[Live Case Study] How Jerry is uncovering hidden jobs and kick starting talks with the C-Suite

It’s me again, coming right back at you with the next live case study from the Straight to Shortlist Challenge.

If you were inspired by the results Sridhar achieved then you’ll get a lot of value out of this next case study as well.

Meet Jerry.

He’s a senior finance, operations and supply chain executive with a very impressive track record of transformation and turnaround.

I know Jerry’s story will resonate with senior people because I see this happen time and time again.

This is where you get to a certain point in your career where you’re extremely talented at what you do and have the track record to prove it. But you’ve just entered the job market and the way people are hiring looks a hell of a lot different from the last time you were looking.

You know LinkedIn is important. But you’ve barely touched your profile apart from accepting connections from people you know.

You know you need to network to find a new job.

You know most jobs are hidden.

But your network who can help you find that job is almost non-existent.

The big price you’ve paid for that hefty pay cheque is no time to invest in your professional brand outside of work, no time to keep current with what’s happening in the market and no time to keep in contact with people whose help you’ll now be calling upon.

Where do you start your search?

You certainly don’t want to feel like you are pressuring people for a job.

This is pretty close to the dilemma Jerry faced a few months ago.

We were working together on his resume and LinkedIn profile.

But while he was landing some interviews, we were starting to question whether many advertised roles actually existed and that Seek’s send button was actually the activation switch for a big black resume swallowing hole.

Both of us were dismayed at the number of times his calls to recruiters actually went un-returned, despite the advertiser’s encouragement to call them. This was even happening in successful and iconic companies with really strong employment brands – where you think they’d have their recruitment processes in order.

It was time for a radical new approach and for Jerry to start to create opportunities for himself.

In this video, I’m lifting up the veil on what we’ve worked on together as part of Jerry’s Straight to Shortlist Challenge.

This video comes live, unedited with a few flubs thrown in.

(Please excuse them. I’m a coach not a cinematographer ;-))

But watch and you’ll discover:

• What happened when Jerry tried the traditional approach of relying on applying online and through recruiters.
• Why it’s important to meet as many people face to face as you can.
• What success rate you can you actually expect from contacting complete strangers cold on LinkedIn?
• How much weight does a referral carry when you are trying to meet someone new?
• How to make informational interviews work for you.
• Some super ninja networking practices to open doors to influential people that would otherwise remain firmly closed.
• How the Straight to Shortlist process actually helped Jerry stay positive and focused.

I can put my hand on my heart and say I am super proud of how proactive Jerry has been and how willing he’s been to try new things.

The way I see it is that it’s not what people deliver when they’re secure and positive that counts so much.

It’s how they behave when the rug has been removed from under them.

And Jerry has courage, resilience and problem solving skills in spades.

I’m honoured to have him as my client and I hope you get great value from the video.

If you’d like to find out more about the Straight to Shortlist Challenge, click on the image below.

I’m looking forward to working with you.

Karalyn Brown