CCI columnist Mary Shirley thoroughly debunks the myth that titles don’t matter, but warns that job-seekers shouldn’t dwell on them to the detriment of doing good work.
“Mary,” she said after I congratulated upon getting her first chief compliance officer job, “my whole life I’ve been told that titles don’t matter, and now that I have the chief title, people who didn’t want anything to do with me are clamoring to get on my schedule. There are events for senior executives I never even knew about that I’m being welcomed to join with open arms, and the only thing that’s different about me is that I have this new title.”
I was hardly shocked by this. After all, with a higher title comes more authority and implicitly more power. We’ve been fascinated with power since the beginning of time. So why is it that we’re constantly told not to focus on titles during the job search when there is a designation that is too low for the responsibilities expected or where we want to pitch ourselves for our next step of career advancement?
Sometimes the answer is as simple as the person conveying the messaging has a vested interest in filling the role and getting it off their plate ASAP. I would argue that being conscious of title is especially important for compliance functions because the DOJ clearly states the compliance department should be adequately resourced and those responsible for compliance should be sufficiently senior.
It’s particularly challenging to maintain a compliance program and get the ear of senior executives or to have them take you seriously when you’re sitting too low in the food chain. Steve Harrison, partner at Conselium, a compliance search firm, notes, “Most people have first-hand experience of how job title and seniority can change the style and outcome of a workplace interaction, be it verbal or electronic — those with a big title are more likely to get a positive response, and it’ll probably be faster too.”
Should it be that way? Of course not. Every voice should matter. However, if you’re viewed as chopped liver, no amount of charisma and executive presence is going to be as helpful as being armed with organizational authority.
The other angle, and might be gauche to mention it, is that titles tend to be tied to salary bands, which tend to be tied to how comfortably we can pay your bills. Additionally, the title you have now is one of the first things, if not the very first thing, recruiters will look at when assessing whether you’re right for the shiny new role that future you seeks further down the track.
Ashley Kemp, managing director at recruitment firm ZRG, said, “A title can influence your professional reputation and how you’re perceived both internally and externally.” Harrison agreed: ”Generally, not just in the case of chief compliance officers, my perception is that chief titles garner significantly more respect internally and externally and allow individuals to operate with more authority and flexibility.”
Titles do matter.
The case against dwelling on title
Whenever I have expressed curiosity about a title being surprisingly junior-seeming for the position at hand, I’ve been told, sometimes patronizingly, that every organization levels differently. Now, prima facie, this seems like sound rationale to explain the situation — because it is literally true. It’s hard to argue with a true statement.
However, that doesn’t necessarily make it a satisfactory answer. Just because you do something a certain way kind of sounds like a you problem for the employer, not so much a me problem for the candidate. Along similar lines, is the oft-proffered explanation that it needs to be this particular title because of internal equity. Does it, though? Why not give everyone a boost? I may be wandering into the realm of infeasibility for some organizations, but what should you consider if you’re interested in a role with a title that doesn’t seem to be cutting it?
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Read moreSome relevant considerations
- Acknowledge that titles do matter, even if it serves the person you’re speaking with not to admit that. Harrison points out, “I’ve heard on numerous occasions, from people considering applying to a compliance leader job, that they feel the title of the position reflects how the executives and board at a company feel about the significance of the position and how much clout that person should be allowed to wield.” Know that it’s not only human nature but prudent for you to want a title that adequately expresses your role and responsibilities.
- Ask yourself why it’s important to you and see if you can achieve that goal another way. For example, if the title doesn’t identify you as the lead of the function, consider whether you wish to negotiate to use an external title that does convey as such so that you can be clearly sought out for groups where heads of departments network. If it’s to have internal authority to best do your job, like in compliance, will you be sitting on the executive leadership team and be taken seriously as the head of the function? If you want a higher salary, could you negotiate for being paid at the upper echelons of the band of the relevant position that also overlaps with the band of the next title up?
- Is this a slow-burning dealbreaker? Would you convince yourself that you can overlook the title and should take the role then feel resentful later that you don’t have a better title? Kemp’s advice when thinking on this is to, “Ensure that [the title] aligns with your personal brand and image you want to project.”
When doing the hiring
For the hiring managers among us, I urge you to be as flexible as reasonable on this one. Don’t gaslight by saying that titles don’t matter. Titles can open doors to rooms that can give us a seat at networking tables where we might otherwise not be invited to sit. They can make those of us who don’t look like traditional senior leaders be taken more seriously in the workplace.
It’s disingenuous to tell someone that titles don’t matter — because they do, both internally and externally. If titles didn’t matter, we’d be able to choose whichever one we wanted, any time we wanted. What’s helpful to focus on is whether holistic aspects of the role make it overall desirable, including whether you can negotiate to get something that works for you if the employer won’t budge on a lesser title and where there is, in some way, enough authority for you to be able to conduct your responsibilities properly. If not, perhaps your talent is better matched elsewhere.
