Develop Your Job Search: Lessons from Business Development for Job Seekers
The slog of the job hunt is real, and many folks looking for a new role find themselves struggling each day to maintain momentum, stay optimistic, and use their time wisely.
Business Development people know this feeling all too well. Looking for a new role is a lot like landing your next client; understanding the market, building a pipeline, using the right levers at the right time to reach your desired outcome, and knowing what to do with a ‘no’ are all challenges business developers and job seekers share.
In my many business development roles, I’ve been known by my teams and peers as someone who keeps a high energy process going, approaches challenges with creative solutions, and plans for the long term while being proactive every day. Here’s how you can take some of those same strategies that help people like me hit our sales targets, and use these tools to land your best next role.
Multi threading is a term used by many different industries, but in sales and business development it refers to the strategy of building strong relationships with multiple decision makers at one company, and approaching a sales cycle from several different angles for the best chance of a positive outcome. This applies to the job search in how you build and leverage your network throughout the interview process.
Before you apply for a role, get a clear understanding of your connections there. Who do you know who works there, or used to work there? Who do you know who might use this company’s services, or who might be a service provider to this company? Ask for informational interviews early and with a specific request. Something like, “If you’re open to a brief chat, I’d like to understand your experience working at ABC and get your thoughts on how best to approach this role.” And if it’s someone you don’t know well, offer them an easy out, with the chance to share insights over email if that’s easier for them.
How does this really work? One role I received an offer for in 2022 was sent to me by one of my former clients. Then, I reached out to two former coworkers who were current employees there; one of them quickly volunteered to refer me and they both put in a good word with the hiring team. During the interview process, one of my former clients-turned-friend-and-mentor who was a current client of the company I was interviewing with offered to bring my name up as well, which the hiring manager mentioned as a great sign.
Doing this naturally takes time and social investment; you can’t lean on relationships you haven’t taken time to build. But at any stage, you can start to graciously ask for people’s input and perspective (taking them out to coffee or lunch to thank them can’t hurt!). The most important part of multi-threading is to understand that more positive influences are better. There’s no need to stay isolated with the one person you’re talking to in a company. Doing more research and outreach to get better connected and have more information is always worth the effort.
Get used to managing rejection and learn to turn rejection into something productive. This sounds annoying- it feels annoying to write. But I swear that rejection can sometimes be incredibly helpful.
Some salespeople won’t take no for an answer. That’s a terrible strategy and not what we’re going for. The best sales people try to learn from their nos, and use a no as an opportunity to collect key information. So, if you get told no for an opportunity, try one of these approaches, or a combination of them:
Is the door open for future work together? How can you keep in touch for future opportunities?
Is there an opportunity for feedback that you can apply to future processes with this company, or in other interview processes?
Are there other roles at this company that they think you’re better suited for? This is particularly relevant if they mentioned missing qualifications or experiences that were a reason you missed out on this opportunity.
Proactively manage objections so that you can own the narrative about your experience and skills. Practice getting ahead of issues that might be a challenge or flagged as a potential concern in your interview process. In sales I always think about, if it’s me and another vendor in the final decision stage, and we’re pretty much offering the same service for a similar cost, what factors could push the decision maker one way or another? The same is true for candidates interviewing for jobs.
For example, think about how to proactively position your own employment gap or job loss. Rather than dreading being asked about this, get ahead of it by weaving it into your story and showing that it’s not something you’re scared to discuss.
I was recently meeting with a friend who’s interviewing for a job that would be supporting clients in the same types of roles he has previously held. The role he’s interviewing for is more technical than his past positions and he was concerned this would be his downfall. I encouraged him to really highlight his ability to learn, his experience using tools like the service his potential employer provides in exactly the same way their clients do, and be transparent that he expected to have to learn some new technical aspects of the role. By being upfront about this while also explaining the advantages he has and why they outweigh the learning curve, he shows awareness of his abilities and an openness to being taught. Something like, “While I don’t have specific technical ability with this particular type of technology, when I worked at X I implemented Y technology across our entire team leading to an outcome of ABC, and I know I can apply those types of experiences to quickly come up to speed on X.”
Remember this is a co-selling experience. You get to ask real questions, too. Some of the best moves I have made in my sales career included times where I walked away from a deal because it wasn’t the right fit. Even if you’re desperate for a new role, know what you’re getting yourself into so that you can make an informed decision.
If it’s not the right fit and you decide to step back, consider how you can create good will and future possibilities by recommending someone else for the role.
This could look a number of ways, such as: “Dear Hiring Manager, thank you so much for the opportunity to interview for XYZ Product Marketing role. I’ve determined from our conversations that this role is more of an individual contributor path than I’m looking for in a next step, so I have decided to withdraw my candidacy.
I did want to mention, however, that if you’re still looking for qualified candidates, Petunia Begonia (link to Petunia’s Linkedin) is an outstanding product marketer and might be a great fit for your team. I’ve encouraged Petunia to apply, and particularly after meeting with you and learning about the role, I hope you have the chance to connect as I believe they’d be perfect for this position.”
Note: ask Petunia first, always.
Stack the deck. The first sales team I ever managed, we talked a lot about stacking the deck. What can you do every day to put yourself in a slightly better position tomorrow? Next month? Next year?
When selling or job seeking, you can only do so much of any one core activity, whether it’s applying for jobs or cold calling, or attending conferences. What do you do outside of that time?
In Alison Fragale’s book Likeable Badass, she talks about making “small deposits” into the lives of others. It’s sort of a professional karma concept; the investments you make in others pay off in both direct and indirect ways. And making these small deposits is a great way to stack the deck. This could look like:
Reading a book that helps you become a better communicator, makes you more familiar with an industry you’re interested in, or gives you something interesting to use in small talk
For bonus Stack the Deck points, write a note to the author thanking them for their work, or share the book recommendation with a friend. Suggest to a friend or colleague that if they get the chance to give it a read, you’d love to discuss the book over a cup of coffee
Do something to nudge your physical or mental health. Being overly stressed will hurt, not help. Take time to defuse.
Write a thank you note to someone who recently helped you out, even if it was a small favor. Ideally, write a physical note, but email works too.
Write a thank you note to someone who helped you out years ago, who you never got around to thanking. You will make their day.
Maintain an awareness when looking at open roles of the people in your life who are also looking for jobs. “Thought of you! This role looked potentially interesting” is all you need. Everyone appreciates being considered. And the best part is that they will likely return the favor when they see a job that reminds them of you!
What strategies are you using to stay focused and stay sane while looking for a new job? Let me know what I might have missed.
#jobsearch #jobhunt #multithreading #managingrejection #manageobjections #stackthedeck #likeable
About Liz Miller: She lives in Chicago and has over ten years of experience in business development, partnership, client strategy, go to market, and sales leadership. She has extensive experience across consumer goods, luxury goods, and all things retail and ecommerce. Liz holds a MA in Public Policy from the University of Chicago and is passionate about policy and business practices that move us towards safe and sustainable consumption.
