"Manager" - That's Kiss of Death on Resumes/Cover Letters/LinkedIn Profiles

When American business had been the top dog in international trade its "management" was hailed as the key variable. Experts on management, from Peter Drucker to Alfred Sloan, were revered. Rosabeth Moss Kanter got in on it too. 

Now with so many new moving parts in the global economy and all of them intersecting in unexpected ways a lot more is required than managing and fewer businesses are willing to pay for that stand-alone role. 

Recently Google announced, for cost-efficiency, up to 10% of managers at all levels would go. Citi, UPS and Amazon are doing likewise. Overall there is a flattening of organizational layers, reducing demand for those managerial functions. 

Therefore, the role of "manager" in job search materials not only doesn't give the edge, as it once had: Look I worked my way up to manager. It can knock you out of the box. 

Instead, take an audit of your skills and quantify accomplishments, then create descriptions in the language of the keywords required by the AI screeners and the exhausted eyes of those hiring. The meme of our uncertain times is: "Here is what I can do for you." Not, "This is what I had managed." 

You won't list on what you put out there the position "Manager of Sales Training at XYZ Auto Dealership." Here's what you post:

"Sales Training. Revamped the sales process at XYZ Auto Dealership. Provided hands-on training and retraining for 43 salespeople, increasing vehicle sales 53% and revenues 34% in eight months. For the next five years average sales growth was 22% and revenue 11%. The dealership won the industry award for customer engagement, as measured by ABC survey, for five consecutive years.:

This isn't the first time middle management and several layers above have been purged from business.

During the late 1980s the perfect storm of downsizing and mergers ended the corporate careers of a whole generation of middle-aged professionals. The cover of Fortune magazine had one word: "Fired." Many of us Boomers reinvented ourselves as small business owners. We weren't out to build an empire like Steve Jobs, just make a good living. We were blessed in that services were being outsourced from large businesses. 

In coaching I am noticing that more and more of the current middle-aged white collars being axed from their management positions are setting up small businesses. Interestingly not all are in their former field of expertise. In many sectors there is a severe glut of experience and talent. The good news is that technology makes it possible to create just about any kind of online enterprise. 

Affordable Career Coach Jane Genova provides end-to-end career services, ranging from diagnosis of the challenges and fix-it strategies to preparation of resume/cover letters/LinkedIn profiles and how to gain control of an interview. I specialize in over-50 work issues. My edge is a background in marketing communications. For a confidential complimentary consultation please text/phone 203-468-8579 or email janegenova374@gmail.com. Remote and in-person.