Job Seekers Series…Part 1: Ever-changing, inconsistent world of job titling
Welcome to Part One of what will likely be an ongoing series of guides helping job seekers navigate the ever-changing, inconsistent world of titling.
Maybe you’ve been unemployed for 12+ months and you’re looking for new resources to help broaden your search, or maybe you’re just dipping your toe into an early exploratory search. No matter your circumstance, spend 5 minutes on any job board and you’ll be inundated with titles that are inconsistent, ill-defined, and confusing.
Just this past weekend, chatting with a relative at a post-Thanksgiving pie fest about opportunities at her company (one of the biggest retailers in the world), she mentioned, “Oh and anyone who applies needs to make sure they look at roles one or two levels above where they currently are; that’s the only way they’ll get even close to the tasks and compensation they deserve.”
A colleague warned me about the structure at his firm, a giant global agency: “I saw you were looking at a Sr. Manager position, but let me tell you right now, you’re way too senior for that. Check out the Sr. Director and above openings.”
Five or ten years ago, one could assume that at smaller companies, generally titles would be a bit inflated. This was especially the case at startups, the original sinners when it comes to title chaos. One could also assume that at large companies, if you’re moving from a small or midsize org, you’d likely make a lateral or even down step, since titling was more rigid.
On top of the confusion about levels, what do these jobs even MEAN? Without clear job descriptions (a rare breed in today’s market), it can be a nearly impossible task. This series aims at helping you decode titles with the goals of:
Helping you consider roles that you might have otherwise overlooked
Sparking ideas for how you can re-tell and re-sell your experience to be compatible with new and emerging job titles
Making sense of vague terms and titling chaos so that you can efficiently determine what is and is not relevant to you and your search
So let’s get started with some of the most confusing job titles out there.
Chief of Staff
Old model: Chief of Staff used to refer to a largely administrative role, helping keep things moving smoothly behind the scenes. In many ways, this role was an advanced executive assistant with heavy project management and operational responsibilities.
New model: Chief of Staff is often used these days for a key strategic advisor to the executive team. Certainly, this person might handle administrative projects such as planning content for a company offsite, but this role also looks at cross-functional challenges and opportunities, and makes recommendations accordingly to the C-suite.
How do you know which is which? For the older model, watch for key responsibilities in the job description such as calendar management, vendor management, administrative and logistics support for meetings. For more strategic Chief of Staff roles, you’ll want to look for responsibilities including research and analysis, close collaboration with the executive team, and a focus on proactive support.
Who is this for? Folks interested in the new model of Chief of Staff might have backgrounds in project management, business development, partnerships, and other heavily cross-functional roles. They may have less of a finance or HR background, and more likely stronger commercial awareness. These roles tend to look for the right balance of big picture thinking with detailed execution, so conveying your work style in this capacity is important.
Customer Success/Partner Success
The titles of Customer Success and Partner Success often get used interchangeably, but can mean wildly different things.
Consider your average B2B SaaS company; customer is a pretty straightforward term, but is this team responsible for account management? Strategic upsells and collaborations?
Meanwhile, partner could be used to reference customers, or third party partnerships for integrations, marketing, or other collaborations.
Make sense of these jumbled titles by looking at specific hints in the job description. If selling terms (upsell, expand, grow) are used, know that this role likely includes some kind of selling component. If you interview for these roles, make sure you understand who the main point of contact for the customer or partner is, and how you would work with them if it’s this role. Who is the entire account team made up of, and how do these people work together? Whether this role is charged with partnerships, customers, something else or a mix of several things, KPIs in a role like this are crucial. Before seriously considering an offer for a role with such a title, make sure you understand exactly what success looks like and how it is measured.
Who is this for? Partner Success and Customer Success are often much more sales-focused than they previously were. This means that these roles might be interesting for people with traditional sales backgrounds, or from a variety of other backgrounds including partner marketing, brand marketing, field marketing, and many more depending on the specific role and company. Don’t overlook these roles! Sometimes they have very unique and exciting responsibilities that could offer a great new challenge.
Managing Director/Executive Director
Managing Director and Executive Director are two other titles that seem to be confusing job seekers, and for good reason!
Oftentimes these titles are used interchangeably, but can actually mean very different things.
Managing Directors tend to focus on day to day tasks and operations of a business unit, division, or region. They work closely with their teams on implementation, tracking and reporting KPIs, and keeping teams accountable to goals and guidelines.
Executive Directors traditionally have a more strategic role and look more broadly across the organization, even if their oversight is specific to one business unit. Executive Director roles are generally more senior than Managing Directors, and often sit on the Board of Directors, reporting either into the board or the CEO.
One important exception to the evolution of Managing Director and Executive Director roles is that in small and medium organizations, especially small nonprofits, these roles are often merged into one. The Executive Director may have direct oversight of daily operations and also be the strategic leader. Keep an eye out for this when reviewing job descriptions at smaller organizations!
When looking at job descriptions for either of these roles, be sure to read carefully and ask questions to help you determine where this role falls.
Who is this for? Many kinds of leaders can move into an Executive Director or Managing Director role depending on the specific business. Oftentimes both of these roles will require experience managing and owning a budget. If you have had more direct day-to-day oversight of multi-level teams, and are looking to continue in a tactical leadership role, a Managing Director type position might be a good fit. If you’ve already worked in senior leadership positions and have a strong sense of the business and its varying teams and functions, an Executive Director role may be a better fit.
Keep in touch as we continue to explore different role and titling challenges and what they mean for you.
If you’re feeling isolated in your job search, or as you work to grow your own business, consider joining the Plus One Collective. It’s a new community we’re building to share ideas and support each other. Jobs, freelance and consulting opportunities, an expert pool of voices for advice on all things related to professional life, tips on owning your own consulting business, and volunteer opportunities are just a few aspects of the community we are working to create.
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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.
