How to land your first CEO role

If you’re feeling inspired to become a charity CEO for the first time, you may be wondering how to get your foot in the door. This article offers advice and tips to help you on your career journey to becoming a chief executive. The application and interview process for a CEO role can be intensive and time-consuming, so it’s important to prepare.

 

 

Build an online presence

 

One of the first things to do is to develop your online presence, so people can find you easily. Set up a LinkedIn profile and spend time on the platform sharing content and ideas. Recruitment agency Peridot says that building a personal brand online can help you to showcase your personality and passion to prospective employers.

 

A Forbes article says that it’s important for CEOs to have social media profiles, so they can communicate about their organisations and share their work. So, if you get to grips with social media before you become a CEO that will be useful.

 

 

Find a CEO mentor

 

Charity People says that, before you begin applying for CEO roles, you should speak to current CEOs to find out what it’s like to be a chief executive. You could organise some meetings, chats over coffee or head out networking.

 

Consider finding a current chief executive to be a mentor to help you develop your skills. It’s a chance to learn from their experience and grow your confidence.

 

Our article gives useful advice on how to find a mentor. Charity People is launching a mentor scheme for both new and aspiring charity CEOs. The deadline is August 2024.

 

 

Learn and develop CEO skills

 

Get prepared for a CEO role by developing your skills. For example, you may want to learn more about managing charity finance or how communications can support a charity’s work. You may also want to consider getting a coach or doing a leadership course, or doing some reading about how to run a charity. Charity Digital has book recommendations for charity leaders.

 

 

Think about your transferrable skills

 

Jane van Zyl, CEO of Working Families, says in an article for CharityJob that you don’t have to have started your career with a long-term plan. The important thing is to identify your transferrable skills and experience and apply to these to a CEO role.

 

Think about examples that you can share with an interview panel. For instance, talking about how you’ve supported a previous CEO and the senior leadership team on a project, how you’ve developed organisational strategies and planned for change, and how you’ve overcome challenges.

 

 

Understand how a board of trustees works

 

An interview panel will want to know how you will develop a relationship with the board of trustees. Get to know and understand the role of trustees and how they work with the CEO of a charity. As well as reading about the trustee role and speaking to others who are trustees, you may want to consider taking on a trustee role at a charity to get first-hand experience.

 

 

Be able to make tough decisions

 

Every charity CEO will have to make tough business decisions at some point in their career. Jane van Zyl says it’s important that CEOs can see the way forward and take others with them. Also, a CEO needs to feel comfortable with managing people including resolving difficult issues.

 

 

Prepare for your CEO interviews

 

When you’re invited for an interview, put the work into prepare. This will help to reduce nerves and get rid of any imposter syndrome you may be feeling.

 

Peridot says you should “get to know the organisation beyond its financial statements”. This means understanding what the charity does, the communities it works with and the people it supports.

 

You should also try and approach the chair and the outgoing chief executive to get first-hand knowledge about the organisation.

 

Remember it’s important to be yourself. An interview panel will want to see enthusiasm and passion for their cause.

 

 

Be resilient

 

Expect a few knockbacks before you land your first CEO role. A panel of charity CEOs, on a webinar hosted by Charity People, said you may need to apply for a few CEO roles before you find the right one. Keep a positive mindset.

 

If you don’t get the role, ask for feedback. This will help you to learn from the experience and prepare for future interviews.