My name is Mark Wayman, and for the last 15 years I have owned an Executive Recruiting firm focused on gaming and high tech. Compensation starts at $100,000, average placement is $250,000, and over the years I have placed a number of executives north of a million dollars.

Disclaimer: I only represent candidates I know personally, or by referral. No disrespect intended. I’m a one man show – no Recruiters, no Employees. As such, I’m laser focused on my client searches and representing my candidates.  Executives I have known for many years that have supported my business and charity work. If nothing else, I’m the most loyal person you ever met!  Two most important points to remember about any Executive Recruiter. First, the wrong time to meet a Recruiter is when you are unemployed. Second, they have jockeys (candidates); they are looking for horses (clients).

Any and all comments on this article are welcome, provided they are professional and respectful. That’s what I love about America, we can agree to disagree and still be friends.

Layoffs, Acquisitions and Consolidation: The Odd Man Out – This month a CFO sent me his resume. His company was acquired, and he is odd man out. Not unusual. New Captain, new Sailors. When a company is acquired, it is a common practice to instill “their executives” to run the show.

Angry and Bitter is NOT Attractive – From my first interaction with the CFO, I could tell he was angry and bitter. And I get that. He is being pushed out through no fault of his own. Let me be crystal clear: I have compassion and empathy for his situation. But after 15 years and 900+ executive placements I know one thing for certain – unhappy, bitter people are just too challenging to deal with and to sell. I asked him a few basic questions about compensation, relocation and compliance (background). When asked about compensation he said, “I don’t play that game! You just bring me jobs!” Huh? As an Executive Recruiter, it’s important that I understand your expectations, including compensation and relocation. It allows me to gauge which career opportunities are a good fit.

Companies Hire Smiley, Happy People – Long story short, I declined to represent this CFO. His resume is great, however he needs to decompress and get his head on straight prior to pursuing a new career opportunity. Companies hire happy, smiley people. Not angry, bitter trolls. The last thing you want to do during an interview is make a negative comment about a former employer or Boss. Quite possibly the biggest career deal breaker…ever. Hiring companies are looking for employees that have moved on in life and are ready for a new challenge. As my Dad used to say, “If you are looking for revenge, dig two holes.” I literally know “C” level executives that never worked again because they refused to get over being terminated or laid off.

Stop Yelling at the Recruiter! – Riddle me this. If you lose your job, who is mostly likely to help you? Well, 85% of new jobs come from your professional network and 10% come from Executive Recruiters. How does alienating a Recruiter help improve your situation. First, it is not their fault that you were terminated or laid off. Second, they might be the resource mostly likely to find you that new career opportunity. Like your Mom always said, “Be nice and play well with others.”.

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