Introducing the New Lead5 Corporate Executive Recruiter Database

One major trend of the executive search industry over the last two decades is the increased flow of consultants from the major firms (Korn/Ferry, Heidrick, Spencer Stuart, & Russell Reynolds) to in-house executive recruiting roles within companies, PE firms, and VC firms. The takeaway for the candidate is more senior level leadership positions are being actively sourced and placed directly by the company or financial sponsor. Add the Covid-19 lockdowns and an increased corporate view on cost cutting and you have a scenario entering 2021 where, more than ever, companies are directly recruiting executives and bypassing the retained search firms.

With this trend in mind, Lead5 has built and launched a corporate executive recruiter database that our members have access to and the Lead5 community continues to enhance. Log in to Lead5, click on Community, then People, scroll down and select the Corporate Recruiters tab and use the Lead5 filters to identify the gatekeepers to leadership hiring for thousands of companies including contact details.

Remember, you have a green light to send your resume directly to these in-house executive recruiting professionals and the goal is ensuring your information is updated in the company or PE firms’ executive ATS (Applicant Tracking System). In addition, you want to make the networking connection with the in-house team to keep you informed of current and future leadership openings.

One Lead5 member built a targeted list of companies specific to his industry sector and experienced a 70% response rate to direct outreach to in-house recruiters. This method yields a much higher response than contacting retained recruiters or C-level execs – why? Because the in-house recruiters number one priority is to evaluate external talent and build a bench of current and future available talent for the organization. Remember, retained recruiters number one priority is the hiring company, not the candidate!

Want to learn more? Join the market discussion on Lead5 here:

https://lead5.com/community/forums/posts/241182

Review sample emails for direct outreach here:

https://blog.lead5.com/how-to-best-approach-executive-recruiters/

https://blog.lead5.com/how-to-send-a-strong-intro-email-to-a-ceo/

 

 

Boost Your Executive Opportunities by 200%

Boosting your executive opportunities by 200% is easier than you think.

Are you an executive who is seeking ways to increase your market exposure?   The good news is that it’s easier than you think.   From placing top executives in leading firms for over two decades, here is a trap to avoid and a tactic that is proven to work:

  • Trap to avoid: many execs I consult with rely solely on their own professional network to seek new opportunities or they select a few executive recruiters they have come in contact with over the years.  While it’s smart for you to tap into this network, you must realize that this represents only a small fraction of available opportunities.
  • Best method: I emphasize to my executive clients the need to be proactive.  This means researching and discovering the companies and opportunities that fit your background and marketing yourself directly to those company’s key contacts. It also means marketing yourself to the relevant industry or functional practice sector consultants at all the major, regional, and boutique executive search firms, not just the select firms you know from the past.
  • How can you start today? My company Lead5 offers comprehensive lists of companies that you can filter by position, region, company size, industry, and ownership structure.  This list, combined with Lead5’s intel of executive departures, yields companies that are strong candidates for your outreach. Lead5 also maintains an executive recruiter database of the leading US-based retained search consultants for firms of all sizes, sortable by the Lead5 filters.
  • Start small, think big. If you deployed this proactive methodology, even sending only one outreach per week, you are exponentially increasing your chances of being discovered.

To wrap this up, I encourage you to take a proactive role in your career.   This is the best way to maximize your value in the marketplace.  I see too many executives waiting on a phone call from a recruiter or over-relying on their own professional network.   By expanding your comfort zone, you are positioning yourself for career growth and stability.

Increase Your Executive Opportunities by 70%

Based on my two decades of experience as a Senior Partner and Practice Leader at a leading executive search firm, I can tell you that being a reactive job seeker is holding you back in your career.  But the good news is that there’s a better path forward.

In this blog, I’m going to share with you an example of how the executive search process actually works.  Within that construct, I’ll help you proactively insert yourself in the search process at the right time to help you land your next executive position.

Let’s start with a brief primer on how the executive job search process works using John Smith – a departing West Coast CMO – as an example.   As I describe this process, I’ll explain what each step means for you as a prospect seeking a CMO role on the West Coast.   Of course, this example will fit for all executives like Chief Financial Officers, Chief Legal Officers, etc.   Let’s dig in.

John Smith is a seasoned CMO with a West Coast-based firm who has all the boxes checked.  He’s grown the brand remarkably, successfully managed P&L responsibility, and has demonstrated mastery of all aspects of executive leadership.   He’s well-respected by his peers, and his board of directors loves him.    Obviously,  John’s firm would like to keep him around for a long time.

Then lightning strikes.

John’s wife decides she wants to relocate back to New York City to care for her ailing mother.   John agrees to the move and makes a lateral shift back to the East Coast.   Now his former firm is scrambling.

John’s now former firm will choose 1 of 3 options, and I’ll explain what these options mean for you as his potential successor:

Option 1:  John’s firm can hire from within. If there’s a great a candidate waiting in the wings, they’re all set.

What’s this mean for you? In this case, you have no chance in succeeding John.  But many times, there’s no ideal internal candidate so the firm moves to option 2 or 3.

Option 2:  Start a retained search process. In the past, this meant that your chances of replacing John were slim because you never had visibility to the opening.   You would be dependent on the long odds of being on the retained search firm’s list.

Services like Lead5 have changed the narrative on this.   Lead5 would uncover this opportunity along with key contact information.   Lead5 would also give you inside intel on the opening so that you could target your outreach effectively.   It’s important for you to note here that the search firm doesn’t care ‘how’ they source the right candidate.   All they care about is finding the right fit for their client, and the faster the better.   Remember, John’s firm has a hole and it’s in their vested interested to fill it with the right candidate quickly.

What’s this mean for you? First off, you need to have your C.V. and outreach strategy solidified and ready to go.   Second, you need immediate knowledge of this position so that you can strike before your competition does.   Services like Lead5 allow you to filter on important criteria and immediately expose these hidden opportunities on our site and via email.

The takeaway: Be prepared, be proactive, and strike when the iron is hot.

Option 3: John’s firm will take 4 to 6 weeks to explore quick hit ideas from senior management, the board of directors, marketing firms, etc.  If at the end of the 4 to 6 weeks they have not found a high-quality candidate, they will start a full retained search process (see Option 2 above).

What’s this mean for you? Understand that John’s firm is essentially scrambling for options here.   Their core competency is not executive search, and this process is taking time away from running their business.  This mean that as a candidate, keep in mind that John’s firm wants to find the right candidate quickly, and get back to focusing on building products and serving customers.

The takeaway: Be prepared and proactive.  Know that it will increase your odds to strike during the first three (3) weeks of this process.   If you’re a good fit and your outreach is strong, you have the potential to land this position before the firm resorts to hiring a costly retained search firm.

To summarize, options 2 and 3 above are your sweet-spots as an executive candidate.   In the past, they have hidden to you as an executive job seeker.  Services like Lead5 make these opportunities visible and arm you with insider intel that will help you stand out as a candidate.   Once you have near real-time visibility on executive openings, I can’t stress enough how critical timing is in this equation.   Therefore, it’s important to remember two things:

1. Firms have a vested interest to filling a key role with the right candidate quickly.

2. Executive jobs are highly competitive. It’s critical that you insert yourself promptly so that you’re at the top of the recruiter’s list, before the surge of C.V.’s hit.

The modern executive job search is experiencing a transformation.   Executive candidates who are proactive will have access to more opportunities and will maximize their earning potential in the marketplace.

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. 

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.