You’ve done well for yourself so far when it comes to your career. And now you’re ready to take on a high-level position. You’ve probably found yourself wondering though, exactly how do people land executive-level jobs? In a nutshell, it takes having the right resources and being able to connect with professionals who can help you achieve the career advancement you are looking for. Let’s dive in.
Realize You Need Help to Compete for the Top Jobs
You have likely worked your way up the ladder to a manager position. You’ve done this by having a stellar work ethic, great work history, impressive resume, and good references. You’ll still need those things to take your career to the next level. However, you’ll also need to know in detail how to advance from manager to Director, a C-Suite position, or to whatever top-level position you desire.
For instance, do you know for sure that your resume is as good as it can be? How about your LinkedIn profile? An April 2021 article stated that, for various reasons, about 80% of executive-level jobs are not advertised. Companies generally recruit people they find on LinkedIn for executive positions rather than reading tons of job applications submitted by unqualified applicants responding to posted job openings. You can update your profile yourself, or you can utilize a world-class advisor/mentor that can help you make your LinkedIn profile as competitive as it can be.
While recruiters read your LinkedIn profile, you’ll need to proactively search for the executive job you want. Do you have a tactical action plan for your job search? What about access to special career intelligence? Do you know where to look for executive-level jobs? A simple Google search won’t do the trick. You’ll need to be well-connected to effectively search for and unearth the relatively few (20%) advertised executive-level jobs.
Consider Career Advancement Advisors from around the World
Obviously, if your goal is to effectively compete for and land a director job, C-Suite-level position, or some other executive position, you’ll need some world-class mentoring. Well-experienced career advisors exist who can give you the individual support you need to help you obtain an executive-level job. Whatever you need help with, these people can deliver.
In the beginning, an advisor would look at your background and your present situation. You’ll tell the advisor what type of job you want to obtain. Depending on what your desired position is, the advisor may then discuss with you the various possible roadmaps that could take you there. He or she would determine how effective your resume and Linked-In profile would be in attracting recruiters. The advisor would likely suggest various ways you could improve your resume and your LinkedIn profile to ensure they’re both competitive enough.
Through your newly-found connections, you would build a competitive business plan for your career. You would create a tactical action plan for job searching, which would be a real time saver. There are a few different things that an advisor could do for you. Such as helping you with your board candidate strategy or giving you executive leadership coaching.
Connect with the World’s Top Executive Search Firms
A simple Google search for executive jobs won’t produce the 20% posted executive-level job opportunities that exist. You would see a small fraction of that 20%. Too many people would compete for the few easily found top-level jobs. If you settled for the general internet search approach to finding an executive job, the applications you would send in would get lost among the many applications the companies would receive. Being flooded with applications, the companies may take a long time to get through them or wise up and look at LinkedIn profiles.
You’ll want to take the high-class approach to online searches by connecting with the world’s top executive search firms. These firms would give you both career intelligence and access to exclusive, high-level job opportunities. Your high-class job search methods would not go unnoticed by hiring companies, either, as many of them ask applicants how they heard of the job opening.
You have been a vital part of the workforce for at least a few years now. You should have a directory of people you have met in your positions. When you’re looking to take your career to the next level is when you should really put those networking skills to work. Reconnect with old colleagues to learn about any potential opportunities for career advancement.
Conclusion
You’ve decided it’s time to take your career to the next level. It can be complicated to find executive-level jobs on your own, especially when only a select few are advertised on job search platforms. Fortunately, there are resources and professionals that could help make reaching your career advancement goals a little easier.
