Q & A around portfolio careers
About Portfolio Careers
What is a portfolio career?
A portfolio career is an intentional mix of roles that you design around different skills and contexts with your strengths, values and goals. It is not a patchwork of side hustles.
The idea is that your different roles fit together into one meaningful and sustainable professional life that can change across industries and seasons of life.
There is no one definition of Portfolio Career, the earliest known definition goes back to Charles Handy.
In our definition we work with a matrix that looks at skills and contexts that are either existing or newly built.
How is a portfolio career different from freelancing or gig work?
Gig work often means short term assignments taken without a long term plan, sometimes out of financial necessity. A portfolio career is built with design and intention. You choose roles that fit a bigger vision for your career, and they can include fractional employment, self employment, teaching, board work and passion projects.
Do I need to be a senior executive or a creative to build a portfolio career?
No. Portfolio careers are growing across all ages and professions, from teachers and data analysts to coaches and entrepreneurs. You do not have to wait until you have “made it.” Many people start with one small project, like a workshop, a blog or a freelance offer, and build from there.
How do I know if I am already building a portfolio career?
If you combine several roles, work across different sectors, or balance passion projects with your main income, you are already living a portfolio life and most likely building a portfolio career, whether you call it that or not. Many portfolio professionals start exactly like this, with a side business or fractional work alongside a job. The more useful question is how to design your portfolio career so it works for you financially, emotionally and sustainably.
Why do portfolio careers support wellbeing?
A well-structured portfolio career can support all five pillars of the PERMA model: positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning and accomplishment. Andreia researched this as part of her studies in positive psychology at the University of Zurich. Combining different roles can also increase autonomy at work and leave more room for career crafting. That is why portfolio careers are about wellbeing and thriving at work, not only about multiple income streams.
About the Institute and Contact
What does the Portfolio Career Institute do?
The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) helps individuals design sustainable portfolio careers and helps organizations work with fractional and flexible talent.
For individuals: We help you design a portfolio career that fits your values, identity and energy. Whether you are navigating a career transition or a mid-career change, or want to turn a non-linear career into a clear value proposition, we support you in building a strong personal brand and sustainable multiple income streams. Depending on your career maturity, building a portfolio career is both a numbers game and a mind game. We focus on both. But because the mind is the foundation, our work is essentially also a self-leadership programme.
For organizations: We help organizations build capability through fractional and flexible talent. We support HR and leadership teams in understanding emerging forms of work such as fractional leadership and portfolio working, and in integrating independent professionals into their talent management. With new approaches, we aim to address both the generational shift and the skills shortage. Our mission is to transform work culture and career paths for the future of work.
Who is behind the Institute?
The Portfolio Career Institute was founded and is led by Andreia Fernandes, an educator, consultant, executive coach, facilitator, TEDx and keynote speaker, and author. A portfolio careerist herself, she started her own portfolio career more than a decade ago and has helped more than 1,000 professionals transform their careers. Her education includes programmes at Stanford, the University of St. Gallen, ESADE and the University of Zurich.
Who do you work with?
Individuals: The Portfolio Career Institute works with senior professionals, postdocs, founders and career changers. People come to us when they are moving from corporate to independent work, building a portfolio of roles, starting as fractional executives or redesigning their career. Many of them are in a career pivot or a mid-career change and want to turn their transferable skills into a sustainable portfolio career. Some have already tried to build a portfolio career on their own and need support along the way, often because they are close to burning out.
Organizations: The Portfolio Career Institute works with small and medium-sized organizations across all industries, many of which operate globally, as well as with public sector institutions and their leadership teams. They come to us when they want to access fractional leadership and flexible talent, build new capabilities in their teams, or prepare their organization for the future of work.
What languages do you offer your programmes in?
We offer the Portfolio Career Programme in English and German, each with its own cohort.
Community and Contact
How can I stay connected with the Portfolio Career Institute?
You can subscribe to our newsletter, which we keep to a minimum so it respects your time. You can also follow PFCI® on LinkedIn and Instagram, join the PFCI® group on LinkedIn, or join our WhatsApp community.
How do I ask a question that is not answered here?
Use the contact form on the Portfolio Career Institute website and we will get back to you.
For Organizations
Why should my organization care about portfolio careers?
Portfolio and fractional professionals may already be in your workforce, or they may be thinking about leaving for an employer that gives them more room. Research on protean careers suggests that people who experience their career as self-directed report higher wellbeing and are less likely to leave. Organizations that support this tend to see stronger engagement and better retention. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) helps organizations turn this shift into an advantage for their talent management and the future of work.
What services do you offer organizations?
The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) offers keynotes by Andreia Fernandes and awareness sessions for leadership teams and HR, strategic consulting on flexible employment policies and internal career pathways, and workshops on integrating portfolio talent and fractional leadership. Workshops run as per your needs as half-day or full-day formats.
What is fractional talent?
Fractional talent means experienced professionals, such as fractional executives, who work with your organization part-time or on a project basis rather than as a full-time hire. It lets you build critical capability with more structure and continuity than ad-hoc consulting, and with less risk than a full-time hire. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) helps organizations integrate fractional talent effectively
Is your consulting one size fits all?
No. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) tailors every engagement. How portfolio talent is best integrated depends on your industry, your existing structures and the backgrounds involved. What works in a tech scale-up looks different from what works in a professional services firm or a public institution. Portfolio careers and fractional work are also emerging career models, so few organizations and experts have deep experience with them yet. That is why we keep learning and analyzing, and our recommendations always build on the latest research and insights from practice.
How does AI change the picture?
AI makes human judgment more valuable, and this is where portfolio careerists come in. Automation takes over tasks but not judgment, context or human relationships. Organizations need a strong human in the loop: professionals with broad experience, adaptive thinking and a strong career identity who can direct AI, question it and turn its output into good decisions. Many of them are portfolio careerists.
How can my organization get started?
Start with a discovery call with Andreia Fernandes, founder of the Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ). You can also read our blog and follow PFCI® on LinkedIn where we introduce a real portfolio careerist every week.
For Individuals
Is a portfolio career right for me?
It can be if you want variety, flexibility and a career that reflects more than one side of you. A portfolio career also asks for adaptability and strong career self-management. A good first step is our Portfolio Career Assessment. It shows you which type of portfolio careerist you are and what your next logical steps could be. Our coaching then helps you explore whether a portfolio career fits your goals, personality and life phase before you commit
What will I learn in the coaching and programme?
At its core, the coaching and programme are about a transformation of your mindset. You develop a long-term vision for your portfolio career, a stronger career identity and the career resilience to stay on course, even in uncertain phases. You will also find your own definition of success, which will guide your decisions.
On a practical level, you will learn how to decide which roles belong in your portfolio, how to manage financial uncertainty, how to avoid burnout, and how to tell your career story with confidence. You will also get practical tools for time management, personal branding and keeping work coming in consistently.
What is the Portfolio Career Canvas?
The Portfolio Career Canvas is a career design framework developed by Andreia Fernandes, founder of the Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ), and based on her research and practice. In the programme, each participant builds a personal canvas that maps their roles, income, purpose and energy. This gives portfolio professionals a clear overview of their portfolio career and helps them decide which roles to keep, grow or let go
How do I join the programme?
You apply through a short form where you describe your goals and background. It is a fit check to make sure the group and expectations match, not a selection test.
Can I try something smaller before committing to the full programme?
Yes. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) offers several ways to get started. Our webinars, such as “Done with one-track careers? Design your own!” are a good first step to explore whether a portfolio career is right for you. You can also take our Portfolio Career Assessment, or reach out to Andreia Fernandes directly.
Do you offer webinars on job searching?
Yes. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) offers webinars on job search across different markets, with a special focus on the Swiss job market. As part of her own portfolio career, Andreia Fernandes covers the full range of job search topics, from CV design to market-specific strategies. Current webinars include “Job Search in Switzerland: What Works in Today’s Swiss Job Market” and a lunch webinar on why a strong CV may still not work under Swiss rules. They are designed for professionals planning a career transition or wanting to strengthen their employability. You can find current dates and prices in our PFCI® shop.
Is there a portfolio career assessment I can take?
Yes. The Portfolio Career Institute (PFCI® ) offers the PFC® Portfolio Career Assessment. It shows you which type of portfolio careerist you are and what your next logical steps could be, whether you are just exploring a portfolio career or already living one. You can take the PFC® Portfolio Career Assessment here or find it under Resources in the menu.