This article is for senior procurement job seekers who are struggling to get traction in their job search, perhaps for the first time in their career. It has been prompted by conversations I’ve had with a growing number of very good senior candidates, across industries and specialisms, who are finding it difficult to find their next permanent role after they reach Director level. The piece is intended to help others encountering the same issue via actionable advice.
If the above describes you, you are not alone. Senior procurement roles – for this purpose defined as ranging from Director to CPO minus one – are rarely abundant and prevailing macroeconomic conditions aren’t helping. Rising energy and commodity prices are increasing margin pressure. It gnaws away at businesses from two directions as costs rise and consumer spending decreases and the impact directly affects hiring at a senior level.
Hiring budgets have been slashed as businesses seek to rein in spending, pausing recruitment entirely or elongating the hiring process. Concurrently, the desire to hire a known quantity has increased the amount of relationship-based hiring being done; reducing the number of roles being advertised. When businesses are going out to market, they increasingly want a known quantity and they want impact. Impact on the bottom line. Impact on the wider business. Impact to drive transformation; often digital. Briefs are narrowing and becoming more specific. When I started my procurement recruitment career nearly 10 years ago, savings were king and businesses wanted to hire people from within their sector with few exceptions. That changed for a period of time, but tough economic headwinds have resurrected old practices.
The AI wave has also crashed over businesses of all sizes. Regarded by many as a panacea, AI is already visibly reshaping the junior procurement market but it impacts at senior levels too. Procurement departments are restructuring their junior-middle layers and the automation of certain roles and certain tasks is cutting both headcount and manual workload. In such cases, a business will ask itself whether they need a VP when a Director might do? Do we need a Director when a Senior Manager or Manager will do?
The outcome is that senior job numbers are falling or stagnant in many sectors and increasingly, the model of advertise -> apply -> interview is dead when you get to Director level.
Fantastic senior procurement opportunities still exist, the aforementioned factors can just make them harder to find. So how can you ensure you stand out, stay informed and access opportunities that may not ever be publicised?
Be Visible
In an increasingly online and digital world, your LinkedIn profile is now arguably more important than your CV. As the first touchpoint for professional engagement, it’s the platform upon which your background, capability and your ability to solve a problem will be judged. Ensure your LinkedIn profile is up to date, accurately reflects what you bring to the table and critically, make sure the job title you have and the one you want are present. Ensure the right terms are in your headline to make you visible to the right people. Calling yourself a rainmaker, alchemist or guru looks flashy, but “Procurement Director”, “VP Procurement” etc are what headhunters and talent acquisition teams are actually searching for. Whilst tempting, don’t inflate your remit either. If you have CPO on your LinkedIn profile, don’t be surprised when you get passed over for Senior Manager or Director level roles as you look like you don’t fit. Ask yourself ‘what do I want people to think of me’ and build from that image.
Your Sales Document (CV)
Lead with impact and outcomes. Frame your CV around quantifiable commercial impact and the outcomes of transformation, risk management, team building/performance management and revenue growth programmes you have led. Position yourself as someone who can solve the problems a business might have.
Networking
A significant number of procurement roles at Director level and above never hit the open market, so your network is critical. When in doubt, focus on what I call the 3 R’s:
- Relationships: look through former colleagues, your old managers/directors and people you’ve built relationships with at conferences or events. Reach out and suggest a coffee, a drink or a virtual meeting to catch up. They can be a great guide to future hiring, best points of contact and company culture.
- Referrals: when you see or hear of an interesting opportunity, do you know of anybody that can introduce you to a relevant decision maker?
- Recruiters: engage with trusted recruiters in your niche, they often know about concrete opportunities, rumours in the market or planned future hiring. They can help you to position yourself accordingly.
The major challenges facing senior job seekers right now are positions not being advertised, CPOs wanting a known quantity to reduce the risk of a bad hire and hiring briefs becoming more specific. Utilising your network effectively enables you to bypass all three. We also exist at a point where the use of AI in the hiring process, whilst well intentioned, is doing as much harm as it is good. Utilising the three avenues above can help you skip the ATS stage altogether, reducing the risk of being rejected for roles for which you know you are qualified.
Networking takes time and effort but in many cases will just be catching up with old faces, there’s no reason not to do it!
Research
Where your network doesn’t quite reach, tracking executive level moves is often a great way to connect to ‘invisible’ opportunities. Which CPOs landed in their role 6 months ago and might be planning their minus one and minus two recruitment? A well timed introduction could be the difference between competing in an open process and finding a slipstream.
There’s no denying that the senior job market feels tougher for many right now, but there are things you can do to boost your profile and maximise your chances in an increasingly crowded field. If you would like to discuss hiring at this level or your job search at Director level and above, connect on LinkedIn or email me at alex@pod-talent.com to schedule a confidential conversation.