In this guide
Published career stories can reveal different kinds of change. Read them as individual examples, then ask which requirements and circumstances would matter for your own decision.
One story crosses into a technical field
Northwell’s September 22, 2026 story describes Justin Schmidt joining as a dietary aide in 2012 and later moving into sterile processing after certification and hands-on experience. It then traces supervisory and operations leadership roles. This is an attributed employer account, not an interview conducted by this publication. Northwell Justin Schmidt career story, September 22, 2026 ↗
The meaningful distinction is between discovering a field and becoming prepared for it. Interest did not itself replace training. Later leadership responsibilities represented another kind of change. The story should not be compressed into a promise that any support worker can reach the same role on the same timetable.
Another translates experience across functions
In Northwell’s February 26, 2025 Career Advisement article, Michael Ramirez describes a transition from category management analysis in procurement to an associate project manager role. The account connects his exploration with advice and development. Northwell Career Advisement Program, February 26, 2025 ↗
This example suggests a question worth asking about your own work: Which capabilities might be useful in another function? It does not answer which vacancy will accept your background. Compare the target requirements before assuming a skill transfers without additional learning.
Cross-functional movement may involve a change in the output you own. An analyst’s work and a project manager’s work can both use organization and communication, but their responsibilities are not identical. A good career narrative explains what changed in the work, not just the title.
A third adds people leadership to professional practice
Northwell’s May 8, 2023 nursing leadership story describes Emanuel Remilus beginning in a pediatric critical-care fellowship and later pursuing an assistant nurse manager role, with mentorship and further education in the account. It is historical evidence about one person. Northwell nursing leadership story, May 8, 2023 ↗
The analytical value is the distinction between clinical development and responsibility for leading others. A person may be excellent in professional practice while needing new experience in coaching, coordination and organizational decisions. Leadership should not be framed as proof that individual-contributor work has been outgrown.
| Published example | Type of change | Question for a reader |
|---|---|---|
| Justin Schmidt | New technical field, followed by operations leadership | What credential and practical preparation would the target work require? |
| Michael Ramirez | Movement across business functions | Which capabilities transfer, and which responsibilities are new? |
| Emanuel Remilus | Professional practice toward people leadership | What evidence shows readiness to support and lead a team? |
What selected stories cannot tell us
Employer career features are selected for publication. They do not provide a denominator, a success rate or a representative promotion interval. We cannot infer how common a path is from the fact that it happened. We also cannot assume the same program, vacancy or conditions remain available.
Use the story as a source of questions rather than a template to copy. Identify the transition, the preparation mentioned and the missing information. Then verify the target role’s current requirements. A detail omitted from a short story may still have been important in the actual decision.
Your own successful outcome may be different: stronger practice in your current role, a lateral move, a new profession or no move after a careful comparison. The purpose of reading these accounts is to see possibilities more clearly while keeping evidence and expectation in proportion.
Sources and method
This analysis combines public evidence with editorial questions and examples. Suggestions are preparation tools, not employer rules or an eligibility decision. Sources reviewed September 30, 2026.
- Northwell Justin Schmidt career story, September 22, 2026 ↗: Selected employer-authored historical career example; no representative success rate.
- Northwell Career Advisement Program, February 26, 2025 ↗: Employer-authored story about named participants; selected examples, not representative outcomes.
- Northwell nursing leadership story, May 8, 2023 ↗: Historical employer-authored individual career example.