Feb. 16 “Job hoppers needs to look before they leap”: I cut
out this article by Wallace Immen in the Globe and Mail on Jul. 10, 2010. This is an old article, but
it’s still good reading it in 2015. There was a shorter version of it in
the newspaper. When I looked it up on the internet, there was way more
like statistics with the reasons of why people quit their jobs.
This is a bit more about executives leaving their
jobs. However, there are pros and cons to being a job hopper. Here’s
the whole article:
As companies have downsized and stripped out layers of
management, promotions in organizations have became fewer and farther between.
To get ahead, people are increasingly looking to hop to another employer for
more opportunity. A Globe and Mail online survey this week found that 49 per
cent of 5,797 respondents said they are looking for a new job this year.
In the United States,
60 per cent of employees surveyed by staffing service Right Management Inc.
said they intend to look for opportunities with another employer this year. And
a separate Right survey found that 54 per cent of 558 organizations have
already seen top talent leave for other jobs in the first half of this year.
Executives are hopping to new jobs with increasing frequency.
A recent survey by networking organization ExecuNet found that executives now
stay with an organization for only 2.8 years on average before moving on, down
from 3.3 years in 2006.
FOUR WARNINGS
A mercenary approach to jobs as stepping stones may actually
slow executives' progress to the top, according to a new analysis by Monika
Hamori, a professor at the IE Business School in Madrid
that appears in the July Harvard Business Review:
Job hoppers face barriers
Finding: Footloose executives are not more upwardly mobile
than their single-company colleagues, according to Prof. Hamori's analysis of
the career paths of 1,001 chief executive officers in Europe
and the United States.
The average number of jobs the CEOs held before their big promotion was three,
and they reached the top an average of 23.1 years after starting their career.
But for every extra job above three in the résumés of job hoppers, advancement
to the top took as much as an extra year longer than that average. Executives who
had worked for six separate employers, for example, took 26.75 years to reach
the CEO level.
Lesson: In interviews she did with more than 20 executive
recruiters, Prof. Hamori was told that employers look for a track record that
includes long stints - at least five years and ideally closer to 10 - with each
employer, that include internal promotions.
"Recruiters say this indicates an executive who works
well and is valued by employers," she said.
Fast ascent may not be the best ascent
Finding: Executives who moved up the quickest earliest in
their career reached a ceiling that delayed their next move because they became
too specialized, the study found. Only 40 per cent of executives who changed
jobs on their way to the top consistently moved up to a bigger company or job
title. Another 40 per cent took lateral moves and 20 per cent moved to roles
with a lesser title, narrower responsibility or to a smaller company.
Lesson: A slower ascent with lateral moves that provide
executives with broader expertise seems to be valued by companies promoting
people to top rank, Prof. Hamori concluded.
Big fish needn't stay in big ponds
Finding: Sixty-four per cent of the executives who started
their careers with Fortune 500 companies later moved to smaller firms, the
study found. Many reported they felt that they got promotions faster in the
smaller organizations because of their earlier track record at a big,
well-known company.
Lesson: It's a good strategy to join a well-known company
early in your career because future employers will assume that if you can make
it in the big pond, you are qualified to swim in both big and little ponds.
Industry switchers can thrive
Finding: Those who switched from one industry or specialty
to another weren't any less likely to continue to advance in their careers, the
study found, with 29 per cent of the executives having made at least one jump
to a completely different industry, and another 23 per cent shifting to a
markedly different job function in their industry.
Lesson: Be strategic. If there are limited opportunities to
rise in your specialty, look for other careers that will value your skills and
expertise.
MEET A JOB HOPPER
Michael Kennedy, 51, Cambridge,
Ont.
Current job: Director of sales in Canada
for cosmetic company Basic Research Inc. since December, 2009.
Career moves: After taking a new job in March, 2008, he left
after four months because his manager moved to a new company and took him along
to become director of customer management. That job lasted only a year before a
downsizing and a severance put him out of work in July, 2009. Previously, he
had held three other jobs, two for nine years and one for seven.
Major issue encountered in job hunt: Any position that lasts
less than three years raises red flags, he found. He said hiring managers asked
him: "If you left them after four months, what is to stop you from leaving
us in four months?"
How he answered: "I turned what might have been
negatives into positives," he said. For example, about the four-month job:
"I said it was a unique situation. I was very happy with the job and they
treated me well and in fact I was doing things so well that the manager took me
with him."
Keep it short: In interviews with potential employers about
the short stints, he has learned to keep things concise. "I spoke
positively about the employers and said the jobs were valuable experiences.
Anything I would say beyond that would potentially raise further questions. As
long as they get a satisfactory answer, they will accept it and move on."
Insight: "I think organizations now accept the fact
that it can take time to get traction and some jobs don't work out. But it
better not happen often."
HOW HOPPING CAN HELP
Hopping is broadening: A variety of successful roles
translates into broader skills and experiences that can make you more
employable.
It highlights flexibility: If you have experience only in
one role or organization, employers may question your flexibility and
enthusiasm for change and growth
Short may be a trend: More employers are hiring on
short-term contracts and may be looking for someone who doesn't expect loyalty.
It broadens your reach: Experiences in different
organizations will expand your network and industry insights.
Perks can be greener: Competitors looking to fill a gap with
your skills may be willing to pay you a lot more than your current employer.
It can speed growth: Upward mobility these days often means
going from a large, mature company to a smaller, entrepreneurial one.
It can avoid a dead end: The recession has highlighted a
reality that some industries are stagnating. Survival depends on looking for
growth opportunities.
You can dodge a bullet: If your industry is facing layoffs,
moving voluntarily looks better on a résumé than a long stint of joblessness.
Sources: Career coach Daisy Wright, principal of Wright
Career Solution in Brampton, Ont.,
and recruiter David Perry, managing partner of Perry-Martel International Inc.
in Ottawa .
HOW TO HOP GRACEFULLY
Resign with thanks: Tell your employer, in writing, how much
you enjoyed working there but you've received an offer you just can't refuse
Smooth the transition: Stay long enough to help transfer
your responsibilities, and do it with a smile, not a smirk, on your face.
Don't burn bridges: Avoid the temptation to be critical of
others in the exit interview.
Provide adequate notice: Future potential employers will
check back to make sure you didn't leave a mess behind in previous jobs.
Update your status: Post an explanation of your move on
industry association and social media websites to inform your network of
positive reasons you left, and quell any potential rumours about the change.
Source: David Perry .
HOW TO PLAY DOWN SHORT-TERM ROLES
Don't list blips: If a job lasted only a month or two and
was not related to your career, you may choose to leave it off your résumé. But
don't cover it up if asked about it.
Group them together: Create a heading on your résumé such as
"contract assignments" or "projects" or
"consulting."
Source: Daisy Wright .
WHY PEOPLE HOP
Human resources consultancy Right Management Inc. asked
1,308 Canadians and Americans why they changed jobs in the past year. (The
numbers add up to more than 100 per cent because people had more than one
reason.)
54 % who switched because of downsizing or restructuring.
30 % who moved for new challenges.
25 % who changed to escape poor leadership.
22% who changed because of poor relationship with a manager.
21 % who changed for improved work/life balance.
21 % who said their contributions to the company were not
valued.
18 % who left for better compensation and benefits.
SURVEYS SAY
25 % of executives identified by their companies as having
high potential who said in June that they are planning to leave their employers
by this time next year.
10 % who planned to jump ship in a similar 2006 survey
21 % of high-potential employees who consider themselves
"highly disengaged" in their current job.
3 Average number of employers that U.S.
chief executive officers have had in their careers.
19 % of CEOs in the United
States who stayed with the same employer
throughout their careers.
26 % of "lifer" CEOs in Europe.
Sources: June survey of 20,000 employees in 100
organizations by the Corporate Executive Board; study of 1,001 CEOs by Monika
Hamori, professor of human resource management at the IE business School
RED FLAG FOR EMPLOYERS
Employers are increasingly viewing a job applicant's work
history with more than five employers as a red flag, said Jeffrey Flaum,
managing partner of Denver-based organizational consultancy Green Peak
Partners. That conclusion is based on interviews with hiring managers of 55
companies and a study of the 72 chief executive officers and presidents that
they hired over the last five years.
The study, released in June, looked at the average job
length for these top executives who received the highest rankings from
employers on their potential to be able to manage people and achieve solid
financial performance. Those ranked highest had job histories that included
tenures of at least six years and the best scores were for people with nine
years or more with the same organization. None of the executives with no
long-term jobs or more than seven different employers were ranked higher than
three, on a five-point scale.
"Executives who change jobs frequently are seen as
trying to outrun a problem and that problem often has to do with a lack of fit
in the organization," Mr. Flaum said. "Job hoppers are also seen as
lacking perspective in the results of their leadership decisions because they
will typically leave before the changes take effect."
Employers are leery about seeing a record of tenures of less
than three years, he added, "because they say they're going to come here
and they may be great, but they will probably leave and leave problems in their
wake."
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