Ideas for floating your Resume around without actively looking
Hi Monkeys,
I am currently an analyst at a major brokerage firm for an investment sales/capital markets team in a rapidly growing secondary market. I am on a strong team with ample deal flow and still find the position challenging. While I could definitely picture myself continuing down my current career trajectory, it would be nice to know what exit opportunities might be in the market. I believe that once things ramp up again, whether that be in 3 months or 18 months, there could be a lot of opportunities for young professionals with some legitimate experience under their belt.
I would appreciate hearing what advice the community has in floating your resume around without raising an eyebrow with your current employer and also being sensitive to firms that are actively looking for candidates to fill an immediate need.
I also want to add that I understand that some members of the real estate community have lost their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and I don’t want to seem insensitive with this post. As previously mentioned, I think our industry will come out of this with a lot of opportunity and a new perspective.
You could reach out to some recruiters, just let tell them your skills any maybe ask if they have anything coming up in the near future. You could also plan on setting up a coffee meeting or two a month with people at companies or in rolls that look interesting to you.
Thanks - I was planning on picking up coffee chats again. I will also dig into if their is a legit recruiter in my market. Should have specified that I want to stay in my market.
who are the best recruiters in NYC market?
I was in a similar place to you a while back and left to join a client. In my opinion, investment sales is the best place to start out in our business because you get exposure to all of the folks in your marketplace. Ostensibly, you know who is smart, who is not, who is an asshole, and who you like. When this is all over, reach out to some of the people you like and have interacted with to get beers, lunch, coffee, etc and just put out feelers. You shouldn't have too much trouble.
The folks who are young, in the business now, and are able to stay in the business should have a lot of opportunities unfold for them. The key is to stay in the game.
I think you should always be networking / passively be looking for jobs, especially with people / companies that you think you might like to work for in the future. You can make a list of companies you are interested in and work through it over months / years. That way when an opportunity at one of these firms does come up, you know someone to reach out to and can circumvent HR / the traditional process. If you're methodical about this, you will never need to "actively" search for a job, you can just tap your network.
I don't think you should lead with your resume, but if asked to provide one you should have one ready to go. A casual coffee can quickly turn into an interview if you catch the right guy at the right time. If there isn't an opening today but an opportunity comes up 6 months to a year down the line you might skip a couple of rounds of the interview process as you've already passed the airport test.
Good luck!
Thank you this is a helpful strategy. I agree with you that leading these conversations with a resume is not the way to go. I just updated it over the weekend and realized I've come a long way since I was first looking for a job in college so was a little eager.
It is a great feeling to look and see progress. Also, definitely apply to any formal listing that you see. If you don't already know someone, you can then reach out to someone at the company asking to talk / meet for coffee. This usually leads to a more targeted conversation about the role but is still a worthwhile strategy to circumvent the typical process.
Lot's of good advice in comments above, a few items to add
Getting on recruiters radar is a good idea. Here is a link to a list Real Estate Alert put together in 2019, very useful
You appear to have 2+ years of exp., I generally recommend waiting for about the 5+ year mark to make a move as you are a lot more valuable, likely to get recruited, and can make a move that is more meaningful. This is especially true if coming from IS/CM. You should still be networking and working on that move now. I think your post sets it up like you have right idea.
I would go heavy with at least one or two industry organizations like NAIOP or ULI. By 'heavy' I mean attend, volunteer, and get leadership roles. This is very easy on a local chapter level, then you can pivot to national roles. This is the easiest way to get national recognition, build big network, and 'float' your availability without actively looking. Downside is the time investment, but that is why it is valuable. IMHO, people wait too long into their career to start building national level networks, you can totally do this in your early career years (it helps if your firm will pay the cost of dues, events, and even travel to national conferences, if they won't I think it is worth your personal investment.)
Thank you - appreciate the detailed insight! I guess my only question is the 5+ year mark. I think I could be hitting Director level at the brokerage shop by then. Does it not make sense to jump ship earlier?
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