Job stability scarce among executives

A recent survey conducted by ExecuNet, a career management and recruiting resource center for executives and recruiters, reveals most employed executives are worried about their employment status.

According to a survey of 1,185 executives, 68% are concerned about their present job or career. When asked about the cause of this concern, most executives say their worries stem from sources outside of their personal control:

23% report that their company's prospects are not good;
20% attribute it to the possibility of merger, downsizing, or reorganization; and
16% point toward poor industry prospects.

As the economy continues to struggle, the prospect of a job loss looms larger for more and more executives, says Dave Opton, CEO and Founder of ExecuNet. In this type of environment, proactive career management can make or break an executive career.

The survey found that 72% of executives have had three or more jobs in the past ten years. When asked how long they expect to stay in their next job, 7% state less than two years, 33% say two to three years, 29% expect to stay four to five years, and 30% believe they will remain in their next job for more than five years.

These tenure expectations may be overly optimistic as a separate survey of 323 recruiters conducted by ExecuNet revealed 18% of executives do not survive their first year in a new position.

During the days of serving a single company until retirement, working hard and smart was a sure route to career success, says Opton. Today, building a successful executive career not only depends on performance but also requires strong networking, interviewing, self-marketing, and research skills.

For 15 years ExecuNet has kept executives and recruiters informed of trends in the executive employment market. It is the first source executive and corporate recruiters use to find top executive talent. Founded in 1988, ExecuNet posts upwards of 25,000 executive jobs annually; provides information on salaries and market trends; hosts networking meetings in major metropolitan cities across the U.S.; and publishes four newsletters covering the latest tips, tactics, strategies, and resources for executive job search, career management, networking, and recruitment.