search strategy

Job Boards and Senior Executives

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Call me cynical but, I saw this tweet …

Join this great jobs site… They have thousands of pre-screened 100K jobs – check em out 

… and just had to shake my head. Job boards are to job seekers what the lottery is to the millions who play every week. The odds are just not in your favor. Sure there’s a lottery winner every week – with emphasis on the “a.” 

It’s no secret that I am NOT a fan of job boards. Particularly for finance executives or other C-Suite executives. Oh, they have their place and certainly can, and perhaps even should, be a search strategy. Again with emphasis on the “a.” However, job boards should never be the sum total of a search strategy.

One of my issues is that most people quickly fall into the deception that job boards make it so easy to get a job that they don’t do the hard work required to actually find a job. If anything, scanning posted positions a a sole search strategy turns into a complete waste of time and exercise in futility. The rejection is fierce and the ego is crushed.

And Linked In groups that are targeted solely to job seekers are really not that much different. This is a great list, but my recommendation would be to NOT use 25 of your allotted 50 group memberships on “job search” groups. All you’ll really be doing is hanging out with other unemployed people and folks like me. Select 5 or so job search groups and then join groups that allow you to show off your expertise and will win the attention of recruiters who are looking for top talent.

The jobs CFOs and senior finance executives want are rarely going to be found on a public job board.

And I won’t even discuss job fairs, other than to see this is a pretty funny article!

Stay the Course … or Pivot?

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You thought I was going to talk politics, right? Another day, perhaps. But I am going to borrow from a current political message.

Disregard people’s responses at your own peril. And while that certainly does apply to companies, government, and CXO’s who set strategy, what about on a much more personal level … your job search.

What responses are you getting to …

Your resume? Interest? Inquiries? Interviews? Or, Silence? Unless your answer is one or all of the first three, what can you do differently to move from silence to activity?

Networking? Is your network providing you with introductions to your target market? Or, are people hiding behind closed doors because you asked them for a job and they can’t deliver? Is it time to hone your message?

Search strategy? Sitting in front of a computer and responding to posted positions is easy and it sure can make a person feel productive. But what is the return on your investment of time and energy? If decision-makers are not responding, the search strategy might need an overhaul.

Online Presence? Do you have one? Is it credible? Is it attracting the kind of opportunities you want? If your message is not resonating with your target market, then perhaps the messaging needs to be refined. 

I know you know this. If you keep on doing what you’ve been doing, you’ll continue to get what you’ve been getting. If you’re getting what you want and need, great! If you aren’t, then it’s time to pivot. Unless you embrace change, it’s unlikely anything will change.

Executive finance positions, and particularly CFO roles, are limited. There are only so many available slots at the top. Move away from the masses (competition) and the same ineffective strategies they all use and craft (no pun intended) a strategy that gets you out in the open where you can be seen and found by those who need to know about you, need what you have, and are willing to pay to get it.

Inbound vs. Outbound for Marketing YOU

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Doug Haslam wrote a great blog post about inbound marketing, and he’s right, it has everything to do with your career. Here’s an excerpt …

Inbound Marketers flip outbound marketing on its head.

Instead of interrupting people with television ads, they create videos that potential customers want to see. Instead of buying display ads in print publications, they create their own blog that people subscribe to and look forward to reading. Instead of cold calling, they create useful content and tools so that people call them looking for more information.

This definition concentrates on content creation, but the real meat is the phrase “people call them.”

It’s the old push / pull marketing terms with new names. The result, though, is the same. You can either push your message to people who don’t care, won’t listen, and are happy to round file your resume … I call this the spaghetti strategy … or you can pull your target market to you with a clear, compelling, and visible brand. Which would you rather do?

Inbound marketing has everything to do with proactively managing your career and the very best time to begin is when you are happy, satisfied, and doing well in your current position. If you are a CFO or finance executive who has been missing the social media boat, it is not too late to jump on board. You have everything to gain and absolutely nothing to lose. 

In CNN’s Executive Education article, "How not to ruin your next career move,” Matt Knight says this …

Executives at the top, as well as people lower down the career ladder are sometimes so desperate to leave their job that they don't plan their career moves and lurch from job to job instead of waiting for the right position.

Desperation can often become the breeding ground for bad decision-making and/or result in a very long job search. I was talking with an executive recruiter who places CFOs earlier this week and he told me one of the most aggravating parts of his job was when prospective candidates, who clearly did not meet his client’s specs, tried to talk him into believing they could do the job anyway. Desperation can also cause otherwise great networking contacts to sour very quickly.

Think of your career as Business You and begin strategizing your inbound marketing plan today.

How Long Will Your Job Search Take?

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Well, that depends! The average time according to Mary Ann Milbourn in a recent OC Register post, even in this crazy economy, is about four months. My sense is that it can take much, much longer. However, a branded marketable value proposition (MVP) and a solid search strategy (whether or not you are currently unemployed) can significantly shorten your search time. 

Google Alerts keep me informed of news on CFOs, Chief Financial Officers, and Financial Executives every day, and I can tell you that there are folks leaving and folks being hired. The need is still there!

John Challenger of Challenger, Gray, and Christmas is quoted in Milbourn's post, "Job hunt may not take as long as you think," as saying, “Those who merely sit on the Internet all day, surfing job boards, are missing 80% of the job openings.” 

If that is your primary search strategy, you could be sitting for quite a long time.