by Colm Cavey, Professional Career Consultant.
More and more, as time goes by, I detect an increasing demand for nothing less than excellence by employers at all levels. The bar is being raised on a daily basis as newly, and highly qualified graduates enter the workforce, the people they displace will move upwards to the next level, which in turn pressures the level above to move further upwards. All this creates a squeeze at the top of the pyramid.
Add to this technology advances having an effect on all areas of endeavour and consequently demanding higher qualifications and expertise in areas where it was never sought before.
I see highly qualified and experienced executives losing out to others who are even more qualified and experienced. In the past, they would have waltzed into most job opportunities and would have been paid an attractive fee on joining the company to ensure they won’t go elsewhere. That practice still exists today but with ever decreasing frequency.
All the above means that there is no place for the casual job applicant. Only those who are exceptionally qualified with extensive experience closely matching the job requirement will have any chance of success.
To present yourself for a position at these levels requires thorough preparation, and well prepared and professionally delivered application and presentation at every stage of the process.
If the job you are pursuing is at a senior level, maybe C-level or as an MD, your application will not be reviewed by the hiring manager but almost certainly will be a head of function, an MD or members of the Board.
Dealing with these kinds of people requires an in-depth understanding of the job on hand and experience of a similar role in the past. Most importantly a demonstrable record of success or better still successes from the past should be evident.
More than just having the experience or skills expected you will be carefully viewed as a possible colleague. These people will want to be confident that apart from your work to date they will feel comfortable with you coming on board, as a colleague and part of the senior management team. They need to feel secure in their mind and that you won’t let them down when addressing shareholders and stakeholders as required.
Your references and background will be checked carefully with a private phone call from one MD to another which will bypass any laid down protocol. This conversation will be between buddies who will meet now and again at the ‘Institute’ or elsewhere. They understand each others needs and will be honest with each other, so ‘winging’ it is not an option.
Making an application at this level requires several levels of assessment starting with a response to a position offered through the print media or more likely through an Executive Search Consultant who may, or may not have advertised the position.
If advertised, then an initial cover letter and C.V. will be required, but not your average C.V. in this instance. However, a phone call in advance will help, but there is a tactic that needs to be adopted if it’s to work at all. This is the part where you need tactical advice to steer you right at the introductory stage. At a senior level, less is more. Your C.V. must be short, concise and to the point. It must be extremely well crafted, so it will ‘sell’ you on one page. In other words; get you an interview.
Getting the balance right in displaying the key information takes time and a lot of thought. At all costs avoid pages and pages of boring and irrelevant information.
Once invited for an interview, you will be assessed very quickly by a group of well experienced, very astute and professional managers. Your C.V. only gets you in the door. Do remember if called for an interview, somewhere on your C.V. there was a comment that got you in the door.
You don’t, however, know which comment worked the magic for you, so the message is; you must know every detail, every word on your C.V. like you know our name and address. Even more, you must read every statement you have made, then stop, close your eyes and re-live the event. Think of the whole issue, how it came about, how you dealt with it and the results you achieved. In doing so, you will have instant recall of all the salient details of the task under discussion.
Refresh your memory; as past events are easily and quickly forgotten. Recall or research if necessary the important parts for example;
– Negotiated a saving of c. €12 million against amounts for..
– Drafted a $120 million worth of service contracts for.
– Raised €28m from an equity placing in the City…
– Dealt with the Board and in respect of the CEO;s transition to the role of Chairman.
– Drove a strategic collaboration enabling the issue of €88 million for the..
In the stressful atmosphere of an interview, these details will let you down. Therefore you must recall, relive and remember the details in advance.
All this boils down to;
1 – Closely relate yourself to the job. That means taking a hard-nosed account of your performance to date.. There is no room for being kind to yourself. Are you good enough or not?
2 – If yes is your answer then your first overture for the job; your application must be carefully and professionally crafted so it not only accounts for your skills and experience it must project your style, personality and temperament as it is appropriate for the corporate entity which you are addressing.
3 – Construct an inviting C.V. always bearing in mind; ‘less is more’. It is my experience that successful senior appointments start life with a one-page C.V. Don’t run scared at the prospect. Done properly it works – every time – almost.
4 – Do not ever send an application in response to any senior position by post. There are ways to get ahead of the competition. Assess the role, anticipate or find out the selection process and make your approach.
5 – Prepare your presentation. In your mind revisit every event worth talking about in your career history. All this may sound strange, but it is the only way to ensure that you can respond to questions promptly, confidentially and with full command. Re-live every event, every achievement in your career. Put a value on these achievements, such as; managed the IPO project securing top price of €?? per share, or as in the other examples similar to those mentioned above
6 – If an offer is made, negotiate strenuously. Never roll over and accept the first offer. Put a value on what you have to offer. If you are seen to negotiate hard for yourself skillfully, you will negotiate equally hard for the company if hired.
Then the most difficult part of all is when the Chairman of the Board or the CEO just says,˜I need someone to run the place so I can get on with it’. This kind of comment is not a statement it’s a question. A question that you must be able to pick up on and illustrate how you will deal with the various corporate issues at hand. You must also be able to articulate a vision for the organisation with a clear focus and ability to deliver as will be required by the Board. Make a success of this and opportunities, and invites will appear from all over the place. Other companies will soon learn of your success as will the various Executive Search companies working on C-level appointments.
After that, it’s up to you. Do it right, and it’s onwards and upwards. Do it wrong, and you will disappear very quickly.
Plan well, take good advice on this kind of journey and not from an unknown, but someone who has been around the block and understands the tripwires and nuances of a corporate appointment and what’s expected.
Good Luck
