How to find and land an executive-level career opportunity

The choice to switch roles and organizations can have a lasting impact on your career as well as your family, lifestyle and overall wellbeing.

If you’re ready to make a career change, we’ve identified an effective method for finding – and landing – an impactful role.

Identifying worthwhile career opportunities:

For those who are seeking a new career, Charles Aris has created a five-step approach to help you find the right opportunity.

Note that this approach is not easy, nor are there any shortcuts. However, following this process can help you to find the right long-term career opportunity, as opposed to just another job.

1) Define your scope

2) Create a list of all companies that meet your scope

3) Research and prioritize your list of companies

4) Reach out to the appropriate hiring authorities

5) Be highly appreciative to those who help you

Let’s dig deeper into each of these steps:

Defining your career scope

The classic mistake many jobseekers make is defining a scope that is too broad. Narrow your scope aggressively and know that you can expand later if necessary.

By narrowing the scope, you will dig deeper in the space, which will allow you to find hidden opportunities (which are always there), and you will have a better and more convincing story for hiring authorities.

Answering these three questions will help you do just that:

1) What industries do you want to work in?

2) What size company are you comfortable working at?

3) Where, geographically, do you want to live?

Listing all companies that meet your scope

A manageable scope is anywhere from 15-50 companies that align with your career goals. Any less and you’re unlikely to find a good opportunity, but too many and you’ll spread yourself too thin.

There are multiple ways to find this information. If you have access to services such as ZoomInfo, those are best. You can also Google your scope for free. For example, Googling something such as “chemical companies in Chicago” will get you started.

Researching and prioritizing your list of companies

Simply go online and review the websites of each company in your scope. Force yourself to rate each company as either high interest, some interest or no interest.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of prioritizing companies based on the open positions they list on their website, but don’t make that mistake. This is not about what positions a company has listed publicly, because these aren’t always an accurate reflection of a company’s hiring needs.

Instead, you’re simply trying to prioritize which companies you want to work for, regardless of who you believe they are looking to hire.

Finding and contacting the appropriate hiring authorities at your top target companies

The appropriate hiring authority is the person you would report to if you were to join the company. This is not human resources (unless you desire to be in a human resource role). Leverage LinkedIn and classic Google/internet searches to identify who that person is.

How you reach out to this person and what you say to them is extremely important. Start with an email or a LinkedIn message, but you should plan to follow up with a phone call as well.

Whether you’re sending an email or leaving a voicemail, a simple, straightforward message is best. Your email and voicemail script (which you should write out and practice) should include an introduction, an explanation of your experience and why you’re reaching out.

Note that when calling you will likely get this person’s voicemail. In this case, your message should be the same as what is listed above, just in an executive summary format.

If you’re calling a very senior person, it’s possible that you will get their assistant on the phone. In that case, you should communicate with the assistant in the same way you would with the hiring authority, as they will be passing your message along.

You may be asking, “Why call a hiring authority if they don’t have a job posted?”

The truth is many companies don’t post every role they’re looking to fill. Also, hiring authorities are always looking for great talent, even if they don’t have an open position.

Showing your appreciation and being politely persistent

Be sure to get the email address of everyone you speak with and send a brief thank you note.

In your email, list your career goals (in two sentences or less) and don’t hesitate to attach your résumé. You’ll be surprised by how many calls you get from people who received your résumé from a colleague you sent it to.

The key to this approach is polite persistence. Don’t just email and call the hiring authority once and give up. These are busy people, and there are a lot of things vying for their attention.

Our rule of thumb is to email the hiring authority and then place your follow-up call no later than five days after. Rinse and repeat no less than three times. It shows that you’re serious, and companies only want to engage with serious candidates.

When you get a response from a hiring authority who is interested in speaking with you, it’s time to shift into interview mode.

How to land the role:

Now that you’ve successfully connected with a hiring authority who’s interested in speaking with you – and potentially hiring you – it’s time to put your best foot forward, learn as much about the opportunity and the team as possible and make a positive, lasting impression on everyone you interact with.

Preparing for a successful first interaction

Identify who, exactly, you will be meeting with. Know their title, function, professional background and any points of interest or concern they may have about you.

Then, confirm the date, time and location of your meeting. Your first interaction will likely be over the phone or on a videoconferencing platform like Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Ensure you’re comfortable using these platforms.

If you’re meeting in person, determine how long it will take you to get to the location and who you should ask for when arriving. Be at the building at least 15 minutes prior to your scheduled meeting.

This may seem self-evident to the experienced businessperson, but ensure you have your résumé memorized. You should be able to confidently and concisely describe your prior roles, including your top 3-4 responsibilities, your quantifiable accomplishments and how you achieved those quantifiable accomplishments.

Your first interaction may not be a formal interview, but the hiring authority will take this opportunity to evaluate your experience and character. Leaving a good impression will help you schedule a more formal interview, which also requires significant prep work.

Interview objectives and best practices

Prior to the interview, you should attempt to understand what the hiring authority seeks to accomplish, whose opinion matters most, what decisions will be made based on this meeting, who is involved in the process and how quickly they will decide your next steps.

This way, you can prepare accordingly based on what they’re hoping to accomplish.

If possible, determine the style and format that will be used during the interview. Common interview formats include:

– Experience-based interviewing, which focuses on candidates’ previous employment and accomplishments and how those experiences may or may not transfer successfully in the new role.

– Behavioral-based interviewing, which is based on the premise that past actions are the best indicators of future performance. This format covers situations that candidates have experienced, how they handled them and how they apply to the new role.

– Case-based interviewing, which focuses on candidates’ critical thinking skills. Candidates attempt to solve business problems by asking thoughtful questions and proposing creative solutions.

Familiarize yourself with each of these interview styles and prepare answers for each in the context of the role and organization for which you’re interviewing.

Keep in mind: Interviewers will continuously evaluate you on several factors, including appearance, energy, enthusiasm, past accomplishments and communication skills.

Here’s a list of common questions hiring authorities may ask:

– What were your primary responsibilities in prior roles?

– Please describe a couple of long-term strategies that you devised and implemented.

– What are the accomplishments you’re most proud of?

– Tell me about a work situation when you had to stand up for a decision you made even though it was unpopular.

You’ll be evaluated on both the answers you provide to questions AND the questions you ask the interviewers. Your questions should be well thought out, written down beforehand and reflect the fact that you are prepared and interested in the role and organization.

Ask questions of EVERY interviewer, and don’t hesitate to ask the same question of more than one person, and, if appropriate, ensure that the client is prepared to answer them.

Here are a few examples:

– In the first year, what are the three key contributions or accomplishments you’re expecting from this role?

– How will this role contribute to the success of the organization at large?

– Please identify 3-5 attributes that describe your top performers.

– Please describe your organization’s culture and the types of people who best fit it.

With these in mind, remember to always prioritize customized questions based on your research of the role, organization and industry.

Follow up and closing techniques

If, at the end of the meeting, you like what you’ve heard and have an interest in moving forward, directly express that interest:

“I appreciate you taking the time to interview me today. I’ve enjoyed our time together and have a strong interest in moving forward with you. Can you tell me about the next step in the process?”

Be sure to collect business cards and/or email addresses from every person you interview with and send a thank-you email to each within 24 hours.

The note should be concise, proofread and personalized for each recipient, perhaps mentioning something discussed during the interview.

Unless you have a follow-up interview, you can expect to hear back on your candidacy in the days immediately following your interview, hopefully in the form of an official offer letter!

How to respond after receiving an offer

This moment is crucial, because even though you’ve already received the offer, it’s important to remember that you are, for all intents and purposes, still interviewing.

If you intend to accept the offer, the way you choose to proceed could have an impact on the negotiations, onboarding and even the newly budding relationships you’re forming with your soon-to-be colleagues.

Conversely, if you’re going to decline, you want to do it in a way that leaves all bridges intact, as you never know where your paths may cross in the future.

To help you manage this decision, we’ve compiled six tips to ensure your next steps go smoothly:

1) When you receive the offer, be sure to show your appreciation and enthusiasm (if it’s genuine) and let them know when you plan to follow up with your response.

2) Sleep on it! Don’t feel like you need to react to the offer or make a decision at that moment. Eschew emotional decisions in favor of rational, informed decisions.

3) Review your offer letter with a mentor, trusted colleague or anyone who can help you evaluate the opportunity in an objective manner.

4) Once you’ve reached your decision, inform the hiring authority directly. Whether the news is good or bad, they will appreciate hearing directly from you and in-person (as opposed to email).

5) Negotiate in good faith. If you’ve decided you want the job but would like to negotiate, bundle your requests into one ask. If your requests are met, you should be prepared to accept on the spot.

6) Regardless of your decision, if the offer has an expiration date, don’t wait until the last minute to respond. If you’re declining, spare everyone the hand wringing and remove that Band-Aid swiftly. The same logic applies if you’re accepting.

Following these six simple guidelines will help ensure that you make a positive impression on everyone involved, whether you accept or decline the offer. If you do accept the offer, it’s time to prepare for onboarding.

Leaving a strong impression during your onboarding process

Your start date may not immediately follow your accepted offer, but when you do start, it’s important to introduce yourself to as many of your teammates as possible and ask key leaders to share any relevant background on who you’ll be working with.

You should also strive to meet functional and operational leaders across the organization, which you can do by sharing your personal and professional history, your management philosophy or company connection and by defining expectations and next steps with your immediate team.

You should also map out your short-term and long-term goals, learn what capabilities are needed to achieve firmwide growth aspirations and define a game plan around your prioritized opportunities.

Seek to understand your function’s priorities and future direction while quickly finishing administrative tasks regarding benefits, software permissions, supplies, etc.

Studies show that employees who have a positive and effective onboarding experience will more quickly create an impact in their new company and maximize job satisfaction.

The takeaway:

Navigating executive-level opportunities requires a strategic approach that encompasses thorough research, proactive outreach and polished communication skills.

By defining your scope, researching and prioritizing companies, reaching out to hiring authorities and showing appreciation with polite persistence, you can effectively position yourself for success.

Remember, the journey to landing the right opportunity may not be easy, but by following these steps, you can ensure a positive impact on your career trajectory.

For help finding your next executive-level career opportunity, contact us.