In this episode, Ada Offonry challenges the idea that midlife career change means either staying stuck or starting from scratch.
She explores increasingly mainstream career paths such as sabbaticals, fractional roles and consulting, showing how experienced people can gain more flexibility, autonomy and income without blowing up their lives.
Career paths hiding in plain sightHigh income without full-time rolesPivoting without quitting outrightAda breaks down who these options are really for, how to test them safely, and how to pivot strategically rather than impulsively.
Fractional/portfolio work (47% increase): MBO Partners State of Independence 2025
UK non-traditional income (1 in 4): IPSE (Association of Independent Professionals) 2025
Sabbatical outcomes (38% better roles): Harvard Business Review, "The Sabbatical Effect" 2024
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About your Host: Ada Offonry
Ada Offonry provides talent and career intelligence for quantitative finance and technology.
She spent four years as Global Head of Talent at Quadrature Capital, and over 20 years in executive search partnering with hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, and elite investment banks across New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
Ada now works with firms building high performance technology teams, and with senior quantitative and engineering professionals navigating complex career inflection points, through Inference Talent Advisory.
Her work sits at the intersection of market intelligence, talent strategy, and career decision making in an increasingly volatile world of work.