We recently connected with Alan Stein and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Alan , really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
I think it was a mid-life “perfect storm” of sorts, really. Over about 20 years I had been working across several industries in various functions and had very intentionally moved into FAANG because I was frankly, a little underemployed and underpaid at American Express–my first post-MBA job in 2005. It became apparent to me that technology was the industry to be in if a person had a growth mindset and wanted to be very well compensated and be part of a positive corporate culture. So I persevered and banged my head against the wall until I finally got a job at Google–after being rejected five times! What actually helped get me the job after 11 interviews was sharing with a colleague my frustration and he offered to connect me to someone in his network who, in turn, helped me. I then went on to other FAANG and tech companies like Facebook (now Meta), Tableau, and Salesforce (among others). As I moved up the ladder and had to hire global teams, I realized that these companies were talking a good game regarding diversity but it really wasn’t happening. I tried to suggest ways to improve the outcomes and make their DEI efforts more effective and I was kind of dismissed. I tried to transition into DEI roles at these companies but was told that I didn’t have the requisite experience. Like many things in life, my purpose kind of unfolded naturally; I started a side hustle (which would become Kadima Careers) helping individuals to leverage their networks to get interviews and better jobs while I was still at Salesforce. I then left Salesforce, George Floyd was killed, and I thought to myself maybe I am better equipped–given all of my own personal interviewing experience, as well as my hiring expertise–to move the DEI needle by helping people in underrepresented groups on the outside get into these companies.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Although Kadima Careers’ “sweet spot” is helping professionals in underrepresented groups (women, BIPOC, LatinX, LGBTQIA+, able-bodied and disabled veterans, and those that identify as neurodiverse) to realize their goals by acquiring career-accelerating positions where they will be fairly compensated, our story is one based on inclusivity. Our client roster spans professionals in the early stages of their careers through C-Suiters and includes individuals of various gender identities and ethnic backgrounds from around the globe. Our range of solutions include templates and DIY digital courses, to group coaching and personalized 1:1 coaching. Although many people come to me seeking jobs at FAANG or other tech companies, before I went to Columbia Business School in 2004, I worked in other industries: including sports management, Wall Street, and venture capital. Kadima Careers’ proprietary GROWTH Framework is applicable across all industries because it is based on building H2H relationships by leveraging technology tools such as LinkedIn, ChatGPT, and Glassdoor, among others.
The developments that my team and I are particularly excited about include: partnering with other organizations and coaches in complementary areas–for instance, mental health-focused life coaching; building a robust Kadima Careers community where both the coaches on my team and the clients in my coaching programs support and lift each other up; and the continuity of care that we frankly provide that others do not. In our group coaching program we work with our clients for six months, and in our personalized 1:1 coaching we work with individuals for a year or until they accept a job offer. We even support these clients in the first 3 months of their new role to help set the groundwork for their continued success. On average it takes one of our clients 3.45 months to get a job with the average income increase being $38K (the range, of course, includes many individuals who were unemployed for a year or more before finally seeking our help). At Kadima Careers we are very feedback-driven and am always asking the market of job seekers what kinds of products and services would be the most valuable to them. Currently, we are getting a lot more clients seeking more support in terms of career changing and pivoting which of course–given my own career trajectory–we have specialized expertise in. With many professionals leaving industries such as education and healthcare for various reasons, and the world’s growing commitment to environmental justice and sustainability, pivoting is becoming the new norm.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
1) Resilience: Every career trajectory–indeed, every life journey–is going to have its ups and downs. To a great degree, happiness and success depends upon an individual’s ability to handle stress and pick themselves up by their bootstraps, dust themselves off, and get back in the saddle–even when the horse unexpectedly throws them off! Thankfully, society is much more focused on self-care and mental health now; there are many books out there which also talk about how to build resilience. It’s also important to realize that many setbacks really have nothing to do with you or anything you may be lacking but are a byproduct of circumstances. Life can sometimes be unfair and someone who may be less qualified than you are might get promoted–maybe because their father is friends with someone in the C-Suite or something.
2) Perseverance: Frankly, in ALL aspects of life, persevering is key. Someone once told me that they asked their son who really wanted to become a Navy SEAL if they had a back-up plan if they didn’t make the cut. This young man said: “Not getting in is just not an option for me.” Google kept rejecting me but I kept going back until I got the “yes.” Was that hard? Sure, but it’s important to reframe perseverance so that you think of it as the tool that is going to get you from where you are today to where you want to be tomorrow.
3) Networking: We obviously are living in an increasingly competitive world. At many sought after companies like FAANG an excellent applicant is not going to get noticed if 2,000 people have submitted their resumes online for a well-paying, exciting position. What will get you out of the pile of resumes is someone that you know inside the company making a phone call to the hiring manager and saying: “I think you ought to interview so and so.” There are two pieces of advice that I would like to give here: 1) Get over any hesitancy you have about reaching out to people at companies in the industry where you want to work; and 2) Actually integrate relationship-building and networking into your career and your life so that you aren’t just doing it when you need to get a new job!
Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?
My ideal client–what I refer to as an ICP or Ideal Customer Profile (but this is by NO means all of my clients)–has a MBA from a top 25 or 30 ranking business school and has a growth mindset, is coachable, and possesses a vision of where they want to go–both in the short- and long-term. They may have had a personal or career setback which has prevented them from moving forward in the manner in which they had envisioned early on in their career. Companies obviously merge or reorg and that kind of scenario may mean that someone’s boss or mentor gets pushed out and a new leadership team comes in. Also, individuals take time off to have children or take care of their elderly parents. There are many ways that a career can slow down or even get stuck and be in need of acceleration. Think of Kadima Careers as your co-partner in your Career Acceleration!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kadimacareers.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kadimacareers/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanjstein/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@kadimacareers
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kadimacareers/
Image Credits
Sistas in Sales Summit, KTBC-TV’s Fox 7 Good Day Austin, WPVI-TV’s ABC Action News’ Brighter News
