Advice from a Top Corporate Headhunter

Cindy Kohlbry

Part psychologist, part private investigator and 100 percent people person, Cindy Kohlbry, managing partner at Grant Cooper & Associates, a retained executive search firm, took time out from her busy schedule to chat with NotaBene about risks, results and the importance of being real.

NB: As a headhunter, do you rely on intuition a lot? Is the search process more art or science?

CK: I approach search in much the same way I approached the merger and acquisition side of the financing work I did when I was an investment banker. That my experience and my intuition always tell me whether I like something and then I do a tremendous amount of due diligence to figure out whether what I thought was true actually is. You have to be open always to the fact that you don't know what you don't know and that your whole job is to find out.

NB: What are some of the things that employers are looking for in top executives now? Have you seen any differences over time?

CK: A good executive has always looked, in general terms, the same. People look for people who are smart, who have a great value system, who are good leaders, who are good at developing and retaining talent around them and who are able to get results on a consistent basis. There are reasons, and there are results. And we don't really care what the reasons are, we're only looking for the people who produce results.  

NB: Are there certain factors that are important in a candidate that are not necessarily top-of-mind for most people?

CK: Let me give you an example. I did a search not long ago where there was somebody who was a very experienced CEO, completely capable for the position and just seemed to have all of the right trappings to be a good candidate. This gentleman's resume said that he had received a degree in marketing from a very prestigious university. When we did his degree verification, it turned out that his major was in music. So we call the candidate and say, we did your degree verification, and it says on your resume that you majored in marketing, but your degree says that you majored in music. And he said, "oh, I know, I just thought it sounded so fluffy that I changed the music major to marketing a long time ago. I minored in marketing, and it just sounded better from a professional point of view." So all we're thinking is, no, it doesn't sound better, it makes you a liar, and my client doesn't want to hire people who don't tell the truth. Because whatever people do in small ways, that's what shows up in big ways.

NB: Are you seeing much movement between the public and private sectors these days? Do you think that's a big leap to make?

CK: I think it's always a big leap to move into something that you haven't ever done before. It's a huge risk for the person hiring the people, and it's a huge risk for the candidates themselves. By using a retained executive search firm, hopefully you minimize those risks by being smart about past behavior, understanding culture, understanding style, understanding where issues are going to work and where they're going to maybe be troublesome. When a search firm like ours is involved, usually you're looking for a sure thing. You're looking for a safe bet. I also think it's interesting when an executive from the private sector says I very much want to get involved in the not-for-profit world, but they've never sat on a board, and they've never volunteered time in really any capacity. Something as telling as that is really a sign that their heart isn't in it.

NB: Any general tips from your vantage point as a career transition coach for people looking to move into a new position?

CK: My personal opinion is that the clearer and more concise you can be about who you are and what your competitive advantage is in doing what you do, the better off you're going to be in a job search. A lot of the coaching that I do revolves around people getting clear about how they consistently show up in life and what it is they want to do to make a difference. If somebody comes to me and says, they can do anything, all I can think is that they are desperate for a job—any job. What I want to know is what makes someone special and how they are going to add value to whomever they work with or for. Being all things to all people only creates problems in the end for the employer and the candidate.

NB: Are there certain common errors candidates make in the interviewing process?

CK: The only advice I would have in interviewing is that it's really important to be rigorously honest. My whole job is to get beyond the window-dressing. I want to know what's real. If I'm good at what I do, I will eventually find out the truth. I'll find the skeletons in the closet. I will find the people who—if you were any good at your job—didn't like you and who have things that you rather I didn't hear them say. And the reason that I want to hear it from you first is that I want to know that you know yourself, I want to know that you know your strengths and weaknesses. I want to know where you've made mistakes and what you've learned from them. And I want to know what you're going to be really good at doing and what you probably need to stay away from. What I tell people is that you really have to be clear about who you are. Because whoever you are is fine. And if you are honest and clear about who you are in an interview, people who appreciate and value you for who you are will want to hire you. And who wants to go work for somebody who doesn't value or appreciate who they are? It's such a basic thing that so many people miss.

NB: Do you have any specific tips for creating a resume that gets noticed?

CK: Two background things people should know: 1. The computer is probably screening the resume. If a   search consultant even gets involved, they will spend an average of 15 seconds on a resume, assuming it's an unsolicited resume that's already been qualified as the right skill set. So in 15 seconds, do they know what you do? Do they know who you are? Do they know where you've been successful? Do they know what makes you special? And I would add, do they get any sense of who you are as a person? Those would be the five things that I would want to know in 15 seconds. The other thing we tell you is that we would never recommend that you use your resume as the way to market yourself. That a resume is always after the fact when you've already made your personal connection.

NB: How would you advise people on making that pre-resume connection?

CK: When I'm coaching people in transition, the first thing that I get them to do is make three circles of network contacts. The first circle is the people who will jump off cliffs for them. What I try to do there is get people to really understand what it is about that network that works. And what those people see in them that's special, that's different. The next circle would be people who are friends and colleagues, but that they don't know quite as well. The third circle is people that they don't know at all but need to find a connection to. My favorite quote is from Yogi Berra: If you don't know where you're going, you might not get there. So if you don't know what you're asking your network to do for you, you will confuse them. If all you want is a job, Barnes & Noble is hiring salespeople for the holidays.

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