How to Turn Goodbye into a Victory Song

Australian Financial Review, 27-28 October 2001 p. 31

…..You still have to plan.

That's not a one-shot exercise: "its got to be multifaceted", says Andrew Horsley a Sydney executive search consultant.

"You have to have a clear idea of what type of organisation you want to move to, at what level, and whether you need any retraining".

Working the networks is his advice "but be discreet about it". "Talk to your colleagues, talk to people in other organisations at the right level…..and come with solutions", he says, rather than tales of woe and grievance.

He agrees with the rule of thumb that only one-in-three jobs is advertised, "since informal networks are often the way people move as people prefer dealing with known quantities."

As an executive search consultant his practice is driven by mandates from clients, he is quick to point out that a proper search process produces a wider range of candidates and quite probably a better fit between candidate and job than does the network method, but he would admit that if you are looking through the other end of the telescope at being hired you can't be expected to rule out networking even if it gets you where you are trying to go.

The curriculum vitae needs an update. Short is good, without gaps. "Gaps are always fishy," he says. Even a dud job that lasted six months should go in because people in your industry will often know and will wonder what else has been left out and, most importantly, "one dud job is not fatal".

Horsley says that "for some reason CV lengths tend to be in inverse proportion to experience, with young thrusters supplying 15 pages and the old timers offering 1 cryptic page. "Three pages is good", he suggests, as long as they are concise, complete and relevant. And on the subject of calling your pet headhunter he is somewhere between world weary and cautious. "There is one chance in 10 or 20 that the consultant may be able to help, and that's being optimistic" he says. He notes that about twice a decade he gets a candidate who fits well with an existing mandate, so he is not saying no, but says it is critical for the candidate to be realistic rather than aspirational in such a situation.

Horsley puts it more diplomatically "past performance is usually a good predicator of future performance".

What about age? He admits "over 50 can be a harder sell" but different age groups offer different skill sets and perspectives. One simple complication is that professional organisations start pensioning partners off at 55 but, as he says, it is quite possible for older candidates to find a satisfying new role, particularly if it is in an advisory or part time capacity. But importantly they must bring energy and some extra dimension to the role."