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- still to learn health and safety regulations required
- optional, not held estimate damage optional
- optional, not held forecast timber production optional
- optional, not held report pollution incidents optional
- optional, not held operate GPS systems optional
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held coordinate forestry research optional
- optional, not held organise harvests optional
- optional, not held animal hunting optional
- optional, not held develop natural areas works programmes optional
- optional, not held estimate damage optional
- optional, not held forecast timber production optional
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held harvest timber optional
- optional, not held interact with clients in forestry optional
- optional, not held manage time in forestry optional
- optional, not held report pollution incidents optional
- optional, not held work independently in forestry services optional
- optional, not held apply forest legislation optional
- optional, not held business management principles optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held manage production enterprise optional
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held operate GPS systems optional
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- optional, not held use communication techniques optional
28 held skills the forester role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on timber-based products skill
- not needed by the target role carry out purchasing operations in the timber business skill
- not needed by the target role check quality of raw materials skill
- not needed by the target role comply with timber trade code of conduct skill
- not needed by the target role conduct land surveys skill
- not needed by the target role distinguish wood quality skill
- not needed by the target role guarantee customer satisfaction skill
- not needed by the target role handle timber skill
- not needed by the target role identify market niches skill
- not needed by the target role implement marketing strategies skill
- not needed by the target role implement sales strategies skill
- not needed by the target role inspect timber skill
- not needed by the target role inspect trees skill
- not needed by the target role manage logs segregation and stacking skill
- not needed by the target role manage timber orders skill
- not needed by the target role manage timber stocks skill
- not needed by the target role monitor logging operations skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate price skill
- not needed by the target role operate forestry machinery skill
- not needed by the target role pack timber products skill
- not needed by the target role process collected survey data skill
- not needed by the target role process returned timber products skill
- not needed by the target role read maps skill
- not needed by the target role report the results of treatment skill
- not needed by the target role sell processed timber in a commercial environment skill
- not needed by the target role study prices of wood products skill
- not needed by the target role timber products knowledge
- not needed by the target role work in a forestry team skill
13 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 forestry regulations required
- still to learn plant disease control required
- still to learn reforestation required
- still to learn sustainable forest management required
- still to learn agronomy required
- still to learn animal welfare legislation required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- still to learn environmental policy required
- still to learn health and safety regulations required
- still to learn pest control in plants required
- optional, not held animal hunting optional
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held business management principles optional
Other moves recorded from timber trader
Common questions about this move
Can a timber trader become a forester?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A timber trader already covers 18% of what a forester is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 4 of which the forester role treats as required.
What skills does a timber trader need to become a forester?
16 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary. The single most important is organise tree plantations.
How hard is the move from timber trader to forester?
Its learning distance is 81.9 out of 100, which is the career change 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.