Candidate Advice: Your Elevator Pitch

2021 has started in a rather strange fashion, we’re all confident that it will be a better year than 2020 but we still live under the same depressing rules that engulfed us last year. While there is some light on the very distant horizon it also means we will continue to network and interview using video conferencing software such as Zoom and Teams. 

To kick off 2021, I was lucky enough to have two great HR searches to work on, and while I have met some strong candidates for these roles, one thing has really stood out: No one really knows what their elevator pitch is on themselves! I’ve asked this question continually throughout all of my Zoom meetings and it is regularly met with: “erm, trustworthy, erm, I like to get the job done and I’m reliable.” Now without sounding harsh a couple of the above are a given and no employer should need reassurance through your “elevator pitch” that you’re reliable and trustworthy. In fact, it almost concerns me that it is being raised! 

As we rely less on that “in person executive presence” we need to consciously and proactively focus on our online executive presence and that means speaking confidently and being clear and concise in your own ability. I think that elevator pitches should be structured in 3-4 sentences that give a good overall summary of not only your experience but your individuality. As an example, the following pitch is what that I would use should I be interviewing tomorrow: “I am a global HR recruitment executive who has lived and worked in a number of cities across the world. I thrive on motivating others, striving for them to be the best recruiters they can be while also maintaining a broader company focus on the strategy and day to day running of the Elliott Scott HR business. I believe others I work with would describe me as driven and focused but always looking to bring fun to the work I love to do.” The aim of your introduction is to give people a flavour of who you are. In the above pitch I have tried to cover 3 main things: What I do – ultimately I am an HR recruitment expert What I enjoy – leading my day-to-day role – running the strategy and operational aspects of the Elliott Scott HR business. 

The rest tries to share a little bit more about who I am as a person but let’s be clear, you’re interviewing for a specific job, so in your summary I want to know what it is you actually do. This is a topic I feel really passionate about as it enables you to quickly highlight what you can personally bring to a new relationship or role. If you would like to discuss your pitch further with me, or one my team, then please do ask; one piece of advice to anyone thinking about this is to use your camera on your phone and record yourself making your pitch. You don’t need to know it verbatim but it helps to memorise an outline or framework to build from and observe your pace, tone, body language and engagement.