Tips for career research

Go to sites like monster.com or career builder and search for positions in your post MBA industry and function. If there are any sites that specifically cater to your goal industry/function then look at them too (for example: idealist.org is great for people who want to work in non-profit to get an idea of the skills you'll need). Also conduct informational interviews. If you have a skillset you want to use, but don't know where they fit just talk to people in general. Tell them that you're interested in using skill X, skill Y, and skill Z. Ask if they can think of any types of jobs where this skillset is common and/or necessary. Then try to find people who do that job and speak to them about their career path (i.e. education, jobs held, etc.) and how your current background can be utilized. Also, Google. Put a career in there and see what pops out. It will take a while to put together a cohesive story. However, when you write that your goal is to be a brand manager in a mid-size CPG company because you want the experience of being on the ground floor of a brand breakthrough like Chobani's, you'll be speaking from a knowledegable place. Your goals will be specific and your plan to get there will be airtight.

Hope this helps.