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What Great Companies Want
Posted by B2B on: 2006-05-04 09:47:31
What Great Companies Want
George Stillwell
What Great Companies Want
The primary objectives of all Great Companies:
* Make Money -> Create value for shareholders, grow earnings and profits.
* Act Responsibly -> Be a good corporate citizen, improve the lives of consumers.
* Minimize Risk -> Legal Risk, Financial Risk, Marketplace Risk.
Therefore, what Great Companies look for in the people they hire is that they have the skills and capabilities to
1. Make money for the company
2. Act responsibly
3. Minimize risk
Your primary task in applying for a job is to convince companies that you have what it takes to do what's shown above. Every company has a set of skills and capabilities they are looking for in their management employees. Although all are slightly different, I would offer the following list that covers 90% of them all. You should spend some time reviewing this list as it will be used in developing your resume and interview outline.
Skills & Capabilities all Great Companies Look For
Leadership - You direct, motivate and even inspire others to do things they could not or would not do without your influence. You set the vision for your organization and then enroll and enable to team to deliver on it. This is the single most valuable capability. If you are not a 'born leader' take time to study it and get better at it.
Strategic Thinking - You understand the overall objectives/goals of your company, division, etc. and are able to develop choices for what your team will focus on to deliver against them. You then develop specific tactics to bring the strategies to life. You think in terms of fiscal years vs. day to day.
Innovative Thinking - You are able to think "outside the box" and create concepts and products that go beyond the obvious. You make relevant connections between situations you or the team have encountered before.
Creative Problem Solving - You are able to properly identify problems and then organize yourself and the team to develop solutions and put them into action.
Collaboration/Team Work - You understand what an effective team is and bring people together to deliver great results. You understand diversity and leverage it in your day to day affairs. You treat others with respect.
Communication - You are an effective written and oral communicator. You are open and honest and give and receive feedback frequently and effectively.
Flexibility - You are able to accept change, adapt to new conditions and surroundings. You view change as an opportunity to learn and grow vs. a distraction to be avoided.
Mastery - You understand the technical aspects of your work, the processes and data used. You are able to learn new information and technologies and quickly adapt them to your work. You constantly seek to improve your level of mastery.
Reliability - You get work done in a quality way every time. You show up on time, participate actively, are responsive to requests and follow through on your commitments.
In order to better illustrate this point, I suggest you take the following simple, multiple choice quiz on what great companies care more about.
Quiz: What Great Companies Care Most About
Take Note of which answer in each pair best represents what Great Companies are looking for. Then check out the answers below.
What you know, What you can do
What experience you have, What degrees you have
Where you come from, Where you've been
What TV Shows you watch, What books you read
Whether you can lead, Whether you can follow
How much money you have, What goals you have
If you can solve problems, If you can identify problems
What activities you've done, What results you've gotten
Loyalty, Competence
A Great resume, A Great interview
Personal endorsements, Written recommendations
Strategic thinking, Tactical thinking
Short term focus, Long term focus
Ans: What Great Companies Care Most About
What you know, What you can do - XX
What experience you have - XX, What degrees you have
Where you come from, Where you've been - XX
What TV Shows you watch, What books you read - XX
Whether you can lead - XX, Whether you can follow
How much money you have, What goals you have - XX
If you can solve problems -XX, If you can identify problems
What activities you've done, What results you've gotten - XX
Loyalty, Competence - XX
A Great resume, A Great interview - XX
Personal endorsements - XX, Written recommendations
Strategic thinking - XX, Tactical thinking
Short term focus, Long term focus -XX
A successful resume and interview should focus on what great companies care most about!
For more advice on how to make yourself marketable to a great company check out www.youaremarketable.com
About the author:
Senior executive with one of the top consumer products companies in the world. I have worked for the past 20 years in manufacturing, category development and sales and have extensive experience recruiting and hiring from college campuses and the open job market. I created this web site to provide a one-stop shop for individuals who are seeking to make themselves more marketable to companies like mine.
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