Informed Careers

Major Conclusions 

Executive hiring prospects have markedly improved since our last survey in September 2011with about 61% of employers selectively or significantly increasing executive hiring.  However, the impact of the recent economic and stock market turmoil is seen to be reducing and slowing executive hiring in the near future.    

All industries have improved expectations for strong or selective increases in executive hiring for 2012 other than investment banking and securities brokerage. Executive respondents indicated that the industries planning to hire the most are Consulting/ Professional Services, Consumer Finance/Payment Products, and Health Insurance.  

Executives also indicated that most functional areas are demonstrating growth in executive hiring for 2012. The functional areas with the greatest executive hiring opportunities are in Sales, Risk Management/Compliance, and Consulting/Professional Services. The IT function has shown improved hiring and product development/management remained strong.  The Marketing function appears to be weakening in terms of hiring prospects. 

Continued increases in executive hiring are projected throughout 2012 by over almost half the respondents companies which is a significantly more optimistic outlook than other surveys we have conducted since 2008.    

About three quarters of currently employed executives are currently open to or actively exploring new opportunities.  

Unemployed executives are generally less optimistic then employed executives, but are becoming more positive about their executive hiring situation and the timeframes for improvement since our last survey.  

Key Implications 

For executives, opportunities are increasingly becoming available but employers continue to remain cautious and selective requiring executives to be well prepared to respond to good opportunities in a timely and serious manner if interested.  For unemployed executives, it is increasing important to be active and engaged by being proactive in gaining introductions to desired employers on a direct basis, via company executives and recruiters as well as in working with quality third party recruiters.  Putting an executive’s resume on a web site and responding to job ads does not seem to be worthwhile and often interferes with other channels.  

For hiring organizations, there is an increasing need to be more timely and responsive with top candidates that are being pursued as well as to focus more on the retention of their top talent with increased responsibilities and compensation.

Despite the slow growth in the economy, Claymore Partners continues to find financial services executive hiring growing with a focus on marketing, product development, and sales/business development roles in particular.

We find that clients are increasing looking for top quality candidates that specifically meet their demanding requirements, not just generalist talent.  Claymore Partners recommends that executive candidates stay focussed on positions and industries where they can add the most value immediately as they seek the next moves in their career development.  It is time to revitalize resumes and career plans as the fall hiring season is soon to be upon us when financial institutions will be looking to fill positions by year end or early next year after bonuses have been paid out.

We just completed the Claymore Partners Spring 2011 Talent Market Survey and had over 400 respondents which provided a great perspective on what is currently happening in the executive talent market and shows trends since 2008 when we began this series.

The survey highlights include:

• Executive hiring is back in financial services and consulting
• Sales, Marketing, and Product Development/Management functions are increasingly in demand
• Continued expansion of executive hiring is anticipated throughout the balance of 2011
• Employed executives are increasingly willing and actively seeking new opportunities with expanded roles and growth potential
• Unemployed executives are becoming more optimistic but remain skeptical despite the up tick in executive hiring

Major Conclusions

Executive hiring has accelerated substantially since our last survey with almost ten percent of employers currently significantly increasing executive hiring.   Executive respondents indicated that most of the companies in their industries are increasing executive hiring with Consulting/Professional Services, Wealth Management, Investment Management, and Consumer Finance/Payment Products having the highest percentage of firms hiring at this time.  Sales and  Marketing function executive hiring are strongest along with increasing hiring along with in product development/management. Risk Management/Compliance hiring is rebounding strongly as well (71%). 

Continued increases in executive hiring are projected throughout 2011 for almost half the respondents companies which is a strong result in comparison to previous surveys since 2008.  

Only 20% of currently employed executives indicated that their employment plans are to maintain their current employer/position which is the lowest level since Sept. 2008.  Therefore, over 72% of currently employed executives are currently open to or actively exploring new opportunities.  The proportion open to exploring new opportunities is the highest since we began the survey.

Unemployed executives are also more positive about the executive hiring situation and timeframes for improvement though they are less optimistic then employed executives.

Key Implications

For executives, opportunities are increasingly becoming available for which they should be prepared to assess in terms of their current position and organization situation as well as their career objectives and plans.  There is an increased caution and need to evaluate the hiring organization and role being offered as well in the recruitment process for executives.

For hiring organizations, there is an urgent need to focus on retention of top talent and revamping their executive recruitment approaches in this increasingly competitive executive talent marketplace.  Use of job boards, advertisements, and the company career site are not particulary valuable for executive recruiting.  Strong referral programs and talented recruiters (internal, retained, and contingency) are best for effective executive search.

For many executives, it appears that their career development has stalled whether employed or not employed as that market has been in the doldrums while companies remain tight on hiring and promotions.  However, the fear in the market about shifting to a new employer has abated and most bonuses for last  year have been paid.  We see and expect a significant change in the interest of executives to move to a new organization that offers greater career opportunities.

For employers, it is time to relook at your key employees and what new challenges and opportunities can be provided to further their career development as well as the profitability of the organization.   Time to reestablish development and training programs for your team. Time to reexamine compensation and bonuses in light of the marketplace. 

For executives, it is time to reexamine your current career status and what is most important to you as well as how and whether your current organization can provide that for you.  It is time to pursue those needs first within your organization and then to examine opportunities that are increasingly emerging at other organizations.  It is time to refresh your resume as a focussed marketing document and think through what target organizations and roles would be attractive. 

It is time!!

Executive hiring levels appear to be stalled though selective hiring is occuring per the Claymore Partners’ Executive Talent Survey of over 600 executives. 

Please see my recent article for more insights at http://www.ere.net/2010/02/08/executive-hiring-stalled-or-the-lull-before-the-storm/

With 2010 now in full gear, it is time to revitalize and evaluate a job search as the executive winter market is upon us.  Companies are seeking to add executive talent early in the year to deliver results during this year and meet their objectives.  Hiring will also occur after bonus payouts so that a new employer will not have to pay for bonuses lost.

Key Tips:

• Reexamine your resume as a marketing document, not a summary of everything that you have done.  Any upfront summary is really a positioning statement of who you are and what makes you different.  Show key accomplishments in bullets starting with action words and quantification of results achieved if possible.  More than 5 bullets for a position for key accomplishments is too much.  Leaving off early positions or a date when you graduated does not get you more interviews as many career counselors suggest, but rather raises suspicions about your background.
• Reestablish network relationships by providing value to them and asking for advice, not open positions.
• Never submit directly to a job on a company’s career site as that puts you off limits for executive search firms with that company and rarely gets you an interview.  Get in touch with a key employee to refer you for that position or work with a recruiter to get introduced to an executive, not a computer data base.
• Ensure that you have a good profile on LinkedIn and join groups that are related to your industry and function to be easier to contact and see what jobs and discussions are occurring in your field.
• View finding a new job as a job and work at it diligently with a purpose and plan.
• Have specific targets rather than being “open” in your discussions to demonstrate your work interests and passions.
• Stay positive and enthusiastic by working out and keeping active with friends, family and business connections.

Happy Thanksgiving and best wishes for a wonderful holiday season and new year.  This is a special time of the year to give thanks for the blessing each of us have received despite the challenging economic environment.

It is also a great time of the year to review your career situation and objectives.  Are you in a satisfying job with growth opportunities?  Is there training and development that would better enable you to perform at another level?  Are you maintaining and growing your network?

Devoting some time during this year end period to thinking and evaluating your career situation, revisiting your career goals, and developing an action plan to pursue in 2010 is a great investment of your time.  Maybe a good time to also update your resume with expected executive hiring growth next year.

Executive hiring appears to be reemerging at many organizations after being frozen for the last year due to the financial credit crisis based upon the results of the recent Claymore Partners’ Labor Day 2009 Executive Talent Market survey with over 640 executive respondents. “Almost half of employers are now selectively hiring executives and significant reductions are greatly diminished based upon the survey results as well as our own executive search activity and market discussions “according to Mr. Landberg, Managing Director of Claymore Partners. 

Health insurance, healthcare/pharmaceuticals, wealth management, investment banking, and consulting/professional services industries appear to be most robust in terms of executive hiring at this time. From a functional perspective, executive hiring increases are most pronounced in sales, consulting, and risk management/compliance. The direct impact of the financial credit crisis for most executives appears to be waning though strong hiring is not expected until mid to year end 2010 by most executives. 

Claymore Partners is an executive search and consulting firm specializing in senior level searches in the financial services, insurance, and consulting arenas. A full copy of the results from the Claymore Partners’ Labor Day 2009 Executive Talent Market Survey can be obtained by emailing slandberg@ClaymorePartners.com. 

The impact of the deepest recession in post War history, not only impacted executive job losses, but seems to have changed many career objectives and ambitions.  The importance of having a solid and rewarding position with a quality firm has become ever more critical for many while the pursuit of a career providing satisfaction has also become paramount for many others.

The recession seems to have caused a major time of reflection for executives in terms of their career and lives.  Learning to live with less, spending quality time with their families, and longer working careers to recover from retirement plan reductions appear to have significantly impacted the executive psyche.

Will this change and revert back when the economy and stock market has recovered?  It will be an interesting time to reflect back on the executive career mind set when that occurs.

While the financial services industry was reportedly on the merge of a damaging meltdown by May of 2008, the gravity of the situation was not, at that time, fully comprehended.  A year later, engagement levels of workers within the financial services industry are beginning to see a dramatic turnaround, as reported by Modern Survey, a provider of online surveys and consulting services.  In fact, the number of disengaged workers in the United States (U.S.) financial services sector have been cut in half, to only 11%. In Canada, the number of fully engaged financial services workers has shown a very clear increase, from 10% a year ago to 16% in 2009. Modern Survey’s Employee Engagement Index uses five questions that gauge the extent to which employees:

1.  Take pride in their company;
2.  Believe they have a promising future at their company;
3.  Recommend their company as a great place to work;
4.  Go “above and beyond” their normal job duties in order to help their company succeed;
5.  Intend to stay with their company.

Of the five survey items used to measure engagement, the largest change in response from 2008 to 2009 for both U.S. and Canada reportedly occurs with the “Inspired to go ‘above and beyond’ normal job duties” question. While the Canadian Index shows an impressive change in responses favorable to this question, from 56% in 2008 to 67% this year, the U.S. Index reveals even more staggering growth from 58% to 73%.  Both groups demonstrate a very positive trend, posting statistically significant gains across four-out-of-five index items, portraying financial service workers as increasingly willing to do more at their jobs.  As a result of the more severe industry challenges in the U.S., the changes in responses from 2008 to 2009 are more extreme in the U.S. than in Canada for the majority of the survey questions. As to the cause of this rebound in engagement levels, says Modern Survey President, Don MacPherson, “There are a number of factors which could be affecting these figures, including layoffs which may have trimmed out less engaged employees, changes in business practices due to market conditions, and the increased level of public scrutiny over the financial sector.” MacPherson further adds that in his opinion, one may conclude that employees, especially in the financial sector, acknowledge not only feeling fortunate to have a job but feel compelled to give it their best efforts.  Regardless of the reason for this turnaround, the figures are encouraging to an industry that took so many hits in 2009, both financially and in terms of public relations.

Web Site: www.modernsurvey.com