Exectuive-i Blog - Designed for the executive

I’ve not known a July like it. We have found an unprecedented amount of new jobs in the market this Summer.

There has been a 48% increase in executive jobs being advertised on executive-i.com compared to Summer 2009. In what is a seasonally slow period for jobseekers (the job traffic normally slows by around 20%) we have found that the improvement in market confidence has fuelled companies’ desire to strengthen their workforce (particularly in the private sector) even throughout the Summer.

Job traffic has consolidated and this presents an opportunity for jobseekers. Whilst many executives typically go on their summer break, requirements are still presenting themselves. Recruiters and HR departments will have a bit more time to take your calls and potentially meet up due to slower jobseeker traffic.

Make sure you take this opportunity to strengthen your contact base and build your network of contacts. Suggest a face to face meeting not only with search consultants but also key decision makers in potential target companies – this will serve to add personality and gravitas to your introduction.

I hope you have a productive week…

Last week the Office of National Statistics announced that unemployment had decreased by 34,000 in the 3 months to May.

Good news, however on closer inspection it appears that long term unemployment had increased substantially by 48% over the year to 787,000 in the same period.

A couple of weeks back I spoke to an executive who had just registered with us; he has been looking for 8 months and was concerned that he would add to this statistic, and you could hear it in his voice.

It was a very challenging consult but the overriding factor was that he was taking the lack of interest in his applications personally. He had been applying to 100s of jobs with only a handful of interviews and no offers.

Having had a look at his background, it was immediately clear that there wouldn’t have been 100s of jobs that fit his background. His experience is sector specific and he was being far from selective, if not a little desperate.

This is obviously understandable however the simple fact is, as these figures testify, there’s many people in the same boat and he shouldn’t take the lack of interest too personally. Yes, it can be extremely difficult however this competitive market means he needs to be a lot more focused on the jobs that fit his experience better.

Companies can afford to be picky, they have a lot to choose from however they can’t afford to make a mistake in a hire, each addition to their team has to be right and so you must spend a little time focusing on what they are looking for and tailoring your CV to reflect this.

Be direct, better to emphasise your experience and achievements that fit the job specification rather than covering all your bases. It’s also important to come across as confident as possible so make sure you mix up your day with other activities to make sure you are fresh during the time you do spend on your search.

I hope you have a productive week…

It’s imperative to make sure you take nothing for granted in this market.

Whilst you don’t want to overload your audience with every minutiae of detail about every working hour of experience you don’t want to miss any key triggers.

That’s why it’s important to do as much detective work as possible about the company you’re applying to.

It’s not about covering all of your bases as this is untargeted, it’s about making sure you find the key motivators and make sure they are communicated in an effective way in any email or document you deliver.

For example I spoke to a well regarded Marketing Director a couple of weeks back, who had never had to look for a job herself. She had a very generic CV which didn’t communicate any of her specific achievements in key markets as well as her transferrable skillsets.

We worked together to change that, and her approach was more calculated and tailored and helped her focus on the task at hand creating a positive environment and it’s paid dividends already.

This didn’t entail listing every detail but it meant creating a Master list of salient experience that could be communicated at strategic points in her CV using a top down approach, with the key triggers at the top acting as the bait to pull your audience in and supplemental information to support this further down.

Have a productive week…

I received an email from a jobseeker last week that was very cold, lacked soul and had formatting and grammatical errors throughout.

It turns out that this executive had rushed the email – they were actually a high profile executive with excellent experience at board level however their introduction may not be received by everyone, in the way that we did.

Executives are our clients and we are constantly looking to give feedback and advice, whereas recruiters may not be the same. My first impression was the complete antithesis to what it should have been, and that’s a common faux pas even in these competitive market conditions.

Ok fine, really good candidates may not be affected as much however you should not take anything for granted - Presentation is the key to making positive first impressions all the way from the introductory email through to your CV and finally to your presentation at interview.

Even if only a small percentage of recruiters read covering letters, you must leave nothing to chance.

You must make sure the presentation, tone and overall communication of your key skills have the maximum effect on your CV –  you may want to try executive-i.com’s CV Consultancy service which increases conversion rates significantly.

Proof read your applications before they’re sent, and spend a little time tailoring your application for the jobs and companies of particular interest.

Have a productive week…