Anyone in job search mode needs to plant a lot of seeds.

When it comes to a person’s job search, networking is more about farming than it is about hunting. That’s because networking typically results in the person planting the seed for building a relationship that will lead to a recommendation, which will eventually lead to that next job possibly directly, but most likely indirectly.

The farming metaphor works because anyone in job search mode will need to plant a lot of seeds, or make those initial connections, which will need to be nurtured through time as part of the networking strategy. The idea is that all of the seeds will germinate and spread their roots into a vast network. The key to this strategy is that during the various networking meetings or calls it is advice that candidates are asking for; not a job. All it takes is one of those many root systems you have planted to land that job

Consider the following scenario: Widget Co. publishes a job description and its human resources director receives hundreds of resumes and applications. The benefit of having a strong network means you could very well have a connection who has a direct line of communication with the HR director or other “inside” executives and hands him or her your resume. Suddenly, your candidacy has been prescreened and you are now one of 15 rather than one of 150. None of this would have happened if you had not networked and made the effort to get to know that connection in the first place.

“In order to network, you just need someone – anyone – in the company to pass on your resume to HR or the hiring manager…it doesn’t need to be an employee in the same department you want to work in, and it doesn’t need to be a senior executive,” writes AdAge. “Be flexible on time, go to their office or volunteer to chat over the phone if that works better for them…the key is to just make the connection.”

Continuing along the farming metaphor, when you plant those crops, they are done so in a methodical, organized and purposeful line where one seed leads to the next seed. The same for networking. While you certainly want to leave yourself open to expanding your network, you should do so strategically. Although networking may start with just about anyone, eventually the idea is to target your industry and then figure out who you may already know in that vertical or at least who you may know who can pass you along to someone else. Think about the five-to-eight people you should meet because they are well connected. Also consider other groups of people in your network who you can inform through a short email with a personal update and mentioning you are in a search campaign.

“The craft of building a network of clients and colleagues isn’t about casting a wide net,” writes former private investigator Hal Humphreys. “It is about seeding real relationships [and] it requires time and calculation.”

As a final point, there is one more key understanding about networking for anyone looking for a new job. This is a long-term endeavor; not a quick-fix to your next gig. Be sure to keep fertile all of those seeds you took care to plant because you may need them again, or they may need you, and rather than starting the process all over again, you can hit the ground running with your network already in place.

As any farmer will tell you, growing crops requires strategy, execution and most importantly, patience. You probably met the person who will lead you to the right opportunity months ago when you were planting those early seeds.

Robert J. (Bob) Ryan is Partner, Executive Coach and Advisor at Shields Meneley Partners.

Originally Posted: https://www.financialexecutives.org/FEI-Daily/September-2019/Networking-Is-All-About-Farming;-Not-Hunting.aspx

The social contract between employer and employee that was in place for generations has pretty much fallen by the wayside. In the past, people worked in one company for a lifetime believing that the company would “take care of them”. Today’s C-Suite needs to be prepared for a bumpy exit no matter how unlikely he or she may think it is.

Don’t believe me? Here are just a few stories of some of our clients:

A CEO of a $400M healthcare company was fired without warning. The news was leaked to the press before he could reach his family. A local television reporter called his home, his 16-year-old daughter answered, and the reporter asked, “How do you feel about your father being fired?”

If that doesn’t make your stomach turn just a bit, how about this one:

The chief operating officer of a private company had been promised that he would succeed the chief executive officer when the time came for a leadership transition. The founders called him into a previously unscheduled meeting, fired him on the spot without cause and then dared him to do something about it, saying: “We are not going to honor anything in your contract. If you don’t like it, sue us.”

These are just two of the many stories we have heard from our clients and each one makes us angry because it is avoidable.

No matter how poorly a termination is handled you must keep your cool. Take it in, control your emotions, let the person know that you need time to process what you have been told, and terminate the meeting as soon as you can. It is important to remember that every action you take while in, and after that meeting, may well determine everything that happens later.

Most of the clients who come to us are at the top of the leadership ladder – a Board Member, a CEO, a direct report to the CEO, or a Division Officer – but no matter who they are, they need a solid reference from the organization they are leaving. It is important to maintain a professional business demeanor because that is the final and lasting image that people will have of you. No one wants to help an executive who “kicks the furniture” on the way out the door.

Listen. I get it. We are all human and we’ve had situations where we let our emotions get the best of us. But don’t let this situation be one of those situations. How?

Breathe. Reach out to us. Using our confidential process, we can debrief you and help you understand what happened and examine appropriate next steps. We will ask a lot of important questions.  How was the situation presented? Who was in the room? How did they present it? What did you hear? How did you react to it? If we sense that our client took the low road, we offer solid counsel on how to regroup. Most senior executives are smart enough not to do anything rash or make idle threats, but they are justifiably upset – particularly if they didn’t see the termination coming.   But, our client has to go back to his or her former boss, apologize for the emotional response, and ask for their help to make the dissolution of the partnership as fair and equitable as possible to both sides.

Our clients have small but highly influential inner circles. When they later run into friends and colleagues, they are often asked, “What really happened?” It is our role to make sure that our clients have that answer ready to go – a truthful, carefully constructed, positive (or at least neutral) story that provides an opportunity to say good things about both the company and herself or himself.

After all, job loss is viewed as one of the top three most stressful situations in a person’s life – preceded only by the emotional disruption of a death and or divorce. That is why if you can’t rush through or repress the healing process that is required. Our team of coaches, advisers and executives have significant P&L expertise and understand the unique needs of the C-Suite. Armed with that knowledge and understanding, we help clients neutralize the emotion that can be so close to the surface when someone asks why he or she left. Once we have achieved that, clients will be ready to re-enter the marketplace with confidence.

Once that emotion is resolved, these very smart, talented and successful people begin to regain their perspective about who they are and what they have accomplished during the careers. As the process moves forward they will say, “Good grief. I’m not so bad, am I?” Or “Wow! I’ve really got a lot done, haven’t I?” They also recognize that they are in good company, because transitions are part of the risk/reward equation that is part of any top job.

Then it’s time to prepare for interviewing by developing compelling stories about the challenges they faced during different parts of their career, what actions they took to resolve them, and the results of their actions. This puts the “fire back in the belly” and they are ready to engage in finding the next opportunity.

This phase includes developing relationships by reaching out to those they know and meet, expanding their scope of influence, and interviewing for roles that are interesting and challenging. When negotiating for that that new role we are behind the scenes conducting compensation studies, recommending employment lawyers to review contracts (with appropriate severance provisions) , and developing a detailed On-Boarding Plan to ensure early success.

Signing on the bottom line to accept that new role is a moment we all relish and celebrate together. These men and women have learned from what came before, increased their self-knowledge, and developed fresh insight into what the market needs. They also know they can handle any unexpected change to their employment status with confidence.

We often meet senior executives who assume they will be showered with attention by recruiters when they enter a career transition. After 40 years of executive coaching, training, and corporate management, we know better.

Executives from larger companies who have reached the C-Suite have interacted with a number of search firms – either as potential candidates or as customers that retain search firms for an outside search. That’s a start, but the reality is that unless you’ve kept in regular touch with the recruiter – and frankly, how many do? – you will never be top of mind. Our clients are skeptical when we warn them about this lack of interest, but they soon learn this hard lesson.

It is Just Business

Executives often confuse a business relationship with a headhunter as friendship. It isn’t. As hard as that is to accept, it isn’t personal. They are in business to put the right person in a role, collect the fee, and move on to the next assignment. That is how they are compensated. Search executives who are willing to take time to talk with you when you are in transition are rare. (They are the good guys.) But, if they did that for everyone, they wouldn’t have time to do their job.

Although search is one channel, we advise our clients to network aggressively on their own. To read an excellent piece about the value of networking, I encourage you to check out this article written by our client, Jeff Patuto, whose story was published by the highly respected CFO magazine.

You Must Do the Work

Engagement with search firms requires significantly more work than most of our clients realize. “I talked to a headhunter a few weeks after I got out and so I’m good there. Their firm knows me and I’m in their database. The ball is now in their court and they will be approaching me with offers.”

It doesn’t work that way. You have to stay in touch with recruiters on a regular basis – we recommend every six to eight weeks – so that you are top-of-mind. Here is a template that should be customized when touching base with a recruiter:

“Dear (search executive)

I hope that things are going well for you and that you are taking some time to enjoy these welcome summer days.

I wanted to update you on my search. As you may remember, my CFO background includes Fortune 50 corporations, mid-cap private companies, and entrepreneurial ventures. I have been involved in corporate strategy, risk management, treasury, and M&A in manufacturing, business services, technology, chemicals, electronics and consumer products. I have been an advisor and Board member in public-private partnerships, PE portfolio companies, high-tech firms, professional associations and NFP.

I’m targeting a CFO role in a $500M to $3B public or private company in manufacturing or business services. I anticipate a $275K base salary with market-competitive bonus and equity or long-term incentives.

For your convenience, my resume can be downloaded using either of the following links:

I appreciate your help and look forward to hearing from you when you are engaged in relevant searches.

Sincerely,

_______”

Avoid This Fatal Mistake

It is crucial that you reach out to the right recruiters. We’ve seen candidates punished by search firms when they have made numerous inappropriate queries.  Recruiters consider these communications to be a waste of their time.

We once had a CFO who wanted to send his resume to a search firm that specialized in human resources because he “knew someone”. He would have looked like a novice. That is why we leverage our very precise (and expensive) databases to match our clients with the right recruiters and the right firms so they appear both informed and knowledgeable.

Don’t Get Blocked

When a recruiter contacts one of our highly attractive clients and ultimately puts him/her in front of a potential employer, the recruiter has an ethical obligation to “block” the candidate from further introductions. No search executive wants to present a single candidate to multiple companies at the same time.

If an executive and a hiring company don’t come to terms, the recruiter is supposed to “unblock” the executive in the database so he/she is free for future interviews. So many executives just assume this happens automatically, but recruiters are human and sometimes forget to unblock the candidate. This happens more often than anyone would like. That is why we coach clients to follow up with the search person at the conclusion of the process.  This allows the client to ask for feedback and then at the end of that conversation, to confirm he/he has been cleared of any blocks.

These are just a few tips for C-Suite executives on how to work most effectively with search firms. There are many others. Working closely with a transition advisor who knows the ropes can make all the difference in terms of how long it takes to find the next role and the compensation package you negotiate.

As an executive coach, I am often tasked with assisting clients wind their way through the ups and downs of their careers and lives. By the time I meet with these high-performing people, they are usually unsure of where they are headed and what their next and next, next steps should be. Up to that point, they had it all figured out, but something, either externally or internally, triggers the existential questions of “what am I doing and where am I going?” To help guide my clients, I ask them to define their personal brands.

Start off by asking yourself “Who am I?” and let it flow. Just putting down words to describe what he or she stands for, delivers, and values is a wonderful starting point from which to kick off the process of determining what to do next.

The next step is to reach out to around eight people from your network you trust. Consider them your virtual board of advisors. Show each person your list of words and phrases you think provide a full picture of who you are and your brand. Have a conversation with each person individually and ask what they think should be added, removed, and refined. You want to know what they think of what you wrote.

You will wind up with a page that has a bunch of words on it and then it is up to you to pick those that resonate strongest with you. Reshape these phrases and thoughts into succinct sentences that paint the right picture of who you are and what you are about. Do not write anything too extensive because we want these ideas to be digestible. I caution clients to write just enough to fit on a regular post-it note. It can also provide input into the very important couple of lines under your name in your LinkedIn profile. That small piece of very valuable real estate should depict who you are, not where you are at the moment. ‘Who you are’ is not a job title and company name!

One of the beautiful outcomes of figuring out your brand is this can work as a filter toward informing the direction toward which you would like to take your career and life. I can use my personal example where I’m helping others succeed. I’ve always enjoyed helping people with their career journey and while it might have been more obvious for me to take another corporate role, the fact is my personal brand led me to a position as a career coach. The other part of that was that as I figured out my personal brand I realized that I wanted to also be a business owner.

At first blush, I would never have thought that was what I wanted, but the more I refined my branding the more I revealed to myself that is exactly what I wanted to do. Today, in addition to being an equity partner at Shields Meneley Partners, I am a proud owner of The Sierra Institute, an invitation-only community of senior human resources leaders committed to the advancement of our profession. I could not be happier and more fulfilled in my career and personally doing both.

Figuring out your brand is not complicated at all; it just takes a bit of time. The key is to allow yourself the space to fully form your ideas. You will be glad you did when it is said and done.