Archive for the ‘Job Search’ Category

Newer Entries »

Applying for the Wrong Job

Monday, March 29th, 2010

It will hurt your brand. Don’t do it.

What am I talking about? I am currently conducting a Chief People Officer search for a significant non-profit organization. I happen to be on the Board of this organization and have been for about 7 years, so it’s near to my heart. It’s one of the largest of its kind in the country, and currently employs about 1500 employees in four counties in Southern California. In short, this is a big HR leadership job.

I asked our program coordinator for the McDermott & Bull Executive Network to send an email out to our group of 1500 senior executive members to see if they knew anyone that could be a fit. Why not network on this and show it to all our members to find some great qualified candidates? Well, as the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished. Ok, it wasn’t really that bad. In fact, I received many great responses from a number of qualified members that are interested in the position, as well as a number of great referrals, so I want to thank those that have responded with this kind of help.

(more…)

Tags: ,
Posted in Job Search | 2 Comments »

What are You Willing to Do to Get that Job Offer?

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

As I wrote in my recent blog, I think some candidates do not “go above and beyond” to land a job they really want. How can you do this?

First, don’t think conventionally. As I’ve said before, you need to put yourself in the mindset that you’re not interviewing for a job – you’re meeting with a client to see if you’re the right solution for a challenge or problem they’re trying to solve. No jobs anymore, only problems that need solving. Obviously this is not entirely true, however, in more cases than not today, our clients are hiring people to solve serious problems and take advantage of opportunities at their companies, rather than just filling a spot. This is definitely true at the senior executive levels.

(more…)

Tags: , ,
Posted in Consulting, Job Search | 5 Comments »

Once You’re in the Process of a Search…Now What?

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

Working on a number of searches at the moment, I’m juggling about 12 candidates that have been submitted to my clients, and are still “in the process”. The reality is, when we submit candidates to a client, our objective is that everyone can do the job, but 1 or 2 might be better fits than others. Generally, our client will tell us early on who is not a fit and we can let them go so they no longer consider the opportunity open to them. However, for the short list of viable candidates, the waiting game begins.

Some candidates handle this part well, while others get too antsy or don’t follow up at all, and end up hurting their brands with us and our client. So, what’s the right formula?

(more…)

Tags: ,
Posted in Job Search | 3 Comments »

The Job That Should Have Been Yours

Monday, March 8th, 2010

After 11 years and over a thousand interviews with candidates for searches I’ve worked on, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve met someone that should have been great for a position, but either didn’t get presented to the client by me, or didn’t get the job once they interviewed. Has this ever been you?

If it has, you might have committed one of the job killer crimes. OK, so I just came up with that term, but to me it does seem like a crime when a great candidate comes up short because of a trait, a comment, a demeanor, or something else that doesn’t serve them well in the interview. I’ll share a few real-world examples I’ve experienced with candidates over the years that doomed their chances:

(more…)

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Job Search | No Comments »

Newer Entries »