How to get a job if your venture did not work out
So your enterprise failed. Now what? You will go through a plethora of emotions before you can rationally evaluate your options.
Positive choices include moving on to a job that guarantees an assured income, or pursuing another venture. If you decide to take up a job, here is how you can go about it.
THE RIGHT PLACE
Having
been your own boss, the twin goals of freedom and money will seem to
conflict when identifying the right job. The smart way is to ignore
both independence and money, for the time being. Both will be yours,
if you deliver as an employee. So, focus on finding the right place
to work and then creating your place in that firm. Identify sectors
that you would love to work in.
What draws you to a firm—pedigree, people, product or processes? If it is a particular brand, invest time and effort in reaching out to people working at the firm, getting to know them and learning about the work culture. Once you have enough information on all four parameters, and you are convinced that this is the place to be in, think about how you can contribute to the firm. Note down your thoughts and use them in the following step.
THE RIGHT RESUME
What draws you to a firm—pedigree, people, product or processes? If it is a particular brand, invest time and effort in reaching out to people working at the firm, getting to know them and learning about the work culture. Once you have enough information on all four parameters, and you are convinced that this is the place to be in, think about how you can contribute to the firm. Note down your thoughts and use them in the following step.
THE RIGHT RESUME
You
may have forgotten the last time you made a curriculum vitae (CV).
But you must have processed several great and terrible CVs while
hiring people for your enterprise. Assume that you are the product,
the decision-maker at your target company is the customer, and your
CV is the advertisement meant to draw the customer into taking a
closer look at the product. Your resume is the single piece of paper
that can get you shortlisted for an interview. Invest a few days in
getting it right. The first step is to go online to download a few
resume formats.
The subheads will include work experience in reverse chronology and education. Reflect on your notes from the previous step on how you plan to contribute to the firm. What achievements in your last enterprise signal your ability to get stuff done? What skills do these achievements reflect? How will you apply those skills to benefit the new firm? Use clear milestones to showcase your risk-taking ability or people skills or sales genius in a way that will catch the attention of your employer.
Finally, write a one page cover letter addressed to your customer describing where you plan to add value and how you bring the right attitude to the table. If there is more than one firm you are interested in, you will have to make different resumes. No two customers are the same and your marketing needs to be customised to suit each one of your target firms.
THE RIGHT PEOPLE
After you have readied the marketing content, identify your customer. Who is the decision-maker with the authority to hire you? Do your research on him. Then speak to people who are close to you and find a referral for your customer. Get in touch with potential referees who can pitch your case or introduce you to your target. Meet them and leave them with three clear reasons on how you can add value to your customer's team.
Finally, request them to share your cover letter and resume. Follow up at regular intervals. Repeat the process with other referees till you are short-listed for an interview.
The subheads will include work experience in reverse chronology and education. Reflect on your notes from the previous step on how you plan to contribute to the firm. What achievements in your last enterprise signal your ability to get stuff done? What skills do these achievements reflect? How will you apply those skills to benefit the new firm? Use clear milestones to showcase your risk-taking ability or people skills or sales genius in a way that will catch the attention of your employer.
Finally, write a one page cover letter addressed to your customer describing where you plan to add value and how you bring the right attitude to the table. If there is more than one firm you are interested in, you will have to make different resumes. No two customers are the same and your marketing needs to be customised to suit each one of your target firms.
THE RIGHT PEOPLE
After you have readied the marketing content, identify your customer. Who is the decision-maker with the authority to hire you? Do your research on him. Then speak to people who are close to you and find a referral for your customer. Get in touch with potential referees who can pitch your case or introduce you to your target. Meet them and leave them with three clear reasons on how you can add value to your customer's team.
Finally, request them to share your cover letter and resume. Follow up at regular intervals. Repeat the process with other referees till you are short-listed for an interview.
THE RIGHT INTERVIEW
At an interview, you will get to make your sales pitch. Preparation will increase your odds of success. Spend time to write down the obvious and the not-so-obvious in questions that your target firm/customer is likely to ask. As a nontraditional candidate, your decision to quit entrepreneurship will come under scrutiny.
Why have you chosen to work for them? Will you quit at the drop of a hat to pursue unfulfilled entrepreneurial dreams? Can you fit in well with a team and inside a structured organisation? Prepare your answers and rehearse them to project confidence. Dress well for the interview and pay attention to your grooming. Focus on the 'what' and 'how' of the gains you will bring to your firm/customer.
THE RIGHT DEAL
The
final step is to close the deal at the end of the sales process. Give
yourself a valuable gift at this point. Focus only on maximising the
amount of responsibility and resources you will get in the new role.
Ask the employer for a written commitment on the same. Choose not to
negotiate on the financial terms and thus guarantee yourself a
successful entry/re-entry into the workforce.
As an entrepreneur, you'll know how an employer is loath to lose an employee who has proven his worth. Within six months to a year in your new job, re-negotiate your compensation based on outcomes you have delivered. If the employer does not meet your expectations, then you can easily leverage your new achievements to get a suitable compensation correction elsewhere. Have a great journey!
TILL YOU FIND A JOB...
Knowledge as a service: Do you have specialised knowledge as a result of your enterprise or education? Offer your services as a consultant to help other enterprises. For compensation, seek a fixed sum or a percentage of benefits delivered.
Outcome as a service: Can you deliver tangible outcomes—create a legal contract, set up a warehouse or make a website? Most small businesses would be glad to pay for guaranteed results without the hassle of managing a person. Ask for an advance, followed by milestone based payments.
Time as a service: Can you sit next to a telephone for four hours every day to answer or redirect calls intelligently? Or enter data for two hours daily? Offer your time as a service to individuals, professionals and small ventures who wish to outsource non-core tasks to save time. Get paid hourly, daily or weekly.
Writing as a service: Having run an enterprise, can you help another business codify its processes? Start-ups are always caught up with urgent deadlines and need extra hands to create and record processes in administration, HR, operations and sales. Agree upon a structure and compensation for each manual.
Speaking as a service: Are you comfortable with public speaking and are willing to teach? Offer soft or hard skills training for new hires in organisations or coaching at education/ training institutes or tuition to students at home. Get paid for every assignment or on an hourly/monthly basis.
As an entrepreneur, you'll know how an employer is loath to lose an employee who has proven his worth. Within six months to a year in your new job, re-negotiate your compensation based on outcomes you have delivered. If the employer does not meet your expectations, then you can easily leverage your new achievements to get a suitable compensation correction elsewhere. Have a great journey!
TILL YOU FIND A JOB...
Knowledge as a service: Do you have specialised knowledge as a result of your enterprise or education? Offer your services as a consultant to help other enterprises. For compensation, seek a fixed sum or a percentage of benefits delivered.
Outcome as a service: Can you deliver tangible outcomes—create a legal contract, set up a warehouse or make a website? Most small businesses would be glad to pay for guaranteed results without the hassle of managing a person. Ask for an advance, followed by milestone based payments.
Time as a service: Can you sit next to a telephone for four hours every day to answer or redirect calls intelligently? Or enter data for two hours daily? Offer your time as a service to individuals, professionals and small ventures who wish to outsource non-core tasks to save time. Get paid hourly, daily or weekly.
Writing as a service: Having run an enterprise, can you help another business codify its processes? Start-ups are always caught up with urgent deadlines and need extra hands to create and record processes in administration, HR, operations and sales. Agree upon a structure and compensation for each manual.
Speaking as a service: Are you comfortable with public speaking and are willing to teach? Offer soft or hard skills training for new hires in organisations or coaching at education/ training institutes or tuition to students at home. Get paid for every assignment or on an hourly/monthly basis.
By
Devashish Chakravarty
The writer is Director, Executive Search, QuezX.com ET 140930
The writer is Director, Executive Search, QuezX.com ET 140930
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