Career Briefs: Executive Job Seeker Resources

A few years ago, I served as the backup, backup assistant soccer coach for my daughter's "little league" soccer team. Let me put it this way: it was a highly sought-after volunteer role. Exactly no other parents wanted the position.

One Saturday, I got my moment to wear the whistle. The head coach was out of town; the real assistant coach had to take his son to the emergency room for a busted chin. And I got a call 20 minutes before game time that I was running the show. The other team---the Leapfrogs-- showed up in full force. Their pre-game warm-up rivaled the LA Galaxy with plyometrics & movement application drills. Meanwhile, I only had four players show up. Out of 12. I gathered my team & told them that they would get to play the entire game with no subs. I felt like Coach Gary Gaines from Friday Night Lights telling my players they were going to get their moment to shine today. In an interesting turn of events... I quickly realized that my little ragtag team was actually quite good. Too good, to be honest. I had four ringers.

We just straight-up dominated the Leapfrogs. The problem, however, is that in Little League, you're not supposed to run up the score. You're not supposed to beat the other team 25-0. You're supposed to sub out your best players & give playing time to kids who are newer to the sport or less athletically inclined. But I had no subs. During halftime, I pulled my team aside and gave them the "we're all winners," "let's not focus on the score," & "let's make the next half about passing and assists vs. shooting,".... but it's hard to tell the 6-year-old Guy Germaine of rec soccer not to do what he does best-- score goals.

🏈 🏈 While it’s fun to win, every game has a loser. Notre Dame’s quarterback, Riley Leonard, embraces a powerful reminder every day: a wristband bearing the words, “You Suck!” For him, it serves as motivation, acknowledging that, despite his natural talent and relentless effort, failure is inevitable at times. This perspective fuels his drive to improve and persevere.

Rejection and defeat happen all of the time. It’s the one thing every job seeker has in common. Over my career, I’ve worked with many job seekers who were perfectly qualified for a job.... that they didn’t get.

Dealing with rejection doesn’t have to crush your morale or derail your job search. The reality is, you won’t land every job you apply for. What matters most is how you respond. When faced with rejection, take a step back and analyze the situation:

✅ Were you as prepared as you could have been?
✅ Did you meet all the qualifications for the job?
✅ Did the role go to an internal hire?
✅ Did you apply late in the process? Perhaps the hiring team was already far along with other candidates.
✅ Did you have an internal champion advocating for you?

Sometimes, rejection defies logic. I’ve known job seekers who were turned down for being "too polished." What does that even mean?!

If you want to win (or get the offer), you have to get in the game. Show up. Do the work. And most importantly, keep trying.

Rooting for you,

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30-Day Job Search Challenge

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The Future of Jobs: World Economic Forum Report

The global job market is on the brink of significant transformation by 2030, according to the latest Future of Jobs Report by the World Economic Forum. They predict we will see the creation of 170 million new roles and the subsequent displacement of 92 million existing positions, resulting in a net gain of 78 million jobs worldwide. 

This Forbes article summarizes key findings from the report, including the greatest challenge businesses face to expansion: the growing disparity between employer-required skills and available skills held by applicants. The skills mismatch is already a pressing concern, with nearly two-thirds of employers (63%) citing it as their primary hurdle to growth. Executive job seekers can showcase their core skills on their resumes to demonstrate their ability to address this gap.

Resume Resolutions

The average time to find a job is 6 months. The Economist discusses this statistic along with another striking figure: 51% of currently employed U.S. workers are actively seeking a new job. But are they using the right tools? Refreshing your resume to highlight your ache and speak to employers’ needs is key to capturing the attention of hiring managers. Korn Ferry outlines 5 resume resolutions for 2025 in this article:

1. Re-write

2. Target

3. Quantify

4. Format

5. Tell a good story

If you're looking for modern resume strategies, I encourage you to check out my extensive guide.

Essential Personal Branding Tips from Global Experts

One of the key ways that job seekers can differentiate themselves is by articulating their unique value proposition or, simply put, what makes them unique. 

William Arruda, a senior contributor at Forbes, has gathered 19 essential personal branding tips. The tips are organized into three steps of personal branding: 

• KNOW – Discover the brand called YOU

• SHOW – Tell your story

• GROW – Expand your visibility and value

Read my Curated Career Conversation with award-winning author David Gordon for more insights into personal branding and the importance of cultivating a unique value proposition.

What to Wear to An Executive Interview

First impressions take an average of only 7 seconds. Executive Insights delves into the psychology behind that in this article. Top tip? Looking at an individual’s clothes is the first step when people form an impression. So what should your clothes say about you when interviewing for a job? While that will change depending on the specific position or company, my LinkedIn followers say Formal or Business Professional is the way to go.

Our guide for what to wear for an executive interview includes tips for both men and women interviewing in either business formal or business casual environments. Whatever your style needs or company requirements are, we have you covered.

Read the full article now!

Job Openings Rise: But How Many Are Real?

“Despite more job openings, hiring is weakening, workers are even more reluctant to quit their jobs, and layoffs are low. It feels like a wait-and-see scenario as employers and employees alike wait for the next administration’s policies.” Robert Frick, an Economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, shares his thoughts on the latest Labor Department report in this Inc.com article. The report stated that job openings in the U.S. rose to 8.1 million.

But with more job openings, why do so many candidates have stories about being “ghosted” on the job hunt? A startling 18% to 22% of jobs posted in 2024 were never filled, according to a recent Greenhouse report. And 61% of U.S. candidates report being ghosted after a job interview - a nine point increase since April 2024. Business Insider explores this data and provides insights on how to spot fake job postings here.

Connecting Learning Programs to Company Strategy

With more job seekers staying in their positions, while at the same time skill gaps are widening, this is a prime moment for a Chief Learning Officer (CLO) to have a prominent seat at the table. Harvard Business Review discusses how learning & development departments can step into this moment and connect their learning programs to company strategy in this article.

As with a resume or performance review, KPIs are key. CLOs must move from participation-based KPIs to outcome-based KPIs to show that their efforts have a positive impact on the metrics that matter most to companies. Moving into 2025, Learning & Development teams should take time to self-reflect on the following questions:

• What challenges is the company facing?

• What are the KPIs the employees need to attain to address these challenges?

• How can that translate into KPIs for Learning & Development?

• How will you show your team has achieved success in line with those KPIs?

Pro Tip: All of these questions can be easily modified to provide thoughtful self-reflection prompts for your resume!

Future Proofing the C-Suite

Is there a strong succession plan for the C-Suite at your company? Over 75% of respondents to the Russell Reynolds Associates Global Leadership Monitor selected that their company has either a reactive or information succession plan with no advanced plans in place. Read more about this trend, with a focus specifically on COO succession planning, here.

Even with a well-thought-out success plan, there is often intense scrutiny with a leadership change in the C-Suite. What will the new leader accomplish in the first 90 days? A successful C-Suite officer must think beyond the first 3 months and look at long-term goals. David Lancefield, CEO Coach and guest lecturer at London Business School, discusses what effective CEOs do after their first 90 days in this article.