Job Search-How Executives can PREPARE for Career Moves in 2012
Please take a moment to jot down some of your best suggestions for how executives can prepare for career moves and reach their professional goals in the New Year.-below are some of mine.
Executives need two things to prepare career moves and reach short and long term career goals….A well thought out plan and execution of the plan. Each executive, when determining what the plan should look like, need to go no further than answers to the old questions: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How.
WHO? Who will be the targets?
Basically there are two sectors to target. One is the passive or re-active market. These include the job boards, newspapers, recruiters, and jobs that are posted on company’s individual websites. Yes, these are the posted positions. Most senior level executives should spend about 25% of their time in this segment.
The other is the pro-active market. These include industries, companies, institutions, organizations and associations that an executive wants to work for or network into. Executives should spend about 75% of their time in this market, on average.
WHAT? What will the executive be marketing, what does the product look like, how is it packaged, what is the brand?
This is not just a resume. There is an inherent disconnect between a resume (a historical document about your past) and a job description which is about tomorrow’s needs, challenges, symptoms and problems. Executives need to package themselves to meet, fill, address and solve tomorrow’s needs, symptoms, problems and challenges for target organizations. There needs to be a future focused, action based message received by decision makers when they are looking at your “paper”. Do your marketing materials demonstrate the benefit of knowing you for your target organization? Do not let anyone see it unless it does. Think about not only skills and strengths, but also impact and results. Furthermore, market you qualities, characteristics, education, proficiencies, certifications, awards, publications, patents and affiliations.
WHEN? When do you launch a campaign toward specific targets?
In the passive/re-active market, you target a company with future focused marketing materials as soon as the job is posted. In the pro-active market, executives need to keep close eye on press releases, trade organizations, the company website and the pulse of the potential target. When the company is experiencing a need for the executive and the executive’s value proposition, it is time to launch toward the target. Like with anything else, timing is everything. Please keep in mind that it can take months to develop a relationship with a potential target. The executive should start building relationships with the company/target right away. Get to know some of the key players. When the time is right, the company is experiencing a problem or moving in a direction you can help them with, the executive can get introduced to the “right people” because of relationships already in place.
WHERE? Where do you target companies?
We hear all the time, am I targeting the right level? Am I targeting the right location? All meetings are good meetings as long as they go well. The executive needs to strike where he/she can get in. Conduct tremendous meetings, accomplish agendas and get introduced in the direction you need to based on information that comes from every meeting. Start gathering information from meetings directly inside the company, but also look outside. Be open to meetings with people within the sphere of influence of key decision makers.
WHY? Why do you target a specific industry, company or person?
The short answer is there are four reasons for reaching out to a target. First, a company is experiencing challenges/problems or moving in a direction that relates to your value proposition. These meetings are not about you. They are about the target and validation that your skills and strengths can have a positive effect on their bottom line, market share, company value, environment, etc. Secondly, you think a company might be experiencing the symptoms we just talked about and you target someone inside an organization to find out. Thirdly, you target an individual because they are within the sphere of influence of a company who needs you. Lastly, in the passive/re-active market, they post a job description.
HOW? How do you approach new targets?
Objective/Value Proposition/Elevator Speech: The executive needs to create an objective and value proposition. All communication needs to consistently align with and validate your objective and your value proposition as it relates to needs companies are experiencing.
- Develop professional marketing materials. Your marketing materials should prove and validate your objective and value proposition.
- Research: Uncover needs, challenges and direction companies are moving where you can make a positive contribution. Look in newspapers, press releases, the company website, informational meetings, library resources and government resources as well as the job boards for indications of needs…for you.
- Letter Writing: Approach letters should demonstrate you passion and enthusiasm for a company and its products, your value proposition as it relates to the company and its challenges, and a business agenda. Let them know what you want to talk with them about. Close approach letters proactively. Take ownership of next steps.
- Telephone: Know in advance what you are going to say and how you are going to say it, whether you get voicemail, a gatekeeper or a decision maker. Objective of the phone: set up the face-to-face meeting.
- Meetings: These are due diligence business meetings. You are there to find out about how you can help them. They are there to learn more about you. Do not just answer questions, but ask them as well. Interviews: Answer all questions with proof. In other words, tell your stories efficiently, effectively and succinctly and include what you did, how you did it, and what the results were. Practice these meetings with people you know or a coach.
- Follow up: Show your enthusiasm and passion in your follow ups. Be professional at all times…persistent, but never a pest.
- Develop long term career goals.
- Networking: The more people that understand your objective, your value proposition and the parameters around your targets, the more help you will get. This is THE most important approach.
- Live and breathe value proposition, degrees of separation and sphere of influence. Networking and sphere of influence are extremely powerful when incorporated into career campaigns professionally, enthusiastically and passionately every step of the way.
REMEMBER-DO IT DIFFERENTLY AND BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE, AND YOU WILL FIND YOUR MARK.
