A UK Transfer Pricing Partner reached out this week to say thanks to our team for delivering an exceptional TP Senior Manager that has joined their team.
As the conversation evolved, we got to talking about current expectation levels at the more senior end of the market.
Expectations around "promoting up" to secure a move. Expectations around what people will be required to do in the new role. Expectations about further promotion pathways and timelines.
We concluded that oftentimes, there is a significant gap between these expectations and the reality presented via an interview.
Interviews aren't always the best way of assessing ability and likely future performance, but by and large, they are still, and will continue to be, part and parcel of any job search.
So, here's a free tip. If you are a professional services Senior Manager and you've applied for a Director role, you can bet your house on the fact that you will be asked, and be expected to be very, very convincing in your response, about how you go to market to win work and what strategies have you successfully used to win additional work from existing clients or win new clients.
If you cannot answer this question with authority and a demonstrated track-record of success with evidenced examples, you are not operating at the expected level required for a Director level role.
You need to be already operating and thinking like an owner of the business. Not an employee who receives work, but an owner who generates new mandates and is creating a self-sufficient work pipeline.
Having members on our team who have worked for over 15 years in Big 4 professional services, we spend a lot of time supporting and coaching senior Transfer Pricing professionals who are preparing business cases for promotion and for critical interviews for new roles that require demonstrated evidence and positioning of a value proposition.
If you want to take advantage of that when exploring your next move, please reach out at: al@tpi-search.com for a confidential conversation.