Finicky companies are searching for that special executive - the software engineer who rocks, the operations chief who scuba dives, the bank president who knows a good Scandinavian folk song when he hears one.
One firm insists on golfers with a 10 handicap or less. To get hired by other choosy corporations, you might have to run a marathon or walk a dog, sprout some hair or shed some weight.In a survey, members of the Association of Corporate and Professional Recruiters listed unusual job requirements they'd received. Executive job specs seem to have gotten more and more specific - and sometimes downright bizarre.
"In the '80s, companies would say, `Get us someone who's bright and experienced,' " says Jo Bennett, a New York headhunter and a director of the recruiters association. "But since the recession, employers have gotten much more precise. There's no more, `Get us a warm body.' "
Now, it's "Get us a warm body who has knowledge of fiddle playing and traditional Scandinavian folk songs and is also a storyteller" - the stated requirements for running a small savings bank in the fiords of western Norway, where that's entertainment.
What employer would refuse to interview anyone with even a bit of a paunch? A manufacturer of weight-loss products. Ignore the bald? A shampoo maker.
By the same logic, "a keen and discerning sense of smell" is probably not too much to ask of a marketing executive who would have to evaluate - personally - the effectiveness of a new line of antiperspirants.
Some employers demand unique combinations of skills. A firm digging a subway in an Asian city needed a chief of operations who was also a certified deep sea diver; a company developing a computerized music synthesizer wanted an engineering vice president who was also a rock musician.
Most job specs are not so esoteric, but recruiters say those exceptions illustrate a trend: After two years of recession, employers feel free to ask for executives who can wear more than one hat.
The division president who once looked to headquarters for help with public relations, marketing and other support services, for example, may now be on his or her own.
"On a slimmed-down corporate staff, people have broader responsibilities and need a wider array of talents," says Paul Winberry, a vice president at National Westminster Bank. And since the "slimming-down" has flooded the job market with qualified execs, "employers want to take advantage of that supply."
For headhunters, there are more missions impossible. These specs recently were submitted by a pharmaceutical company, which in deference to its recruiter must remain anonymous:
"Seeking medical doctor with MBA from leading business school. Should be superb scientist with comprehensive knowledge of five therapeutic areas. Must be entrepreneur and capable of, ultimately, becoming the cor-po-ra-tion's CEO. Must accept significant part of compensation in stock options and be willing to relocate to rural area."
"We call these `oxymoron specs,' " explained the recruiter. "Bench scientists tend to be introverted, and entrepreneurs are outgoing."
Some of the stranger specs are rationalized under the rubric of "corporate culture." The 10-handicap requirement was imposed by some senior executives who were excellent golfers and felt they would be uncomfortable with someone who wasn't.
Another company insisted that applicants for a top executive post have run a marathon. The president, a workaholic and runner, wanted someone who could simultaneously jog and talk business.
One company expected candidates for an executive spot to have a family, including a wife, kids and a dog - all of which were thought to show "stability and commitment."
Must that "commitment" extend to personally walking the beast each dawn? That wasn't specified.