TOO EXPERIENCED TO BE HIRED? HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO

Last month I shared the story of Zoe over LinkedIn which caught the attention of thousands of professionals. In case you missed it, here is the screenshot of the story:

Zoe is a classic case of senior professionals struggling to get back in the workforce. People who had been at the forefront of major transformations and growth in their organizations are seen as too rigid to adapt. Now continuing with Zoe’s experience – At the time when her networking was already giving her good results, I met an ex-client of mine, Steve, for coffee to see how he has been doing in his new role. He asked me if I knew anyone with experience in business transformation and heading the finance function.

Guess what – Zoe is a champ at business transformation. She had led transformations 6 times in the new millennium at country, sub region and regional levels for her last employer. She had been sent on short/long terms assignments across APAC whenever the business was going through a big transformation. While her finance skills were of interest, her business transformation expertise immediately caught the eye of Steve.

He asked to meet Zoe within the week. I spoke to Zoe and sent over her CV to Steve. Within half an hour he replied: “Too senior. May be I will KIV her first”

Phew! I didn’t want to go back to Zoe with this feedback after she had got excited.

“I understand. I would suggest meeting her for a discussion first and then if you still feel that she might not be a good fit, I will not push her case any further” – I replied to him keeping my fingers crossed.

No reply. I decided to call Zoe the next day. Early next morning Steve replies, “You are right. I should meet her first before making conclusions. Happy to meet this week”

The rest is history. Zoe just started work with the company earlier this week. She also reached final round with another company. So, how did she manage to find a role she is an expert in without compromising on salary.

Work on finding the best positioning of your skills

During our first few calls, Zoe and I worked to find her biggest differentiator from the majority of senior finance leaders. Zoe was the expert and go-to person for business transformations and governance. If we just played the “Senior Finance Leader”, Zoe would need to compete with a big pool of job seekers. By finding her positioning, her competition pool shrunk significantly.

Network, Network, Network

There is no way you can go without networking. However, I am not talking about attending events after events with people you have a short conversation with and then forget about it. Zoe met people she had worked with, mentored, reported to and partnered with. She was not looking out for opportunities. She was looking for advice, building connections and finding people who can endorse her. Steve let go of his initial inhibition of her seniority as I pushed him a bit. Zoe just needed to find 2-3 people who would endorse her emphatically.

Be open to Side Opportunities

From 2016, Zoe had been working with small businesses and start-ups to set up their finance functions and help with business transformations of existing businesses. That kept her skills relevant and when she was asked about what she had been doing during the break, she had examples to show how she had been contributing. Having side opportunities also gave her the chance to explore what else is available in the market and help her pay the bills.

Build Accountability and Structure

Zoe and I treated her job search as a job in itself. Every Monday we would have a call to discuss the deliverables for the week and the best strategy to move forward. Even during the weeks when she felt particularly low, Zoe delivered as she was held accountable. She had an objective sounding board to reflect the progress of the search.

The more senior you get in your career, the more strategic the job search gets. You can no longer rely on online applications to get the next role. With some planning and a lot of networking, you will definitely get the right role. Till then, keep moving forward

JobS-ME: Job Search Made Easy

JobS-ME is a training, coaching and consulting company helping professionals get their next ideal job fast. True to its name, JobS-ME was launched to make job-search easy and effective.