Latest / Executive Careers with Fexingo: VP, C-Suite, and Senior Leadership Career Strategy / How Senior Leaders Use Career Storytelling to Shape Opportunities
Transcript
- Lucas: You know, Luna, I've been thinking about something that comes up again and again when I talk to senior leaders who are looking for their next move. They have incredible resumes — twenty, thirty years of results — but when they sit down with a board or a search committee, they struggle to make their career feel like more than a list of jobs. Luna: Yeah, it's like they're giving a chronological report instead of telling a story. And in a world where attention spans are short, that's a real disadvantage. Lucas: Exactly. And that's what I want to dig into today: how senior leaders can use career storytelling to shape their opportunities. Not just to 'tell their story' in some vague sense, but to craft a narrative that actually opens doors. Luna: And it's funny you bring this up, because I think about how much value we try to put into these episodes — and we deliberately keep them ad-free. If this kind of discussion helps you think through a career move or decision, you can support the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to keep this going without ads. Lucas: Absolutely. We'd rather spend the time on the content than on selling something. So let's get into it. Let me start with a concrete example. I was talking to a former COO of a mid-cap manufacturing company — let's call him Mark. He spent 15 years at one firm, rose from plant manager to COO, then the company was acquired and his role was eliminated. Luna: That's a tough spot. Fifteen years at one place can look like loyalty, but some boards see it as a lack of breadth. Lucas: Right. And Mark's initial resume listed his promotions and accomplishments — 'reduced operating costs by 22 percent,' 'led integration of three acquisitions.' Solid, but it read like every other operations executive. The problem was he wasn't giving anyone a reason to care about him personally. Luna: So what did he change? Lucas: He reframed his entire career arc as that of a 'turnaround architect.' Not a title he ever held, but a through-line that connected his early days fixing a broken plant to his later work restructuring underperforming divisions. Suddenly, every job became a chapter in a story about transformation. Luna: I love that. It gives the listener a lens to interpret his experience. They're not just hearing about cost savings; they're seeing a pattern of intervention. Lucas: Exactly. And this is the core of what I call the three-part career story: the pivot, the proof, and the purpose. The pivot is the moment or decision that set you on your path. For Mark, it was taking that first plant manager role at a struggling facility when he could have stayed at corporate. Luna: The proof is the results that validate the pivot. And the purpose is the bigger why — what drives you beyond a paycheck. Lucas: Right. Mark's purpose became 'I turn underperforming operations into engines of growth, and I do it by building teams that own the process.' That's a much more compelling statement than 'I have 20 years of operational experience.' Luna: And this isn't just about board roles. It applies to any senior leadership opportunity — CEO, division head, even strategic advisor gigs. Lucas: Absolutely. Let me give you another example. I worked with a chief marketing officer who had spent most of her career at a single consumer goods company. She wanted to move into a general management role, but search committees saw her as 'just marketing.' Luna: Classic pigeonhole problem. What did she do? Lucas: She reframed her story around 'brand-led transformation.' She highlighted how she had used marketing to drive supply chain changes, influence product development, and even shape M&A strategy. The narrative became: she didn't just run marketing; she used marketing to transform the entire business. Luna: So she expanded the definition of her role by telling a different story about what she actually did. That's smart. Lucas: It is. And the key is that the story has to be true. You can't invent a pivot that didn't happen. But you can choose which pivot to emphasize. Mark could have framed his story around operational excellence or cost discipline, but 'turnaround' was more distinctive and aligned with the board roles he wanted. Luna: How do you even start crafting that narrative? I imagine most senior leaders are so deep in their day-to-day that they don't see the arc. Lucas: That's exactly the challenge. I recommend starting with a timeline exercise. Write down every major role you've had, then for each one, ask: what was the situation when I arrived, what did I do, and what was the outcome? Then look for patterns across the timeline. Is there a common problem you solve? A type of organization you thrive in? A specific way you lead? Luna: And those patterns become the raw material for the story. But then you have to boil it down to a few sentences. That's the hard part. Lucas: It is. And I think a lot of executives overcomplicate it. You don't need a full biography. You need a narrative spine that can be told in 90 seconds. In fact, the best career stories I've heard can be delivered in the time it takes to ride an elevator. Luna: Right — the elevator pitch, but for your entire career. What's the structure of that 90-second version? Lucas: Three sentences. First sentence: the pivot. 'I started my career in supply chain, but after leading a turnaround at a failing plant, I realized my strength is in transforming operations.' Second sentence: the proof. 'Since then, I've led three major turnarounds, each time improving margins by at least 15 percent while building teams that sustained the gains.' Third sentence: the purpose. 'I'm looking for my next challenge where I can apply that transformation playbook to a company that's ready for a step change.' Luna: That's so clean. And it gives the listener a clear takeaway. They know exactly what you do and what you want. Lucas: Exactly. And that clarity is what separates a memorable candidate from a forgettable one. When a board member walks out of a meeting, they should be able to describe you in one sentence. If they can't, you haven't told your story clearly enough. Luna: What about the written version — like a board bio or a LinkedIn summary? Does the same structure apply? Lucas: It does, but with more room for specifics. The written version should still start with a strong narrative statement, then follow with bullet-point proof. But here's a trap I see: executives write their bio as a dry list of past titles. Instead, each bullet should be a mini-story with situation action result. Luna: Give me an example of what that looks like in practice. Lucas: Sure. Instead of 'Led supply chain transformation at XYZ Corp,' you write: 'At XYZ Corp, inherited a supply chain with 35 percent on-time delivery and a disengaged team. Implemented a lean operations program and rebuilt the team from the ground up, achieving 98 percent on-time delivery within 18 months and reducing costs by $12 million annually.' Luna: That's concrete. You can picture the problem and the result. It's compelling. Lucas: Right. And notice it doesn't use jargon like 'operational excellence' or 'synergies.' It tells a story in numbers and actions. Boards love that because it gives them something to latch onto. Luna: One thing I've noticed is that senior leaders often struggle to talk about failures in their story. They feel like they have to present a perfect record. But I think a well-framed failure can be powerful. Lucas: I agree completely. A story that includes a setback and a recovery is more human and more memorable. I worked with a CFO who had overseen a failed ERP implementation early in her career — it was over budget and late. She initially left it off her narrative, but when she added it as a learning moment — 'that experience taught me to ask hard questions about technology investments before signing off' — it actually strengthened her credibility. Luna: Because it shows self-awareness and growth. It's not about the failure; it's about what you learned and how you changed. Lucas: Exactly. And that's a key element of the purpose part of the story. Why do you do what you do? Often the answer comes from a lesson learned the hard way. Luna: I want to go back to something you said earlier about choosing which pivot to emphasize. How do you decide which narrative is the right one for the opportunity you're pursuing? Lucas: That's the strategic part. You have to tailor your story to your audience. If you're talking to a board that needs a turnaround expert, you lead with your turnaround story. If you're talking to a PE firm that wants a growth operator, you lead with the story of how you scaled a business. Your raw material is the same, but you highlight different chapters. Luna: So it's not about lying or exaggerating. It's about curating your experience to match the need. Lucas: Exactly. And the best senior leaders I know have a few versions of their story ready. They know which one to pull out depending on who's in the room. But they all share a common thread — a clear, authentic through-line. Luna: I think a lot of listeners might be thinking, 'This sounds great, but I don't have a dramatic pivot like Mark's turnaround.' What would you say to them? Lucas: I'd say you don't need a dramatic pivot. Sometimes the pivot is subtle — a choice to specialize, a decision to move into a new function, a willingness to take a lateral role that broadened your perspective. The key is to find the moment where you made a conscious choice that shaped your trajectory. Even if it's 'I chose to stay at my company during a difficult period because I believed in the mission,' that's a pivot. It says something about your values. Luna: That's a good point. The story doesn't have to be about a huge change. It just has to reveal something about who you are and how you think. Lucas: Right. And the best stories do that in a way that feels natural, not rehearsed. That's the other thing — once you have your narrative, you have to practice it until it sounds like you're just talking, not reciting a script. Luna: I imagine that's where an executive coach or a trusted peer can help. They can give you feedback on how it lands. Lucas: Absolutely. I always recommend recording yourself and listening back. If you sound bored, your audience will be bored. If you sound like you're selling, they'll tune out. The goal is to sound like a thoughtful leader reflecting on their journey. Luna: So let's say someone has their story ready. How do they actually use it in a networking conversation or an interview? They can't just launch into a monologue. Lucas: Right. It's not a monologue. The story should emerge naturally in response to a question. When someone asks, 'Tell me about yourself,' that's your cue. But you don't have to dump the whole thing at once. You can give the two-sentence version and then let the conversation guide you deeper. Luna: I think that's the key insight — your career story is not a presentation. It's a conversational tool. You use it to open a door, not to walk through the whole house. Lucas: That's a great way to put it. And when you get it right, people remember you. They think, 'That person is exactly what we need.' And that's the whole point.