If you want a senior level position then forget a casual job search.
Only those who are exceptionally qualified with extensive experience closely matching the job requirement will have any chance of success. You need a well prepared, professionally delivered application and presentation for every stage of the process.
If the job you are pursuing is at a senior level, head of function or maybe C-level then your application will not be reviewed just by the hiring manager but almost certainly by an MD, board members or other people in the senior management team.
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 want to 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 other’s needs and will be honest with each other, so ‘winging’ it is not an option.
If the job has been advertised, then an initial cover letter and CV will be required, but not your average CV in this instance. At a senior level, less is more. Your CV 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 CV only gets you in the door.
Do remember if called for an interview, somewhere on your CV 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 CV 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 CV always bearing in mind; ‘less is more’. It is my experience that successful senior appointments start life with a one-page CV Don’t run scared at the prospect. Done properly it works – every time – almost.
4. Do not ever fire off an application in response to any senior position posted. Assess the role, anticipate or find out the selection process and make your approach.
5. Prepare your presentation. 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 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.
Colm Cavey has over 24 years’ experience in helping people change careers and find the kind of job they want. Colm can review your CV, help you organise your job hunt and provide one to one interview and presentation coaching or all of those elements together in a full Career Change programme. To find out more about Colm you can contact him directly on 086-3017207 or via his company Professional Career Consulting