Don't be a victim - High-level executive jobs

[Wes Bucey]

Today's lesson:
Don't be a victim of any outfit that purports to have high-level executive jobs for you, but is in reality a high-priced "executive counseling" firm which will ultimately tell you of the need to pay them to shape up your resume, your cover letter, and your research, and your interview skills to get the job you "deserve."

Here's some sample listings from these lowlifes which hit my mailbox today:

EXECUTIVE VICE PREIDENT
Job Snapshot
Location: Chicago / Chicago Suburbs, IL 60601
Employee Type: Full-Time Employee
Industry: Other Great Industries
Manages Others: Yes
Job Type: Executive Management General Business
Education: 4 Year Degree
Experience: Greater than 15 years
Posted: 4/20/2009
VICE PRESIDENT
We assist professionals with experience as Vice President or Executive Vice President who have the following sample profile.

Ideal Profile: Vice President or Senior Vice President / Executive Vice President with 15 or more years experience in hiring and developing talent as an operations manager or sales manager, national and key account manager, business development manager or director of business development. Well rounded background in multiple phases of business. Strong leadership background with 10-15 years of progressive experience in senior level positions, preferably in educational settings. Demonstrated strong financial and communication skills. Demonstrated expertise in motivating others to establish and successfully achieve goals. Extensive experience in supervising large staffs and budgets. Bachelors Degree preferred.

Requirements: You must include a copy of your resume and have a minimum of 15 years of experience. You must live within a commutable distance of the Chicago / Northern IL area. You must have a current salary or earnings history of at least $120,000.

To learn more about how we can help to bring your career search to a successful conclusion go to please click on apply now to learn more about us. We make a commitment to work with you until you have accepted a position. If services are offered, fees may apply. We are an executive career search marketing firm, and offer a wide range of services & products subject to your needs and wants. The services are determined after the client has been assessed. This is accomplished by meeting with a search consultant at which time an evaluation is made.
Our firm has been effective for people with the following profiles: Senior executives, mid level professionals, former entrepreneurs, sales, marketing, law, finance, operations, accounting, retail, HR, health care, insurance, retiring military, non-profit, educators, PhD’s, manufacturing, purchasing, logistics, materials, distribution, inventory, director, manager, administrative, buyer, project management. We work with professionals with job titles such as executive; executive manager; senior manager; ceo; coo; marketing manager; brand manager; sales manager; project manager; operations manager; supply chain manager; purchasing manager; human resource manager; training manager; and more.

MANUFACTURING MANAGER
Job Snapshot
Location: Chicago / Northern Illinois, IL 60601
Employee Type: Full-Time Employee
Industry: Manufacturing Industrial Other Great Industries
Manages Others: Yes
Job Type: Executive Management Manufacturing
Education:4 Year Degree
Experience:Greater than 15 years
Travel:None
Posted:4/21/2009

Description

MANUFACTURING MANAGER
We assist professionals who have experience as a Manufacturing Manager with the following sample profile.

Ideal Profile: Manufacturing Manager with 15 or more years of experience developing and implementing viable strategies to lead teams to corporate quality and profit goals. Planning the production schedule with in budgetary limitations and time constraints. Analyze personnel and capital resources and selecting the best way to meet production quotas; monitor product standards; establish and maintain standards; product improvement. Works with purchasing to insure quality standards are met; and to insure inventory levels are maintained. Responsible for all projects assigned to the organizational unit. Acts as an advisor to subordinate supervisors, or staff members to meet schedules or resolve technical or operational problems. Administers schedules and performance standards. Requires knowledge of company policies, collective bargaining agreement and other applicable procedures.

Requirements: You must include a copy of your resume and have a minimum of 15 years of experience. You must live within a commutable distance of the Chicago / Northern IL area. You must have a current salary or earnings history of at least $120,000.

To learn more about how we can help to bring your career search to a successful conclusion go to please click on apply now to learn more about us. We make a commitment to work with you until you have accepted a position. If services are offered, fees may apply. We are an executive career search marketing firm, and offer a wide range of services & products subject to your needs and wants. The services are determined after the client has been assessed. This is accomplished by meeting with a search consultant at which time an evaluation is made.

Our firm has been effective for people with the following profiles: Senior executives, mid level professionals, former entrepreneurs, sales, marketing, law, finance, operations, accounting, retail, HR, health care, insurance, retiring military, non-profit, educators, PhD’s, manufacturing, purchasing, logistics, materials, distribution, inventory, director, manager, administrative, buyer, project management. We work with professionals with job titles such as executive; executive manager; senior manager; ceo; coo; marketing manager; brand manager; sales manager; project manager; operations manager; supply chain manager; purchasing manager; human resource manager; training manager; and more.

Note these listings were on the big job site http://www.careerbuilder.com/

I took a further look (search) on career builder and found dozens of similar "lures" Often, the same identical text would be used, merely changing the locations from "Chicago" to Cincinnati or Detroit or Minneapolis or Dallas or Los Angeles, etc.

My concern is not so much job seekers would actually part with cash to these folks, but that they would waste time and energy on these schmucks which could be better expended on a real effective and efficient job search.

Remember - these are desperate times and desperate people, frustrated with a stalled job hunt, are eager to get it kick started and, if they have the money (perhaps from a cashed-out 401k), could easily be duped into giving it to a guy who tells them how great they are, but they "just need some help in getting your strory out to the right people."

Have you had any situations where the job lead turned into a pitch for YOU to pay money? Were you tempted?

 

[Stijloor]

<snip>Have you had any situations where the job lead turned into a pitch for YOU to pay money? Were you tempted?

Desperate people often do desperate things.

Stijloor.

 

[wmarhel]

Have you had any situations where the job lead turned into a pitch for YOU to pay money? Were you tempted?

A couple of times, and it sounds like the same outfit you were describing Wes. I don't know if they are franchisees or not, but they try to get to you fill out this survey which is several pages long as an initial step, they will send you a pack of information on how the information world is changing, how they help you to get past the gatekeeper, etc. The price is over the top with no guarantees of even getting you interviews. After about the third phone call, and reading through their packet we ended contact; and not too politely as they were very pushy.

People may not realize this, but you were able to post your resume/s on websites such as Execunet, TheLadders, and 6Figures.com; you just couldn't initiate contact with a recruiter, nor perform searches to the level of detail that you could find out whom to contact. But you could come up in a recruiter's search and they could initiate contact. That's how I landed my current position. The handful of recruiters I dealt with on there were not the "franchise chain" types, as most had small, private recruitment firms and were very professional.

If someone needs a new career path, there is little reason to pay someone to help you do it. What people need to realize though, is that job hunting is a job in itself when done properly. You need to do the research, make the calls, send the e-mails, constantly be professional and not leave the TV blaring in the background when you pick up the phone, etc.

Wayne

Wayne