Insight

In our business of executive search we sometimes meet candidates who feel that their resumes and reputation speak for themselves and interviews are mere formalities. This is a folly, whether the job market is good or bad, remember that all of your interactions are business meetings to explore career possibilities. Conduct yourself with the utmost professionalism and always be in a position to elaborate on:

• Your corporate achievements and track record 
• Your assessment of where your strengths and weaknesses lie with regard to the job or possibilities in the job market 
• Your personal traits that make you successful

“Greed is good!” is a memorable quote in the 1987 movie, Wall Street. The film has come to be seen as the most archetypal portrayal of Wall Street.  Sadly, greed is too powerful a vice. It led to the downfall of Bear Stearns in early 2008 and then Lehman Brothers in September 15, 2008. Lehman’s collapse triggered off the biggest ever Global Economic Meltdown. Credit markets dried up overnight and multiple trillion dollars worth of investment just vaporized as a matter of weeks.

In my experience I find that tough times are also an opportunity to do an assessment of our careers and our employer. We have developed a set of hard questions which, if you answer honestly, will help you make an informed self assessment of your career situation rather than just depending on “gut”. Following are the questions.