This page describes the shared role-family catalog used by civilian-career-advisor. It translates broad role labels into observable work requirements for evidence-first career exploration.

The catalog is not an exhaustive labor-market database or an automatic selection tool. Skills, work samples, results, credentials, preferences, constraints, location, compensation needs, and current vacancies are the primary evidence. If a typological hypothesis is retained for research, it may add a question only after that direct evidence is considered; it must not rank or exclude careers.

Work Feature Tags

  • tech-heavy
  • people-heavy
  • structure-heavy
  • stress-heavy
  • hands-on
  • analysis-heavy
  • coordination-heavy
  • autonomy-high
  • autonomy-low
  • long-horizon
  • routine-heavy
  • sales-heavy
  • care-heavy
  • field-heavy
  • creative-heavy

Role Families

Role family Core features Good signals Main risks
DevOps / SRE / Platform Engineering tech-heavy, structure-heavy, analysis-heavy, stress-heavy, long-horizon, coordination-heavy systems thinking, practical diagnostics, operational responsibility alert fatigue, unclear ownership, chaotic on-call culture
Systems / Network / Cloud Administration tech-heavy, structure-heavy, hands-on, analysis-heavy, routine-heavy maintenance mindset, precision, patience with infrastructure repetitive tickets, legacy systems, after-hours incidents
Cybersecurity Operations tech-heavy, analysis-heavy, stress-heavy, structure-heavy, long-horizon calm under pressure, pattern detection, disciplined process shift work, alert overload, adversarial pressure
Data / BI / Operations Analysis analysis-heavy, structure-heavy, tech-heavy, coordination-heavy metrics, explanation, structured thinking stakeholder ambiguity, low data quality, repetitive reporting
QA / Test Automation tech-heavy, structure-heavy, analysis-heavy, routine-heavy consistency, defect detection, practical logic low autonomy, undervalued gatekeeper role, monotonous cycles
Technical Writing / Documentation structure-heavy, analysis-heavy, coordination-heavy, creative-heavy explanatory logic, clarity, continuity preservation low feedback, SME dependence, less hands-on technical work
Technical Project / Release / Operations Management coordination-heavy, structure-heavy, stress-heavy, people-heavy, long-horizon structured communication, planning, cross-team translation politics, status games, meeting overload, accountability without authority
Implementation / Solutions Engineering tech-heavy, people-heavy, coordination-heavy, analysis-heavy technical explanation, practical adaptation, bounded client contact sales pressure, emotional labor, unclear scope
Technical Support / Customer Success Engineering people-heavy, tech-heavy, stress-heavy, care-heavy, coordination-heavy patience, explanation, technical empathy emotional pressure, angry users, low control over product issues
Training / Instruction / Mentoring people-heavy, structure-heavy, creative-heavy, care-heavy explanatory ability, emotional tone-setting, patience audience management, repetitive basics, unstable demand
Logistics / Operations Coordination coordination-heavy, structure-heavy, hands-on, stress-heavy, routine-heavy practical organization, continuity, reliability time pressure, interruptions, low strategic autonomy
Field / Hardware / Industrial Technician hands-on, field-heavy, tech-heavy, stress-heavy, routine-heavy practical sensing, real-world troubleshooting, material systems travel, physical load, weather or site constraints
Product / Business Analysis analysis-heavy, people-heavy, coordination-heavy, long-horizon, structure-heavy user-to-technical translation, process mapping ambiguity, politics, constant reprioritization
Sales / Business Development sales-heavy, people-heavy, stress-heavy, autonomy-high drive, social assertiveness, status tolerance rejection, quotas, performative confidence
Care / Psychology / Social Support care-heavy, people-heavy, stress-heavy, long-horizon emotional steadiness, ethical attention, patience compassion fatigue, boundary load, institutional pressure

Use In Career Exploration

  1. Gather verified background: work samples, tools, portfolio, education, outcomes, preferences, and constraints.
  2. Convert candidate roles into observable work requirements.
  3. Compare the evidence and identify gaps that a trial task, accommodation, or training could test.
  4. If a typological hypothesis is retained for research, use it only to generate an additional question after the direct evidence has been considered.

Evidence Quality

Confidence concerns evidence for a specific role requirement, not agreement with a type profile. Work samples, observed performance, qualifications, accessibility needs, informed choice, location, compensation, and current market conditions are relevant. A typology result does not raise the confidence level and must not drive ranking, hiring, or exclusion.

See Also

Source Assessment

What the Source Claims

The catalog proposes grouping civilian roles by observable work-feature tags so that career conversations can compare actual demands rather than job titles alone.

Data or Evidence Provided

Its evidence is the maintained role catalog and practical occupational descriptions; it includes no longitudinal hiring or job-performance dataset.

Limitations

Coverage is incomplete and changes by labor market, location, employer, seniority, and accommodation. The tags are not a validated selection instrument.

What BWB Accepts

BWB accepts feature-based role exploration, portfolio evidence, qualifications, constraints, and direct work trials as useful inputs.

What Remains Contested or Open

The incremental value of any typological hypothesis for role fit remains open and must be tested beyond skills and context.

Rejected or Historical-Only

BWB rejects automated career assignment, exclusion by type, and allowing a profile to override observed performance or informed choice.