Briefcase Coach's Career Briefs: Job Search Smarter

Deciding between job offers, benefit of dynamic companies, decline in compensation offers, changes to LinkedIn algorithm and more...

Author

Sarah Johnston
November 01, 2023

Dear Reader:

A job search is stressful. At the executive level it can take 4-6 months to receive an offer. So when you are faced with two or more offer at the same time, it is exciting and confusing. If you're an executive juggling multiple job offers, you're on the cusp of a significant career decision. But how do you decide?

In this article, I discuss steps to take to help you make the right decision for you and your career.

When evaluating multiple job offers, there are many things to consider. Many of those considerations are outlined on paper and easily comparable. But what about your instincts? That voice inside your head that is pulling you one way or the other?

Often times when evaluating opportunities, you need to go beyond logic and lead with your instincts. Like in a game show where there is option 1) a clear known quantity and option 2) a mystery box – when your gut says mystery box, it could pay off to lean into that.

Rooting for you,

Declining Perm Placement Fees: What It Means for Job Seekers

Randstad, the largest staffing firm globally recently reported a decline in perm placement fees of 16% year over year on an organic basis in the second quarter, with the largest decline in North America. Global search firm, Korn Ferry, announced this week that it plans to reduce its workforce by 8% stating “persistent inflationary pressures, rising interest rates and global economic and geopolitical uncertainty” as the key reason. Fewer posted positions means that job seekers will need to gain visibility and proactively network.

Embracing Change: The Key to Success in Today's Business Landscape

Is innovation the key to pushing a company forward? Based on his research, career strategist Josh Bersin presents a different idea - being dynamic is the way forward. In this article, Bersin discusses the importance of building dynamic organizations that embrace change.

“Companies who fall behind in their market have not “suddenly become stupid” or “made a bad bet.” They have built organizations that are “static” in structure and rewards, missing out on the most important issue in business: change.”

The article emphasizes that simply having a growth mindset is not enough and that business schools' concept of creating small disruptive units within a company is outdated. Instead, the focus should be on empowering teams, embracing new ideas, and constantly reorganizing to adapt to customer needs. The article also highlights examples of companies that failed to innovate and how dynamic organizations can avoid similar pitfalls.

Insights from the Fall 2023 CMO Survey

New Results from the Fall 2023 Edition of The CMO Survey were recently released. Results are based on a sample of 316 marketing leaders at for-profit U.S. companies, 96% of whom hold positions of VP-level or higher. There is a lot to unpack in the report, but some of the results I found the most interesting were:

  • Marketing Leaders’ Seat at the Table: Senior marketing leaders are more likely to be asked by their CEO and/or CFO to participate in company board meetings (4.7 on 7-point scale) than earning calls (3.7 on 7-point scale), although both remain at moderate levels. Marketing leaders report less pressure from CEOs and Boards over time, while indicating more pressure from CFOs. Consistent with this, “demonstrating the impact of marketing actions on financial outcomes” continues to be the top challenge for marketing leaders. Marketers only use experiments 36% of the time, pointing to an opportunity to improve this skill to demonstrate the impact of marketing.

  • Marketing Job Growth Stalls and Outsourcing Increases: Marketing organization size growth increased by 5.5%, up from 3.4% in Spring 2023. This growth remains significantly smaller than the 2022 surveys when it averaged 13.7% for the year and remains below the long-term historical average for the survey since 2010, which is a 5.6% increase. Marketing leaders report that 20.2% of marketing activities are currently outsourced. Consistent with weaker job growth, the level of marketing outsourcing is expected to increase by 5% in the next year.

Navigating LinkedIn's Algorithm Changes

LinkedIn's recent algorithm changes have caused a noticeable impact on post reach and engagement. LinkedIn expert, Richard van der Blom recently provided a great overview of the impact of these changes and what LinkedIn users need to know to navigate them. Some of his highlights include:

📊 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱 (all numbers compared to Oct 2022 levels):

Jan 2023: ⬆️ +17%
Apr 2023: ⬆️ +14%
Jul 2023: ⬆️ +3%
Oct 2023: ⬇️ -66%

🔍 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁 (𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝟭𝟮 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿):

Text with a Single Image (48% of all posts): ⬇️ -46%
Text with Multiple Images: ⬇️ -33%
Text Only: ⬇️ -41%
Document (PDF) >10 Slides: ⬇️ -51%
Document (PDF) <10 Slides: ⬇️ -29%
Polls: ⬇️ -18%
Video: ⬇️ -57%
Standalone Articles: ⬇️ -72%
Newsletter Articles: ⬇️ -47%
External Link Posts: ⬇️ -23%

Van der Blom suggests prioritizing your audience over algorithms, diversify your content formats, engage with your network, analyze and adapt your strategy, and partner with fellow professionals or influencers in your industry to counteract some of the reach limitations imposed by algorithm changes.

Gen Z in the Workforce: Seeking Advancement and the Rise of Title Inflation

GenZ is quickly making its mark in the workforce. Gen Z individuals are entering the workforce at a time when technology is rapidly advancing and industries are evolving, making their digital skills highly sought after. Gen Z is also full of career sprinters wanting to quickly climb the corporate ladder. Known for their tendency to move jobs or companies more than other generations, employers are trying to keep Gen Z placated. EBN’s Paola Peralta looks at how some employers are turning to "title inflation" giving employees more senior sounding job titles without the experience, skills or salaries to match.

Have you discovered "Zillow Gone Wild" on Instagram?

I log in to Instagram once a week just to get my crazy housing fix.

Shag carpet in the bathrooms.
Suburban nightclub poles in the basement
Peel and stick backsplash in every corner of the house

It's so cringeworthy I can't stop.

Speaking of cringe-worthy....

I saw an executive resume recently that I wish I could unsee.

- 14 pages (!!) of accomplishments going back to high school

- An objective statement at the top that informed the hiring manager on the role and salary

- Size 8 Times New Roman Font

- Two columns

And... "References available at request" at the bottom

Is your resume style modern? The way you present yourself on paper can be a reflection of you!

Is it time for you to "HGTV" your resume?

𝐇𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬
Your resume needs a header. A header gives the reader a preview of who you are & the value that you bring to an organization. It can be an aspirational title or a keyword-rich header.
Examples:
- Strategic Digital Marketing Leader
(more generic, keyword-rich)
- Vice President of Advancement (aspirational title)

𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐬
Tell a concise story— as 🍊 Madeline Mann 🍊says, your resume isn't a Wikipedia page.

Use powerful result statements to craft your resume. It shouldn't read like a job description.

Examples of result rich statements:
- Reduced unit cost by $2,500 per unit by conducting industrial engineering studies and driving Lean process
improvements.
- Increased digital revenue by 18%+ YOY since 2016, earning $2.5B through attendee booking products.

𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐀𝐓𝐒-𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐲
Choose a font that is sans serif.
Example: Calibri

Don't use columns as they are more challenging for the reader to read right to the left and may not be parsed by the ATS.
— two column resumes are not optimal

Include keywords from the job description in the resume but don't feel pressure to have a 100% JobScan match. Most resume writers agree that somewhere between 40-60% is an optimal match."

𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞
Remember your end-user when writing your resume. Your resume needs to resonate with both the applicant tracking system AND the recruiter. Text is king 🤴 on a resume, and you want to make sure your document is targeted to the job you want, not the job you have.

Can you do me a favor?

I’m on a mission to help job seekers land amazing jobs. Would you consider doing one of the following:

  • Forward or use the referral link below to share this newsletter with your job-searching friends or post about it on social media. This small act really helps!

  • Reach out to us about featuring your executive job posting in our newsletter. We are looking for hiring managers, founders, and search firms to talk on video about their ideal candidates.

  • Consider sharing my company name with your HR leadership. We are a great “white-glove” boutique option for executive outplacement

  • Recommend me as a paid speaker for your company events on networking, job searching, or leveraging LinkedIn

  • Recommend my services to high performers wanting to work one-on-one with an executive resume writer / or experienced interview coach

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