Latest / The Internal Move Podcast with Fexingo: Lateral Roles, Internal Transfers, and Staying at Your Company / What Your Internal Transfer Reveals About Your Real Priorities
Transcript
- Lucas: Alright, so we've spent a lot of episodes talking about internal transfers as a strategy—how to use them to dodge layoffs, to learn a new industry, to get a raise. But today I want to flip the lens. What does the decision to transfer actually reveal about you? Luna: Oh, that's interesting. Like a personality test, but for your career. Lucas: Exactly. And I've got a number to anchor this. So there was a survey earlier this year, June 2026, from a talent analytics firm—I believe it was called WorkPlace Insights—and they polled fourteen hundred professionals who had made an internal move in the past eighteen months. And they asked them to rank their top reasons for transferring. Now, you'd think salary or title would top the list, right? Luna: That's what I'd guess. Or escaping a bad manager, maybe. Lucas: Right, and those were both in the top five. But the number one reason, cited by sixty-eight percent of respondents, was 'alignment with personal values.' Sixty-eight percent. That beat out 'higher salary' at fifty-two percent and 'better title' at forty-one percent. So when people make that move internally, it's often less about the external package and more about the internal fit. Luna: That's a pretty strong signal. But how do we know they're being honest? People might say 'values' because it sounds more noble than 'I wanted more money.' Lucas: That's a fair challenge. But they also asked a follow-up question: 'What would you be willing to give up to make the move?' And the top answer was 'some salary increase.' So the actions align with the stated reason. They were literally willing to trade dollars for values alignment. Luna: Okay, so let's dig into that. What does 'alignment with personal values' actually mean in practice? Give me a concrete example. Lucas: Sure. So there's this case I came across—a marketing manager, I'll call her Priya. She was on the consumer brand team at a large tech company. High pressure, lots of late nights, but great pay and a senior title. She transferred to an internal strategy role on the corporate development side. It was a lateral move—same level, same pay band—but the work was more analytical, more time to think, less firefighting. Luna: And that's about values? Sounds more like work-life balance. Lucas: Right, but when she was interviewed, she framed it explicitly: 'I value deep work and thoughtful decision-making, and in the brand role, I was constantly reacting. I couldn't do my best work.' So the value wasn't just 'more free time'—it was 'the kind of work I want to be proud of.' That's a values statement. Luna: Got it. So the move was toward something she valued, not just away from something she hated. Lucas: Exactly. And that's the key distinction I want to explore today. So often we talk about internal transfers as an escape hatch—escaping a bad manager, escaping burnout. But the survey suggests that the most satisfying moves, the ones people don't regret, are the ones that are 'toward' rather than 'away from.' Luna: That's a useful framework. But how does a listener actually figure out what they're moving toward? I mean, if you're in the middle of a frustrating job, it's hard to see clearly. Lucas: So I want to give you a practical exercise. And it starts with a simple question: if you could wave a magic wand and change one thing about your current role, what would it be? Not what you'd complain about—what you'd actually change. That's your value in negative form. Turn it positive: maybe you'd change 'too many meetings' into 'more uninterrupted focus time.' That's a value. Luna: I like that. But what if the answer is 'I want to work with better people'? That's not exactly a value, is it? Lucas: It kind of is. 'Collaboration' or 'mentorship' or 'a culture of feedback'—those are values. So the exercise is: write down your top three work complaints, then flip each one into a positive statement. Those three positives are your values. And then when you're considering an internal transfer, you can score the new role against those three values. Luna: That's actually a really concrete tool. And I bet it's more reliable than just going with your gut. Lucas: Yeah, because your gut is often just reacting to the pain of the current role. And that's why so many people transfer and then find themselves in a similar situation six months later—they were running from something, not running to something. The survey actually had a stat on that: among people who transferred primarily to escape a bad manager, twenty-three percent said they regretted the move within a year because they didn't evaluate the new role's values fit. Luna: That's a big number. So what does a values-based transfer look like in practice? Can you walk us through another example? Lucas: Sure. Let's talk about a finance analyst, let's call him Marcus. He was in a fast-paced M&A team at a bank, making good money but feeling like the work was purely transactional. He valued 'impact'—he wanted to see how his work helped real people. So he transferred to the corporate sustainability finance team. Same level, actually a slight pay cut, but now he's building financial models for green energy projects, and he says he can see the direct impact in emissions reduced. That's a values-aligned move. Luna: So the key is to identify what you value most, then find a team or role that actually lets you practice that value daily. Lucas: Right. And that's the 'toward' mindset. Now, there's a second layer to this that I think is even more revealing. The decision to transfer—or not—also tells you something about your relationship with risk and security. The survey found that people who stayed put, but had considered a transfer, cited 'fear of the unknown' as their top reason for staying. That's a value in itself—you value stability and predictability. Luna: That's a good point. And there's no shame in that. But it's helpful to know that about yourself, because then you can look for transfer opportunities that minimize the unknown—like a trial period or a mentor in the new role. Lucas: Exactly. So the takeaway from today is not 'you should transfer if you have a values mismatch.' It's 'use the transfer decision as a mirror to understand your own priorities.' Whether you move or stay, the reasoning you use reveals what you actually care about. Luna: I love that. And it's a great way to approach any career decision, honestly. So if someone wants to try this exercise, where should they start? Lucas: Start with a piece of paper. Write down three things that frustrated you at work last week. Then flip them into positives. That's your values list. Then, if you're considering a transfer, score the new role on a scale of one to ten for each value. If the total is below, say, eighteen out of thirty, that's a red flag. Luna: And what if the transfer is the only way out of a truly toxic situation? The values scoring might not apply. Lucas: Fair point. In that case, the value is 'psychological safety,' and any move that gets you out is aligned with that value. But even then, you should still do the exercise to make sure you're not jumping from frying pan to fire. Assess the new team's culture for psychological safety, not just the job description. Luna: That's solid advice. You know, all this talk about values and reflection reminds me—sometimes the best way to clarify your thinking is to talk it through with someone who isn't inside your head. And honestly, that's what this show is for, right? We try to give you a framework to think through these decisions. Lucas: And if today's episode was worth a coffee to you, that's the link—buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's the smallest ask, but it's what keeps this show ad-free and independent. Luna: Yeah, every little bit genuinely helps us keep doing this. And no pressure, ever. Lucas: So back to that reflection piece. Once you've named your values, the next step is to compare them with your company's stated values. Not the poster on the wall, but the actual behaviors that get rewarded. That gap can be a huge source of dissatisfaction. Luna: Can you give an example of that gap? Like, a company that says one thing but does another? Lucas: Sure. Let's say a company's value is 'innovation,' but in practice, any failed experiment leads to a performance review ding. If you value learning and experimentation, you're going to feel frustrated, even if you're on a team that's nominally innovative. So you might transfer to a team where the actual practice—like 'fail fast'—is more aligned with your own tolerance for risk. Luna: That makes sense. So it's not just the role, it's the team culture and the broader company culture. Lucas: Exactly. And that's why a transfer can be a better values fit even if the job title is the same. I read about a data scientist at a large retailer who transferred from the inventory optimization team to the customer analytics team. Same title, same pay, but the first team's culture was all about cost-cutting, and the second was about understanding customer behavior. She said she felt like she could finally be curious without being seen as a waste of time. Luna: That's a perfect example of a lateral move that's still a step forward in value alignment. Lucas: Right. So the next time you're considering an internal transfer, or even just feeling restless, take a step back. Ask yourself: what am I moving toward? And if the answer is 'I don't know,' then maybe the move isn't ready yet. Do the exercise first. Luna: And if the answer is 'I'm running away,' that's a sign to pause and think about what you actually want. Lucas: Exactly. Because the best transfers are the ones that feel like a step toward a more authentic version of your career. And that authenticity—that's the real prize. Luna: Well said. So, to sum up: your transfer decision is a mirror, not just a move. Use it to see yourself clearly. Lucas: And if you want to share what you discovered, we'd love to hear from you. But for now, thanks for thinking through this with us.