KANSAS CITY, Mo., Feb. 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Today's unemployment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, doesn't include an important statistic — the average length of time it takes Americans looking for a six-figure job to land their next career position. The time it takes a six-figure professional to find a new job can be between 18 to 24 months, compared with the overall average of 10 months.
"There are strategies that have been proven to dramatically decrease the number of months it takes highly paid job seekers to find their next positions," said Tammy Kabell, CEO of Career Resume Consulting, an executive career firm that has had great success in helping clients find positions in weeks and not months. "It just comes down to having an action plan that works."
Ms. Kabell uses a combination of principles from marketing and sales that work with all of her clients, no matter what their area of expertise.
"I've discovered that when you are branded as an expert or have a certain expertise, you get more attention from employers and recruiters than if you are prospecting like any other candidate. High level job seeking takes a different set of strategies than if you're searching for an entry level or mid-level position," says Kabell, who works with clients across the U.S. and internationally.
Here are several job seeking branding techniques that have worked for Career Resume Consulting's clients:
- Using a one-page, skills-based resume instead of the usual chronologically based resume or CV.
- A robust LinkedIn profile, along with a compelling online resume to keep your personal marketing message consistent.
- Instead of using online job boards, which can receive 600 to 1,000 resumes for each six-figure job posting, CRC recommends sending a paper copy of the resume to the person who would be your boss at a company where you would be excited to work. "A hard copy of your resume will sit on someone's desk far longer than it would sit in their email inbox. Many of my clients continue to get calls for months after they've started their next job," Kabell adds.
- Instead of spending an hour or two on a cover letter, she recommends using a quick, hand-written note in the margin of the resume. It is much more personal and takes a fraction of the time to craft a cover letter.
Kabell also admits that much of the success of a high-level job search is a numbers game. Her clients send up to 50 resumes a week to employers that meet their target criteria.
"My most successful clients are those that can maintain a high level of activity until they find the right position. They keep their eye on the prize and make job searching their top priority. Those are the clients that land their next job in less than 12 weeks," she says. Shaving that much time off an executive job search can result in over $100,000 in recouped income vs. the income lost during an average search at that level.
Other techniques she recommends are:
- Poring over local business journals
- Searching for companies with good news to report
- Sending your resume to key personnel
- Congratulating them on the good news and requesting a conversation.
Bypassing Human Resources is a controversial approach, acknowledges Kabell, and works best with small to medium-sized organizations. However, most of her clients start their next job in companies ranging from $10 million to $50 million in annual revenue.
"In this job market," she explains, "a large majority of my clients end up working for a company they've never heard of."
For more free executive search resources, visit www.CareerResumeConsulting.com. For a free, initial consultation, contact Email or call the firm's main office at 816-600-2478.
About Tammy Kabell and Career Resume Consulting
Tammy Kabell founded Career Resume Consulting in 2008 after working for a national executive career firm and 18 years as a hiring manager. Her advice has been featured in the Wall Street Journal multiple times, MSNBC.com, and dozens of paper and online publications, including TheLadders.com, Careerbuilder.com and Monster.com. Based in Kansas City, MO, with clients throughout the U.S. and abroad, Ms. Kabell and her team take a personal marketing approach to job seeking in their full service firm.
Contact
Tammy Kabell
816-600-2478