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executives

Joining a Board of Directors

Positions on Board of Directors used to be the exclusive right of retired CEOs, CFOs, or members of other boards. But the trend toward diversity and inclusion has come to company boards and that means that many companies are looking beyond retired executives for their board members.

Investment firms, lenders, and even state governments are pressuring companies to add women and minorities to their boards. In fact, in 2019, 45 percent of new board seats were filled by women and 21 percent by minorities. On the other hand, the age of board members has remained fairly constant, although some boards do look for members under 45.

If you want to be considered for a board position:

  • Make your interest known through networking, speaking engagements, contributions to research, and publications. That includes networking within your current company; your CEO or CFO may be able to connect you with a board that is looking for members.
  • Develop a specialty that will increase your contribution to a Board of Directors, especially in a high-demand field such as cybersecurity.
  • Research potential boards carefully to avoid any conflict of interest (for example, you should avoid serving on the board of a company that supplies materials to your employer); you are willing to make the expected time commitment; you can travel as needed to meetings or for research (for example, to check out a potential acquisition); and you are attracted to the company’s mission.
  • Develop people and communication skills that will see you through board conflicts, attract a mentor, or enable you to champion your viewpoint. Demonstrate those skills by joining committees and seeking out opportunities to present to or work with upper management and the board at your current job.
  • Prepare a customized resume for the type of for-profit or nonprofit opportunity you are looking for. A Board of Directors resume differs in important respects from a job resume; for example, your board resume should highlight your knowledge of governance, which might not be as important in a job resume.

Robin’s Resumes® has created customized resumes for many executives seeking to start or broaden their board membership. Contact us for more information.

Resumes for Supply Chain Executives

Keeping track of a modern supply chain requires expert skills in technology tools, cross-border and often cross-ocean transportation, and budget, people, and time alignment. When you are ready to start looking for a new job or advance your career as a supply chain executive, make sure that your resume highlights:

  • Specific savings in resources. Did you cut transportation costs by X amount of dollars, reduce the time from order to delivery by X days or weeks or months, and increase the productivity of your team by X amount? The figures represented by those Xs are essential to hiring managers and recruiters—numbers talk when they are considering your potential as a supply chain executive.
  • Experience with technology tools. Current and future trends include continuous intelligence for processing data (reducing human bias), cybersecurity, Internet of Things devices like driverless forklifts, and virtual training, including the use of virtual reality simulations. Companies employ technology to support the “circular economy,” which strives to reduce waste throughout the supply chain.
  • Ability to work with a diverse team. At least basic conversational skill in another language, international travel, and prior experience working across borders has become more important as supply chains stretch around the globe. Closer to home, your team may include people from every demographic, including age, religion, ethnicity, and education. Your commitment to diversity and inclusion is important.
  • Relevant experience. Executives typically have a long work history, so ensure that you focus on the experience most important to the company and devote the most space to your most recent achievements. Begin every achievement statement with what you accomplished as a supply chain executive, and then briefly detail how and why, as policies and procedures may differ from company to company.
  • Planning and risk management skills. The longer the supply chain, the more likely disruptions will occur, as we have seen throughout the pandemic. Many companies are now investigating ways to bring their raw materials closer to their location. Showcase your past successes in planning and risk management and your ability to overcome supply chain challenges.

Robin Schlinger, founder and chief writer at Robin’s Resumes®, has worked in the manufacturing environment as an engineer and is well aware of the importance of supply chains and the executives who oversee them. For a resume that makes hiring managers and recruiters take notice, contact Robin’s Resumes® today.

Executive Resumes That Build Careers

Executives who are ready to move on to a new company or field are often qualified for such a wide range of roles that their resumes begin to go off-track. If you are among those executives, particularly if you anticipate moving into the C-suite, you must start out with a clear preference for your title (CEO, CIO, CMO, CXO, and so on) and the size of the company as well as an honest appraisal of what you liked or disliked about your previous roles.

Why are your preferences, likes, and dislikes important? You want to make it clear whether you are a leader of large teams, a recruiter and motivator of talent, a specialist in mergers and acquisitions, a globe-trotter who enjoys cross-cultural experiences, and so on. The right keywords and phrases in your resume will help ensure that the right opportunity emerges, one that matches both your talents and your comfort zone.

Why would companies believe that you are C-suite material? You will show them by using the context-challenge-action-result formula to demonstrate how you met challenges and delivered specific results—in terms of exact cost savings, profits, increased customers, increased market share, new products or other innovations, and improved efficiency/productivity.

How can you ensure that the right company sees your resume? First, you will research and identify companies that look like a good fit at this stage in your career. Second, you will make sure that your resume includes those details about your previous positions that align most strongly with the position you want. Your resume is a subset of your entire career, not a full biography, and that subset should all be directed toward your future.

What can you do to make sure the right person sees your resume? Here is where face-to-face networking and your online presence are all important. You are probably quite skilled at networking on your company’s behalf; now is the time to apply those skills to networking for your own C-suite career. If you do not have a professional profile on LinkedIn and similar sites, or if your profile is mostly an advertisement for your current company, now is the time to rewrite those profiles to improve how they meet your career goals. More and more companies are searching online for their next executive.

Robin’s Resumes® has created winning executive resumes for over 20 years. Please contact us today.

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