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5 Tips to Mine the Hidden Executive Job Market

The challenge: 80% of C-Suite level executive opportunities are never published.   If you’re an executive looking to make a career move, that statistic can seem daunting.

In the past, due to the secretive and cumbersome process of finding executive search opportunities, executives have been trained to be passive in their career journey.   This includes waiting on a call from a retained recruiter, sending in a CV for a published executive role (where it sits on a desk with the other 1,000 CV’s), or networking and hoping that the stars align.

But there’s good news.   There is a better way.    Here are 5 effective steps to help you transition from being a passive executive job seeker to a proactive participant in your career.   Now you have the power to land your next senior role.

1. Subscribe to Lead5.com. Lead5 has helped leading executives tap the hidden executive job world for the last 5 years.    It was founded by Josh Wimberley a former Senior Partner at Korn-Ferry who recognized that executives need transparent access to unpublished senior roles the moment they become available.

2. It’s a timing game. The highest earning positions are the most sought-after.  As such, you must throw your hat in the ring at the earliest possible point in the job search.   Lead 5’s edge is timeliness driven by its proprietary AI.   Lead 5 lists jobs on average 45 days before other comparable services giving you a competitive edge.  

3. Be prepared.  Related to timeliness listed above, you must have a keen sense of what your next role will look like, and how to tailor your CV and outreach accordingly.   Remember, companies have a vested interest in landing the right candidate sooner rather than later.   Make sure you’re prepared to strike.  

4. Information is key. At the executive level, your understanding of the role, company, and industry is table stakes.   To stand out from your competition, you should leverage insider information.   For example: services like Lead5.com inform you on the dynamics of departures so that you can understand who you are attempting to replace (and in certain cases, who you should actively differentiate yourself from).

5. Continuous networking. Too often we see executives tapping into their network after they sense their current opportunity is no longer viable.   As executive job transitions often take 180 days on average, this means that they’re already behind the eight ball.  The lesson?   As busy as you are, don’t neglect the people that have played a role in your success.   Likewise, be the person that other executives seek out when they need a helping hand.   This is an exclusive world and what goes around, comes around.

Most executive jobs are unlisted.   Use Lead5 to uncover hidden executive opportunities and gain the intel required to land your next prominent role.   Lead5 has been the executives trusted partner for 5 years.  

Start your complimentary trial today.

 

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The Private Equity Industry Is Booming: What Does This Mean for You?

Over the last decade, the private equity industry has sky-rocketed as cheap debt from low interest rates has provided fuel to the leverage model along with more investors realizing the remarkably favorable risk-reward ratio of a well-managed PE-backed backed deal.   As the private equity model continues to build momentum, more executives from public companies are being approached to join PE-backed companies.   Have you been approached by a PE-backed firm?   If so, I’m going to share some PE industry insights from Dave Justus, a veteran PE-backed CFO, and also a Lead5 advisory board member.  I’ll close with 4 key attributes that successful private equity executives must have to thrive under this ownership structure.

Why is Private Equity Booming?

Dave Justus is the former CFO of Avetta and he’s a PE-backed veteran, and Dave also serves on the Lead5 advisory board.   He recently shared these insights on private equity’s emergence.

Mr. Justus says, “Investment by private equity firms (PE) is booming and, in some ways, overtaking public and venture capital as the preferred investment model.  While PE funds are being raised at a record rate, the number of publicly listed companies in the US has dropped by 20% over the past 10 years and by over 50% over the past 20 years.  The attractiveness of being a public company has diminished somewhat in the past decade because of regulatory pressures and costs.”

Mr. Justus continued, “With venture capital (VC) deals, investors were mainly betting on the success of the CEO and management team’s ability to create a sustainable business.  The typical success rate for early stage was around 1 in a 100.  The odds in VC were long, but the returns were very high with a successful exit.  PE on the other hand invests in professionalizing and scaling proven businesses in established markets, without taking much, if any, business plan and market adoption risk.  PE firms typically expect a 3x return on their investment in a 3-to-5-year horizon.  In a nutshell, PE can be a heavy lift operating environment to professionalize and scale the business in an established market, but is much more of a ‘sure bet.’  As a result, there’s a flood of executives looking to get into this space.”

B2B firms have traditionally represented the largest private equity target, but PE-capital continues to pour into IT, B2C, Financial Services, and other industries.   In 2017, over 4000 PE-backed deals occurred, representing an investment value of over $500B.   With deal volumes staying high, more top executives from traditional public companies are being recruited to play key roles in company transformations.

Lead5 Analysis Shows Private Equity Salary Growth

This PE growth is generating higher salaries for qualified executives.   For example, Lead5 compensation analysis has shown an increase in the average base salary for CFO’s of PE backed lower middle market companies over the last 2 years.  The mid-point of base salary has traditionally been roughly $250,000.  With a highly competitive market for proven players with previous PE portfolio company CFO experience, the base salary range has jumped up to $300,000.

What makes a PE-backed executive successful?

 To be a successful executive at a PE-backed firm, you must recognize that the investment horizon for most PE-backed deals is 3-5 years and operate with an appropriate sense of urgency.   You must be comfortable leading in an environment that demands successful financial results on a compacted timeline.   Also, part of the PE-backed ‘playbook’ is cutting out unnecessary expenses so being resourceful with limited resources is paramount to your success.

Here’s a list of executive leadership traits that are critically important in a PE-backed operating model:

1. Bias for action. Within larger public firms, due to the sheer size and some of the ingrown bureaucracy that comprises the company culture, you probably attend (and maybe even lead) some meetings that are customary – where updates are exchanged, and decisions are postponed or never even made.  In the PE-backed company culture, meetings are principally about making important decisions, some of which will change the direction of the firm.   In short, it’s about being decisive and taking action.

2. Entrepreneurial. PE-Backed firms are notorious for ‘stripping out the fat’ and this includes support and administrative staff.   Are you comfortable rolling up your sleeves and doing whatever work that needs to be done?   Successful PE execs find this environment to be both challenging and rewarding.

3. Team Skills/Emotional intelligence. With limited resources, can you rally your team and inspire them to move the firm forward?   First, you have to be able to earn the trust of your subordinates.   Then you have to understand when to hit the pedal and when to give your team a break.   Can you keep the work environment upbeat and positive when the heat is on?

4. Confident Communicator. You’ll be expected to produce results quickly, and you’ll be asked to provide progress updates more frequently than at large public firms.   Do you have the confidence and communication skills to defend what you’re doing?    It’s important to recognize that leadership in a PE-backed firm requires effective communication with not only your subordinates and customers, but also the private equity firm that has an investment stake in your success.

Most PE-backed executive jobs are unlisted.  Use Lead5 to uncover hidden PE-backed executive opportunities and gain the intel required to land your next prominent role.   Lead5 has been the executives trusted partner for 5 years.  

Start your complimentary trial today.