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Have You Reached the Top of Your Corporate Ladder?

Have You Reached the Top of Your Corporate Ladder?
By: Mike McDonough

You’ve worked your way up as an executive in your company. Your loyalty, hard work and innovation have gotten you this far – and now you feel stuck. Maybe it’s just a rut, or maybe it’s time to take your talents elsewhere. Here are a few of the top reasons executives change offices, and some signs that it might be time for you to follow suit.

You See Big Opportunity In A Smaller Setting
Once you work your way to the upper levels of a big company, it can open up a world of opportunities for you if you’re open to taking a higher position in a smaller organization. A smaller company could be the perfect place to execute innovative ideas that would be logistically impossible in a larger setting. Maybe it’s not the business, but the city itself that is too big for your taste. More people than ever are leaving bigger cities like New York and Los Angeles for areas with a lower cost of living and higher quality of life where they can be more involved with their local community. In fact, New York lost over 150,000 people in one year alone. So maybe it’s time to take your urban corporate skills to a more rural setting.

You Disagree With Top Leadership
Put a bunch of leaders in a room and it’s inevitable that you’ll get people who want to go in different directions. If your goals aren’t aligned with what your top leadership sees as priority, then it could be time for you to join an organization that sees the world the way you do. Sometimes it’s a shift in direction that you don’t agree with, and sometimes it’s your goals that change as you progress, but a difference in big-picture thinking is something to be taken seriously. You’re not alone either, 66% of executives who were open to other opportunities reported misalignment with top management as their key reason for exploring.

You Need A Role Change
When you work your way into a top role it can be hard for top leadership to see you in any other position. 69% of the executives surveyed said that they made a career change because they wanted increased opportunities that weren’t coming at their current company. If it’s another position that suits you, a major competitor could be your best bet. After all, they’re familiar with the type of work you do at your current workplace, are likely dealing with similar challenges and will welcome the insights you bring in the door.

The Culture Is Lacking
Even when you’re in a position of leadership, sometimes there’s only so much you can do to improve a company’s culture. Culture and values are the pulse of a organization. It influences the people they hire, what they focus on and the attitude of everyone in the building. If the culture is crumbling, sometimes there’s not much you can do to change it, even from the top. If it’s ultimately not a place that you can guide in the right direction, it could impede you’re attempts at bigger initiatives. This is actually the top reason that executives change companies, with over 72% of executive job seekers citing this as their reason for looking elsewhere.
If any of the reasons above sound like something you’re dealing with, maybe it’s time to test the waters of a career shift. Here at General Search & Recruitment, we’ve helped over 1,700 professionals in industries like insurance, underwriting and more, helping job seekers and hiring companies alike with our integrity, enthusiasm, and professional style. If you’re thinking of making a move, take a look at our article on Preparing for the Hiring Hot Season for insights on how to prepare for an executive job search.

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