According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 70 percent of all jobs are found through networking.
Finding your perfect job is not easy—even in the best of times.
Candidate Profile: VP Sales & Marketing, Early-Stage Technology Company
“I never saw it coming.” That’s what many executives and managers say after they’ve lost their job. “How did it happen?”—“Well one day they called me into the front office and told me I didn’t want to work there anymore.” And now they’re just another statistic. One of the current 15.1 million people in the United States who are unemployed.
Sound familiar? Your Human Resource team is small, underpaid, overworked and they think you can find a hard charging Vice President of Sales on your own. Plus, your company wants a sales leader who will make an IMPACT.
I will never forget my first performance evaluation. My boss, Jack, reviewed my first year on the job, highlighting some of my early successes. He then proceeded with a litany of my shortcomings, failures and areas that needed improvement. Several of the examples he cited were over six months old. At the conclusion of the conversation, I said, “I really appreciate the feedback, but wouldn’t it have made more sense to have made me aware of these as you observed them so I could have fixed them by now?” I don’t remember Jack’s response, but I can tell you that he did not change his approach to performance management.
Years ago a successful executive coach and personal friend shared a story about a coaching assignment he turned down. His client, a major bank, asked him to work with one of their vice presidents, Toxic Tom. “He's one of our top performers,” they said. “We consider him to be crucial to our success going forward. He has one minor flaw we'd like you to work on with him. He has been known to slap subordinates when he is upset with them.”
My friend turned down the assignment and advised client to refer Tom for psychological counseling rather than coaching.
Several years ago, I served on the board of a local nonprofit. When our Director of Development left to go to a larger organization, “Mary,” the Founder and Executive Director, immediately embarked on a search for her replacement. ...