CFO Careers

What is Your Value?

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Nick Corcodilos published a blog post discussing a candidate’s value. It’s very good. Two comments in particular are relevant for my CFO audience.

<<I think the big mistake people make is that they try to view their worth, or value, in absolute terms. That is, they think there’s a number — a certain amount of money, or a money range — that they deserve based on their experience, credentials, knowledge, skills and so on.>>

The vast majority of resumes that cross my desk from Chief Financial Office prospects are focused on duties, responsibilities, skills, and key words. It is so incredibly difficult, if not outright impossible, to compete on those things. And none of those, in and of themselves, establish your value or your worth.

<<I think value and worth are in the eye of the beholder. It’s why sales people exist! Their job is to make something they’re selling seem more valuable to you so that you’ll pay more to get it.>>

While not always easy for Finance Executives, this is actually the key to establishing your marketable value AND differentiation from your competition AND positioning for a top-tier compensation package. Your value lies in your ability to solve problems and deliver tangible impacts.

Establish your value, both in your verbal and written messaging, by first identifying your problem-solving abilities – how have you resolved a company’s issues, situations, challenges – and then detailing the tangible impact that allowed the company to achieve its goal, avoid impending negative outcomes, or mitigate or eliminate potential risks.

Every time you speak from the place of solving problems and delivering impacts, your value – in the eyes of prospective companies – is solidified. It is not about “what” you do … it is about “how” you do what you do.

Want to know how to clearly articulate your value? Give me a call!

 

Copyright CFO-Coach 2018

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Cindy Kraft is the CFO-Coach and America’s leading Career & Personal Brand Strategist for Corporate Finance Executives helping clients understand their marketability, articulate their value, and position themselves as the clear and compelling choice. She is a Certified Reach Personal Brand Strategist, Certified Reach Online Identity Strategist, Certified Career Management Coach, Certified Professional Resume Writer, and Job & Career Transition Coach. Cindy can be reached via email Cindy@CFO-Coach.com, by phone 813-727-3037, or through her website at www.CFO-Coach.com.

3 Reasons NOT to use Resume Templates

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Last week I saw comments by the CEO of Linkedin about the evolution of resumes. He is right that resumes are changing. Actually, they have been changing for a good 10 or so years with a clear focus on the ability to solve problems and deliver impacts rather than duties held and responsibilities performed. But …

A few days later, I saw that Linkedin and Microsoft have joined forces for a new Linkedin feature called “Resume Assistant.” DING DING DING! Perhaps Linkedin’s CEO had a bit of an agenda in mind when he made his resume comments.

Despite the fact that I hate resume templates, that is the first of my 3 reasons I would advise my CFO clients not to use this feature.

I hate resume templates

And most recruiters can spot them a mile away. All a resume template does is make you blend in rather than stand out from the competition. In this competitive job market, it is imperative to differentiate yourself from other candidates. What is different about how you, as a Finance Leader, solve problems and deliver impacts speaks directly to the challenge a company faces in hiring for culture fit.

Additionally, most templates do not allow you to use strategy to drive format. Rather, the templates are often format driven relegating strategy to second place.

Passive candidates are in high demand

When your resume is posted, the message – intentional or not – is that you are in active job search mode. Even if you are, advertising that can dilute your negotiating power. The perception is that something seemingly unattainable or hard to get is much more prized, valued, and desired.

My #1 reason for advising you to NOT use this template is …

If your resume is front and center on Linkedin (or any other public job board for that matter), there is no reason for a recruiter to pick up the phone, discuss his job requisition and search, give you an opportunity to articulate your value message, and ask for your resume. If you give them your resume upfront, the conversation may never take place. As a candidate, you want that conversation!

 

Copyright CFO-Coach 2017

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Cindy Kraft is the CFO-Coach and America’s leading Career & Personal Brand Strategist for Corporate Finance Executives helping clients understand their marketability, articulate their value, and position themselves as the clear and compelling choice. She is a Certified Reach Personal Brand Strategist, Certified Reach Online Identity Strategist, Certified Career Management Coach, Certified Professional Resume Writer, and Job & Career Transition Coach. Cindy can be reached via email Cindy@CFO-Coach.com, by phone 813-727-3037, or through her website at www.CFO-Coach.com.

Dude … Sir … or, Name?

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Does it matter what your employees call you … as long as they are calling you?

Life in general seems to have become very casual, and that attitude has definitely transcended the workplace at many companies. Personal responsibility, respect for positions of authority, and general courtesy and professionalism seem atypical these days.

Or, maybe I am just old school and jaded … at least by today’s standards. However, I live in the south and still appreciate hearing people respond with “mam and sir.” I use those terms of respect all the time. I wasn’t raised in the south, but living here for 30 years has had an impact on how I address people. I just don’t see respect, as a foundational value, in the world at large. Maybe, culture simply trumps professionalism and respect for authority and most people accept that fact.

This blog post came about as a discussion by one of my networking colleagues on Linkedin talking about being called “dude” by one of his team members. Most people who commented were okay with that address by a direct report. On the other hand, I would be shocked to hear a CFO call his CEO or board members or investors “dude” when addressing them. Or, has this also become the norm?

What about the outside perspective? If your employees call you “dude” or whatever, and you are okay with that causal address in the workplace, what happens when those same employees call you that in front of your clients and/or customers –or- call your clients and/or customers by that same name? How does it, or would it, affect their perspective of you and your company? Would it impact your branded positioning? Is this pattern so common place that it just does not matter?

Am I simply making much ado about nothing? I would love to hear your thoughts on this subject. Disagreeing – respectfully – is one of the wonderful things about living in the Land of the Free, Home of the Brave.

Copyright CFO-Coach 2017

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Cindy Kraft is the CFO-Coach and America’s leading Career & Personal Brand Strategist for Corporate Finance Executives helping clients understand their marketability, articulate their value, and position themselves as the clear and compelling choice. She is a Certified Reach Personal Brand Strategist, Certified Reach Online Identity Strategist, Certified Career Management Coach, Credentialed Career Master, Certified Professional Resume Writer, and Job & Career Transition Coach. Cindy can be reached via email Cindy@CFO-Coach.com, by phone 813-727-3037, or through her website at www.CFO-Coach.com.

Burning Bridges Can Burn You

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You know the importance of not burning bridges when things go sour at work and you end up losing your job. But in the heat of the moment, and being human, we might just forget that critically important head knowledge and react rather than respond.

It’s not always easy to leave on good terms, especially when you’ve been wronged. However, there is leaving with hard feelings, which can be understood, and leaving by throwing a grenade behind you and completely charring anything and everything behind you.

A few weeks ago there was just such a moment in my Linkedin newsfeed. This gentleman, obviously hurt and angry, took his emotional reaction one step further by publicly eviscerating his boss, and then stating that he was looking for a new position within a specific geographic region.

In this age of social media, you just know this is going to go south for him quite rapidly. In fact, it is no doubt already there. The world is a very small place, made smaller by geography and industry. The scathing words posted on a public forum can, and no doubt will, be found by those within the search community. And, it is almost impossible to “take them back.” And what was said and how it was said speak volumes about who this person is.

Here are a couple suggestions so you don’t end up in the heat of the moment saying or doing something that you will ultimately regret. And let’s not forget the unforgiving press releases that are circulated on social media when a CFO does lose his position, because somebody has to take the fall.

Maintain control by being proactive

Losing control is never fun. If you wait until you need a job before you position yourself to get that next opportunity, you are not in control. Rather, you are at the mercy of companies and recruiters and the entire train wreck that constitutes the job search process.

Long before you need a job or want a new position, with “long” being defined as 9-12 months, begin positioning yourself for that new position. You are much more desirable as a candidate when you have value but don’t need a job than you are when you are unemployed and in need. You can always say no to an opportunity. But you want those opportunities coming your way even while gainfully employed so that you maintain control of your career.

Find a non-public outlet for your emotional roller coaster

This goes beyond just the immediate reaction of losing your position. It carries right into the interview process. Even if you are using all the right words, any anger or feelings of injustice can slip through in your tone and your body language.

If you can leave on good terms, great. If you can’t, practice telling your story, honestly and truthfully, free from any lingering hostile emotions until you can do talk about what happened without any negativity in your delivery and body language. It is not easy, but it is necessary. Having the exact right opportunity within reach only to lose it to lingering negativity would only add more fuel to the anger.

Give me a call if you need help with value positioning or working through how to talk about your last employment situation or anything else related to the frustrating job search process.

Copyright CFO-Coach 2017

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Cindy Kraft is the CFO-Coach and America’s leading Career & Personal Brand Strategist for Corporate Finance Executives helping clients understand their marketability, articulate their value, and position themselves as the clear and compelling choice. She is a Certified Reach Personal Brand Strategist, Certified Reach Online Identity Strategist, Certified Career Management Coach, Credentialed Career Master, Certified Professional Resume Writer, and Job & Career Transition Coach. Cindy can be reached via email Cindy@CFO-Coach.com, by phone 813-727-3037, or through her website at www.CFO-Coach.com.

Always Lead with Your Value

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I saw some really bad advice given this morning, and it was sent to a very large audience of Senior Finance Executives. In good conscience, I cannot let this flawed advice stand unchallenged.

Don't Date Yourself
Don’t Date Yourself

Here’s what I believe to be very bad advice for Chief Finance Officers or other Senior Executives …

I strongly believe in putting the academic background at the top of the resume with graduation date(s), especially if it is impressive. 

Don’t do it. Unless you graduated five or less years ago, your academic background does not matter [nearly as much] as your career impacts. And let’s face it, CFOs and Finance Leaders weren’t born yesterday, nor did they graduate yesterday.

Please don’t do it. Don’t lead with something that can only set up age discrimination, particularly for those looking to exclude you. Don’t sabotage, negate, or diminish your solid value positioning by focusing on something that happened 20 or 30 years ago.

Always … lead with your value. Always!

If you are a Finance Executive and want to know how to create a marketing message that ensures you lead with value, contact me. It’s my passion!

Recorded Interviews

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I posted an article on Linkedin Pulse about the new, and rapidly expanding, trend of recording candidate interviews. There is much we don’t know about the ramifications to a candidate when his interview is recorded, but this practice begs the question … does an interviewer’s demand / requirement to record an interview trump a candidate’s rights to refuse? What about questioning what happens to that recording? Or, asking how it will be used post-interview?

After I posted my article, I received an email from someone who was happy to share their story and for me to share it without attribution. To maintain confidentiality, here is my summary of that email.

I had a company ask me to not go see candidates but instead to conduct Skype interviews and record each one so that they could see them as well. Yes, that made me uncomfortable and also as a veteran recruiter it made me think they didn’t trust my judgment.

In my state, you are required to tell the candidate that they are being recorded, which I did. The quality was not always great. The company said that if anyone doesn’t want to be recorded, then we don’t want them. In all if was uncomfortable and the idea that a professional would be giving the yah or nay based on a video tape was not in the best interest of the client.

What do you think? Would you go along with a recorded interview regardless of the unknowns?

Interviewing & Technology
Interviewing & Technology

Techology … the Next CFO Responsibility?

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Should CFOs yield the technology responsibilities that come with making faster data-driven decisions to a new C-suite officer? Or, does the Finance Leader need to own that decision-making process? Is there room at the executive table for another C-suite executive … and enough financial bandwidth to cover another executive compensation package?

I’ve been writing about the trend I’m noticing among Chief Financial Officers and the new breed of CFOs who possess strong technology acumen. Here’s my latest article on Linkedin Pulse.

But, in polling Finance Chiefs in the SmartBrief for CFOs, the results of two polling questions are … interesting.

Last week’s question was around how technology is driving the current evolution of the CFO role, and asked how many CFOs held responsibility for the IT function. While 44% said IT was a separate department, 42% said they currently oversee IT and another 3% will be adding that function to their ever-evolving responsibilities this year. So, pretty much a 50/50 split among those who responded.

With 50% saying IT was a separate department, it begged a follow-up question in this week’s SmartBrief for CFOs …

Is there room at the executive table for a Chief Analytics Officer to manage and analyze data?

At the time this blog was posted, almost 50% said no to another C-suite executive role.

What do you think … will the finance role evolve to absorb this increasingly critical technology function, or will it require yet another C-suite table mate? Feel free to vote in this week’s poll and/or leave your thoughts below.

Chief Analytics Officer
Chief Analytics Officer

A Thankful Heart

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As we in America pause this week to give thanks for all the blessings bestowed on us, I am thankful for all of you – my faithful readers. This is my 20th year in business and I’ve been writing my blog since 2005. I hope that something, even one seemingly small thing, I’ve written over the last almost 10 years has proved helpful as you’ve moved through your career.

Happy Thanksgiving! May your hearts be overflowing with gratitude this week and throughout the coming year, for we truly are a richly blessed people.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving!

Online Anonymity

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Am I the only one who feels like “Online Anonymity” might be today’s ultimate oxymoron? Is there any reason to be online if you want to be anonymous? And if you want to be anonymous, why send a contrary message by being, sort of, online? Riding the fence is not a good option when we are talking about the importance of a digital footprint.

Perhaps I’m feeling just a bit beleaguered as I work through a very, very long list of CFOs who have requested to join my CFO-only careers group on Linkedin. In a list that I have finally pared down from about 600+ requests, I can maybe – maybe – find 50% with profiles that include credible evidence the person is who s/he says he is. If your Linkedin profile is so scaled back that I – a mere career coach who works with Chief Financial Officers – can’t determine that you really are a Finance Chief, what do you think your target market is thinking? My guess would be that much like me, they doubt your credibility. Not that you aren’t credible and accomplished, but there is nothing to support that positioning.

Here’s some advice, which is really only valuable if you actually take it.

Decide whether you want to be online or you want to be anonymous, and if it is the former, then show up fully, completely, and compellingly. It does not help your messaging to have one foot online and the other foot firmly planted in in your desire to be anonymous.

My most recent post on Linkedin Pulse supports my belief that when you show up online, with a value message that resonates with your target audience, you will reap the rewards.

An Authentically Branded CFO
An Authentically Branded CFO

The Chicken or the Egg?

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Which came first? The chicken or the egg? It’s an age-old cliche that still surfaces from time-to-time. And now, we have a similar question from job seekers that is becoming more commonplace as they navigate the ever-changing job search arena.

Which do I need first?
My resume or my Linkedin profile?

Since you need both, the answer – at least from my perspective – is really simple.

The resume first.
Then, your Linkedin profile.

Why you might ask? The long answer lies in my blog post from a few weeks ago, “It’s Not About a Resume,” but here’s the short answer. Your resume – and your Linkedin profile – are only the written results of understanding your value and being able to articulate your value-oriented messaging. It requires the same amount of work to get to your value in order to write your profile as it does to write your resume.

If you are paying someone to merely write your profile on Linkedin … does it really convey your value messaging or does it simply flow better but still with the emphasis on responsibilities held rather than the valuable impacts you delivered?

Cindy Kraft, the CFO-Coach
Cindy Kraft, the CFO-Coach

You really do have to do the hard work to get the reward. There are only so many Chief Financial Officer positions, so the competition can be fierce.

Taking the seemingly shortest route when it involves your career – the thing that provides the funding for everything else in your life, including providing for your family, can often turn into anything but a shortcut today. You wouldn’t think of shortcutting your company in strategically guiding its growth and direction, so don’t do it to yourself either.