Portfolio Career: What It Is and How to Approach It

Planning a portfolio career allows for greater flexibility

For most people in the Czech Republic, good employability on the labor market represents a stable value across different sectors and various stages of professional life. During periods of economic uncertainty, the crucial role of this stability becomes particularly evident. For example, the financial crisis of 2009–2010 clearly showed that some professions are significantly more resistant to economic fluctuations than others.

While many industries experienced layoffs or hiring freezes, areas such as healthcare and education maintained relatively stable demand for labor. Greater resilience to crises can also be supported by flexibility, which is why planning a portfolio career is gaining increasing popularity. This approach spreads professional risk and broadens employment opportunities, giving individuals greater room to maneuver in times of change and uncertainty. At the same time, it fits well into the broader concept of lifelong learning.

The Czech Republic vs. abroad

The approach to career paths in the Czech Republic has long developed differently than in many Western countries. The traditional model of practicing one profession for most of one’s working life became deeply rooted not only culturally but also institutionally. Stable employment with a single employer was for decades perceived as the desired norm, while changes in professional orientation were seen more as exceptions than as a common part of career development.

Abroad, especially in Anglo-Saxon countries and parts of Western Europe, the concept of a portfolio career gained acceptance earlier. Greater flexibility of employment contracts, more frequent job changes, and an emphasis on transferable skills led individuals to commonly combine several professional directions at the same time.

Today, the differences between the Czech Republic and foreign countries are gradually diminishing. Digitalization, remote work, and a growing emphasis on continuous skills development create conditions in which a more flexible approach to career paths is becoming relevant in the Czech context as well.

Portfolio career or lifelong specialization?

From the above, it follows that there is no single correct approach. Career planning is significantly influenced by various factors, including education, technological development, personal preferences and life stage, economic conditions, the state of the labor market, and others. For this reason, it makes more sense to compare both models, as each responds to a different type of uncertainty.

Professional identity tied to a single field

This approach makes it possible to systematically develop specialized knowledge and build a reputation. Through it, an employee can establish themselves as a recognized expert in a specific area. In environments where job requirements change more slowly and the structure of professions remains relatively stable, such specialization is usually an effective and long-term functional solution. This typically applies to professions such as doctors, lawyers, architects, tax advisors, and similar roles.

Unlike a portfolio career, this model is based on the assumption that demand for the given specialization will remain stable over the long term. If technological, legislative, or organizational changes occur, the room for maneuver can narrow significantly. This is due to the fact that most professional capital is concentrated in a single specialization.

A model based on the portfolio career principle

In practice, this usually involves gradually expanding one’s professional scope, where additional roles or activities are added to the main specialization. These may stem from the same field or, alternatively, rely on transferable skills gained in previous experience. New areas are therefore initially applied only on a marginal basis.

The early stages of a portfolio career are typically characterized by forms of project-based cooperation, part-time employment, or secondary activities. Only if such activities prove to be long-term and перспективive can they gradually take on a dominant role. This reduces the risk associated with sudden and irreversible career decisions.