Executive jobs: It’s not you, it’s not me. It’s just not meant to be.
Business trends and the current recession are forever changing the way corporations hire and retain talent.
By Jose Ruiz
Monterrey, Mexico (August 28, 2009).- These are hard times for finding a new job or making a career transition. The state of the economy and uncertainty has forced many companies to downsize. Yes, downsize. Not rightsize. I don’t hear clients tell us they need to hire 100 people because they are rightsizing. Companies are downsizing and in many cases executing accross the board pay cuts. They have also been forced to rethink their strategic and business plans forcing changes in their talent needs. Requirements and career paths have been forever altered.
In the executive search business we are finding that it’s taking longer than usual for executives to transition and find a new job. It’s frustrating and difficult amid hard times and many executives end up questioning if they might be doing something wrong, if they did something wrong in the past or if they are making mistakes during their job search. No two individuals are alike and while every case is different there is a broad trend on how corporations are hiring and retaining talent. Understanding those trends can help eliminate frustration.
Short term requirements, speed and reaction time dominate the business environment. Corporations need to plan for shorter horizons building organizations that can execute seamlessly and react quickly while guaranteeing profits and long term sustainability.
Time is money. The need for speed and lower costs has made learning curves unbearable in many business environments and it’s having a profound impact in how corporations hire. It’s not about quick learners. They want executives who have been there, done that and can have an immediate impact.. Executives with the right leadership qualities for the task at hand, industry knowledge, technical experience and proven business success in a similar environment.
Hire for attitude and build aptitude is now relegated to entry level employees. The trend for executives is now hire for attitude, assure aptitude and guarantee success.
Assuring aptitude and guaranteeing success requires a close match and fit at four different levels:
I. A broad cultural fit - Broad cultural fit includes the business and corporate cultures. The culture and business dynamics of a private family owned enterprise tends to be very different from a public global corporation. A broad cultural fit will help guarantee long term success.
II. The “Must Haves” – What we typically see in a job description: Qualifications, experience, knowledge, technical skills and functional competencies. These used to be very broad and have now become very discipline and industry specific. These are key elements to a quick learning curve, a fast start and short term success.
III. A “micro” cultural fit – The broad cultural fit focuses on a global business and corporate cultural. A micro culture focuses on a regional or site level. At this level it is important to seek a fit in behaviors, leadership and management styles of the immediate team including subordinates.
IV. The task at hand - A position or discipline takes on a different meaning depending on the task at hand. The executive and leadership competencies required for turn-around, growth, a contraction or a stable environment can vary widely. A successful turn-around specialist is seldom the best choice for a stable environment.
A fit at all levels is not easy. Many elements that were once considered intangible are now part of a tangible evaluation process and from the stand point of an executive it’s not about right or wrong, good or bad, it’s simply about fit.
Jose Ruiz is a Principal in Heidrick & Struggles’ Monterrey office. As an executive recruiter he has worked on executive search projects for multinational clients in technology, life sciences, industrial sectors and consumer markets.
About Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc.
The world’s premier provider of senior-level executive search and leadership consulting services. The firm’s executive recruiters and leadership experts operate from principal business centers in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia Pacific. In Mexico, Heidrick & Struggles operates offices in Mexico City and Monterrey. For more information about Heidrick & Struggles please visit www.heidrick.com
Drive It (Book), Job Market, Leadership, Mexico Executive Search
I understand the principle but it’s hard not to get frustrated
Interesting article. Reality check for many of us who have been around for quite a few years now. At the end all chips will fall in their right place. Just take a look at any professional sport team; yes, key top guns are a must, but too many of them will make a team crack. Teams need as baddly overall performers as hot shots.
Great article!
I´ve been searching for Executive jobs and I found a webpage from a company called Ascentador. I certainly recommend it.
Bye,
Shirley
Jose, I totally agree and I do not think it is all bad. What this type of business environment does, is recognize the skills and the wisdom of exceptional workers. It is more than the diploma. It is the entire package the employee brings to the work environment.
Debi
Interesting and consistent with what I have found in my search. The depression economy and a downsizing biotech/pharmaceutical sector have made executive positions difficult to locate and even more difficult to “fit” as firms are ever more selective.
Dear Jose,
Very interesting article, as many of us have experienced going through all these job market changes. I have found that downsizing and cost reduction efforts are very short term effective. On the long term companies need to realize that what will keep them moving forward is their organization`s ability to increase throughput in new creative ways. Sometimes they loose this ability through downsizing. I suggest reading The Goal, It`s not Luck, or The Choice from Eliyahu Goldratt. He exposes this situation in a very easy going reading. I have applied this approach as a Consultant in Finance and Sales Administration and it really works.
Regards,
Enrique Castillo
I have also found that “must have” requirements are unusually discipline and industry-specific. Companies seek someone who has successfully performed the job already, for a key competitor, and ideally, the same product line. If a candidate doesn’t meet these requirements, they are unlikely to proceed far enough for “cultural fit” to be an issue.
Overall I find the article very interesting and certainly to the point. However, your comment “A successful turn-around specialist is seldom the best choice for a stable environment” threw me in why you wanted to single out this speciality.
Frankly, I consider that most companies go through several phases through time and stability is just one of these. Precisely, the executive who managed well in a stable environment has normally more difficulties to manage when there is a change in cycle. The first problem is even recognising that change is under way.
I believe management skills need to be matched with the phase a business is going through in the medium term 3-5 years. This implies that management needs to be renovated or maintained in line with these cycles depending on their respective skills at that moment.
This obviously questions long term tenure either in a company or job and focuses more on project management for a limited medium term time frame. It has the advantage of renovation and better fitting specific job skills to the current business needs.
Finally, many executives are really only put to the test when facing unstable conditions with many being exposed as second rate. Therefore, I would question seriously the all round professional skills of anybody being ranked above all others just because they are better in a stable environment.
When the going gets bumpy or tough it is when you see the true character or lack of it in many executives. Sometimes a narrow focus on skills ignores other important attributes such as character
Desmond
Jose,
I agree, very interesting article!I’m not so sure companies can find the total right “fit”. They have not in the past, not so sure in the future.
What gives when the business practices and culture may have prevented a company from being successful over the past three years(profitability? Thus, a “turnaround” situation is now in play for the new leader and the new leader may be more goal oriented, challenges people to do better, makes some dredded cuts all because the culture may not have supported it in the past? This new leader may very well have to “change” the culture. How successful can the new leader be by changing the culture from a mediocre to high performing? Something will have to give, right? Does this align with your thoughts?
Ed
One thing I would advise an executive going to an interview is to have a job proposal in hand. He needs to research the company, its products, competition, strengths and weaknesses. This is briefly an outline some of the challenges the company may be facing and strategies that can address those issues and turn them around. He does not tell he does it he simply demonstrates how he has accomplished this in his other jobs and how it can apply to this company.
Great post, reflects my experience as an executive recruiter focusing specifically on General Counsel and other in-house corporate counsel positions.
Well said, and the distinctions Jose has made in helping people to focus on the four key elements in the quest for assuring aptitude and guaranteeing success should make sense to client and candidate alike.