Client: Angela was head of talent management & development for a New England-based enterprise software startup.
Industry: Enterprise Software, Marketing, SaaS, Information Technology, Software, Construction
Function: Human Resources, Talent Management, Leadership Development, Employee Learning
Challenge: Angela launched a job search after her position was eliminated in a mass staff reduction, but she struggled to get traction in a very competitive job market.
Process: Angela overhauled her resume and re-focused her efforts on the unpublished market.
Landing: Within two months, Angela obtained two excellent job offers through the unpublished market and selected the position of director of talent & development for a software company in the architecture, engineering, and construction fields – a brand-new role that she can shape.
Study:
Angela was head of talent management and development for two years at a startup tech company within the marketing space that was transitioning into a hyper growth stage. The first nine months were very exciting as the company prepared for an IPO. In the second year, however, things changed quickly. New investors came in, competition ramped up dramatically, and the company’s leadership stumbled. The organization was forced to initiate staff reductions. In the third such round, Angela’s position was eliminated.
“I wasn’t horribly surprised. I saw the handwriting on the wall months earlier and was already job seeking by the time I lost my job in September,” said Angela.
Angela had limited success job hunting through the summer, but she chalked it up to a slow hiring season. She was working with an independent career coach who was helping her think through her career path going forward.
Around that time, Angela discovered The Barrett Group (TBG). She took time to learn about TBG’s services, but she wasn’t inclined to sign on because she already had a coach. In addition, she had confidence that she would be as successful finding a new job as she had always been.
But the fall was very difficult.
“There was so much competition. Nothing I did was working. I was the finalist in one role in September but didn’t get it. I was a finalist for another role near Christmas, but I didn’t get that one either. When a third role fell through in January, I felt very frustrated. At that point, I told myself that I had to do something different. So, I reached out to The Barrett Group.”
Angela started with TBG’s Clarity Program, which she appreciated even as she moved through it quickly.
“Although this was ground I had already covered with my prior coach, Clarity was very validating. It gave me renewed clarity and focus on what I wanted,” said Angela.
In the next stage of the TBG Program, Angela derived enormous benefit from the relationship she developed with her career consultant.
“Working with Lori Chevalier was such a great experience! For one, it can be lonely to job search, and Lori brought a burst of energy, positivity, and motivation to every meeting each week,” said Angela. “She was also a good partner. She matched my sense of urgency about the job search and wanted updates each week on my interviews and connections. I consistently felt that Lori was in my corner and my biggest fan. It made a huge difference!”
They moved quickly on revising Angela’s resume because, within a week or two of working together, three interviews arose from some of her efforts prior to joining TBG.
“My resume has NEVER looked so good – and I have paid professional writers three times to redo my resume prior to working with TBG. It is amazing! What the writing team produced was so differentiating! They pushed me really hard to think about my results and how I could be even more effective in presenting myself. In my world results aren’t always easy to gauge because I’m an internal service. It’s hard to quantify the impact I have had on a business. And then, the education Lori gave me about tweaking my resume for each opportunity was SO helpful!”
One of the interviews Angela obtained came from the published market, one through a recruiter, and one through her network. Together they represented three of the five different market access channels covered in TBG’s program, so they got busy.
“Lori was very flexible about introducing the program elements that I needed when I needed them, even if they were out of order. She was so adaptive! Ultimately, none of those opportunities panned out, but they gave me momentum and I appreciated how quickly Lori pivoted.”
After those unsuccessful interviews, Lori encouraged Angela to reach more deeply into her network and focus on leveraging her social capital. She learned how to connect with people and comfortably ask who else she should meet within their networks.
“Once I got started networking it felt so natural. Initially, I second-guessed myself. But Lori was both supportive AND challenging. She didn’t let me stay in my comfort zone. At the same time, if I was hesitant, she would discuss how I could approach connecting more comfortably. I never felt like she was putting me out there without a net. That is the mark of a wonderful coach! “
Angela learned a lot – even in areas where she felt like she already knew a lot.
“I have been on LinkedIn forever and already knew a lot about it. But the ways Lori coached me to mine my network for opportunities and to find people in my network – and in my network’s network – there was a lot of sophistication in those lessons!”
“And then the interviewing…I mean, I teach interviewing. I coach people on how to interview and how to be interviewed and I thought, “Oh my God! I have been saying the wrong thing! I’ve been giving away too much! I’ve been too humble in the way I present myself! I’ve been asking the wrong questions!” I couldn’t believe how often I was blowing it before. That flipped a switch for me. I started having so much more success after that.”
Angela’s newly improved job search tactics quickly yielded better results than she had been getting before.
“I realized that I had been competing mainly in the published market before. My former coach and I talked about networking conceptually, but I wasn’t doing the kind of networking that I learned to do from my TBG coaches. My former coach was great and helped me, but it wasn’t the same level of focus nor the skill building that I really needed.”
Indeed, within about two months of starting TBG’s program, Angela obtained two excellent job offers – both arising at the same time.
The first one came about after Angela reached out to a friend she met 10 years earlier. Her friend worked for a global company that develops software solutions for the architecture, engineering, and construction industries. It was a totally different space for her, so he gave her a lot of information about the company and the industry and offered to keep an eye out for opportunities. In short order, he saw a budding role at one of the company’s brands, reached out to the chief people office, and made an introduction for Angela.
“My friend referred me before the company advertised the role on the published market. When they did, the role attracted about 1,000 applicants. Within four days, they shut it down. My timing couldn’t have been better! If I hadn’t hired TBG, I probably would have been in that pool of people vying for that job.”
The second opportunity came about after Angela reached out to a former direct report. He encouraged his current supervisor to connect with Angela. She did and the two developed a relationship. When Angela’s new contact heard about an opportunity at a startup through her own network, she made sure Angela knew of it.
“I started interviewing with both companies at the same time. It was so validating. These were two incredible roles. So much of networking is about planting seeds and you don’t know what’s going to blossom.”
Over three weeks Angela interviewed with both companies. She leaned into the interview prep that she had done with Lori and knocked it out of the park for both roles.
“I felt very confident. What Lori taught me improved my interview performance. An offer from the first company came on a Friday. The hiring manager called me, personally, and expressed how much they really wanted me. An offer from the second company came on Sunday. And, to be honest, that role was a stretch for me. Four months ago, I would not have even qualified for it, but I interviewed so well thanks to all the support I got from TBG. I was blown away! After working so hard for months to get a job, I had a choice!”
Angela credited Lori, also, for preparing her well for offer negotiations.
“Because of Lori’s coaching, I knew how to approach compensation negotiations. I asked them to raise the bonus – and they did!”
Angela opted for the first opportunity, but she maintains a great relationship with the recruiter of the second company – even referring one of her contacts for the role. Her new position is director of talent development, and her responsibilities include running all the talent programs, from onboarding to succession. It’s brand new and Angela will help shape the role. She couldn’t be more excited.
“I knew in my heart of hearts that this was the right role and I am very happy. TBG has transformed me as an executive! TBG’s program is delivered in an authentic way for a professional at my level. None of it felt transactional. And everything I learned will be long-term lessons for myself. This experience has been life changing!”
Photo: 123rf.com
