Executive employment can be a very lucrative line of work. It takes a lot of hard work and knowledge to get to the top of the corporate ladder. Let’s take a look at what some of the standard executive employment positions are and what you need to acquire them. And of course, we can’t forget to look at the benefits of all the hard work either. Executive employment is essentially a career with a position in the upper echelon of a company. An executive can be considered any position in the hierarchy of a company such as the CEO, CFO, COO, Vice-President or any upper level management.
Description for Executive Employment
An individual in the field of executive employment could have varying responsibilities in their job depending on what form of executive they are. For example, the CEO of a company, which stands for Chief Executive Officer, has responsibilities related to the overall organization of the company. The CEO oftentimes oversees the other executives, managers and supervisors within the company. The partners, shareholders, or president of the company will usually go to the CEO for status reports, and recommendations in regards to company decisions. The CEO of a company usually has the best overall view of the company, the company’s departments and the company’s employees.
The CFO of a company, which stands for Chief Financial Officer, is basically the accountant for the company. The CFO will oversee all payroll, accounts payable and accounts receivable. All executive employees have stressful jobs with much responsibility, but some claim that of all the positions the heaviest is the CFO’s position. The CFO is in charge of the company’s bank account.
The COO of a company, which stands for Chief Operations Officer, is responsible for the company from a logistics standpoint. All processes and efficiency issues are the responsibility of the COO.
Apart from these three positions within executive employment, an individual could also be vice-president of marketing or many other executive employment positions. The job summary, duties, roles and responsibilities of an individual in executive employment will vary according to the position held. A job summary for a CFO for example would be responsibility of all fiscal and financial management aspects of the entire company. The job responsibilities of a CFO would also be to provide leadership and coordinate all business planning, budgeting and accounting efforts of the company as well as the administrative aspects. Other job responsibilities of an individual in the executive employment career might be to maintain and establish appropriate internal control safeguards, as well as coordinate the preparation of financial statements, special analyses, financial reports, as well as informational reports. An individual in executive employment would most likely serve on planning committees and policy-making committees.
The education needed to obtain a career in executive employment is usually a master’s degree, MBA or Ph.D. Many companies require a master’s degree to be an executive within their company. An MBA which is a Master’s in Business Administration is a very common degree for people who are in executive employment careers. While there is no set requirement for a career in executive employment, most companies do prefer their executive employment candidates have advanced degrees.
Job specifications, qualifications and required professional skills needed to become an executive employment career candidate are exemplary decision-making skills, management skills, the ability to implement and delegate, and a very resourceful nature. An executive employment candidate would need to be confident speaking in front of groups of people as well as negotiating with other company executives.
Executive Employment Career
The typical career path for executive employment begins with an internship in undergrad, followed by either several years of experience or an advanced degree. Most individuals work their way up the executive employment ladder and rarely have a position within executive employment before the age of 30. This all depends of course, on the company. Bigger companies are more difficult to get a job as an executive, while smaller companies are much easier to get one’s foot in the door.
Salary and Benefits for Executive Employment
Typically, salaries and benefit packages for executives are those to be envious of. There is really nothing typical about a position in executive employment. Salaries range in the six-figure mark. Benefits are incredible as the executive is oftentimes a shareholder as well. Depending upon the company and the executive position held, oftentimes after serving a handful of years as an executive, the individual would be set financially for life. Of course there are other times when a company goes bankrupt and the executive employees go right down with their company.
Opportunities for Executive Employment
Opportunities for executive employment in the United States as well as other countries are very competitive. Most people who work incredibly long and hard hours, have an advanced degree and are motivated by money are also the people who have the stamina to compete with other executives for those career positions. Executive employment is an interesting career. Even in a recession executive employment is still a lucrative and stable career choice. Many current executives are resigning or retiring, opening new positions for eager and fresh newcomers.
There really is not such a thing as a typical employer for executives. Almost every company has an executive board, or a few executives. For example, Sprint has an executive board as well as your local hardware store. They’re just different types of executives. The Sprint executive wears a suit to work, most likely flies around the country making decisions and networking. Meanwhile the hardware store executive probably doesn’t wear a suit to work however most definitely makes the exact same decisions as the Sprint executive.
Agencies and Resources for Executive Employment
There are hundreds of thousands of agencies around the world that act as a middle-man or liaison between the company and the executive. These companies can be found in the United States, European Countries, Canada and Australia. Oftentimes called headhunters, executive recruiters and employment agencies are used regularly by companies. The agencies take care of all the background checks, reference checks and recommendations. The agencies ensure the executive seeking employment has achieved all that their resume says they have achieved. These agencies are too numerous to name and vary even from state to state. By searching for Executive Recruiters on the Internet, some of the thousands of online agencies that come up in the Midwest are i-recruit; execunet; salesadvantage; simplyhired and Midwest search group.
Conclusion Executive Employment
Are you extremely motivated to climb the corporate ladder? Do you have an incredible work ethic? Does a six-figure salary to accompany a 70-hour work week appeal to you? Do you have an advanced degree such as an MBA or Masters in Marketing? Are you efficient in delegating and have strong management skills? If so, a career in executive employment is definitely a field for you to consider.
