CHALLENGE
Find a meaningful career path of successively higher-level roles for senior IT executives.Our client was in line to become CIO of a major automaker, having been CIO of another large manufacturing firm previously. There were two overriding requirements. The first was timing and the need to broaden industry exposure to create a more diverse set of skills and experiences. The second was tenure. Our client was just 40—so early in his career journey.
APPROACH
Determine What Key Technologies to LeverageWe spent hours talking through our client’s career journey and developed a coherent narrative to explain why he would leave before his next promotion and not “burn any bridges”. Instinctively, our client knew why he was motivated to change, but we realized we had to evoke advocacy in his network, so the “story” was crucial. Over a few dinners, we came up with a plan.
Validate the Next Role OpportunitiesFrom where my client had been, there were a limited number of industries and companies within those industries to go to and maintain an upward trajectory. Visibility was paramount at the industry and technology level. Speaking engagements, conferences, and networking events had to be chosen and attended, and connections were made and cultivated over time. A locus of potential opportunities was selected ahead of time.
Select How To Engage Each ConnectionWe had to work through how to engage indirectly at first and then cultivate real advocacy as the roles were all so senior. Most positions, in fact, were never made public but rather transacted through private senior networking connections. This also necessitated a cleaning up of all social media visibility to control messaging and image.
The Magellan Difference
- Focus on long-term career path empowered our client to create advocative relationships
- Crafting a message and building selected skills for the future reduced career risk dramatically
- Selecting only those opportunities that made long-term sense reduced random interviewing to almost zero
RESULTS
Balancing Opportunities and Connections Optimized Network InteractionsOnly engaging with senior connections on opportunities where my client had built demonstrably advantageous skills made each “interview” a huge value add to both sides during the conversations. This interviewing with service was deeply rewarding and successful and ultimately led to huge opportunities.
Final choices for each mover required meticulous thought and a fully vetted 100-day plan in each case. Our client also relied on a proven “one-page” structure for integration. This key insight made his vision compelling and easy to understand for his new firm and his team. It also leads to predictable and outstanding success in implementation. This, in turn, created a highly visible and attractive platform for the: next opportunity.
“Over the years, working with Jonathan at Magellan gave me a significant advantage when deciding how to engage each opportunity that came my way. We were, together, able to avoid false positives and false negatives. We also had a number of stimulating dinners as well. Finally, Jonathan went out of his way to visit and attend events that mattered to me and my family.” ”
