Luger, meanwhile, considers an opportunity he likes — as a financial analyst at a real estate investment trust — and has interviewed with the company's CFO, chief administrative officer, and executive vice president of operations, among others. Three weeks go by without an answer. Finally, he writes to the CFO (with the blessing of his recruiter) to reiterate his interest. Again, he gets no immediate answer. "One of the things these companies forget is that it's someone's livelihood," says Luger. "This isn't a little game. This is my life. This is my career."

So with the clock ticking on his severance, Luger pursues another position, this one with a San Diego–based subsidiary of Ledcor, a construction company headquartered in Canada. While he wasn't initially interested in the industry, he is intrigued by the chance to be the sole finance guru on a four-person team. Two weeks later, he has an offer to be a financial analyst. After negotiating a better title (senior business analyst), a bigger salary than the company's initial cap, and a reasonable start date (October 4), Luger takes the job. Among the many things that got him to yes, says Luger, is the company's flexibility. Working remotely is fully accepted, he says, and the people he interviewed with spoke freely about how they have engineered work to fit with their personal lives.

As for Scott Whitehurst, he backed out of talks to be CFO of Bausch & Lomb's $1 billion European division, and decided to aim for a corporate-CFO slot. An opportunity to interview for one with a San Francisco technology firm is waiting for him with the same recruiting company. The job could be "perfect," Whitehurst muses, but he's still reserving some enthusiasm. "If I get an offer and turn it down," he says, "I'll have to admit to myself that I'm just not ready to go back to work."

Alix Nyberg Stuart is senior writer at CFO.

The Finer Points

Finance may be a revolving door, but it still behooves job seekers to hone their search skills so that the door doesn't hit them from behind.

Take interviewing skills. Brushing up on them before the search starts is crucial, says Dennis Schroeder, executive director and CEO of The Center for Executive Performance. He says many clients, even the most senior ones, are initially unprepared to answer the two most basic questions: "Why are you leaving?" and "Tell me about yourself."

The right answers? When describing themselves, finance people should avoid "trying to sell their financial brilliance" and instead focus on their broader leadership and strategy skills, with finance as a bonus, says Schroeder. As for departure descriptions, "you need to tell the truth, but keep it short — one or two sentences — and move on," he says. Belaboring problems at a former employer will generally backfire.

The next step, of course, is getting the phone to ring. Schroeder sends his clients' résumés out to about 1,400 retained availability. Recruiters are generally amenable to this approach — with a few caveats. "If you're going to do a blanket mailing, don't make it look like it," says Lorraine Hack, a partner at Heidrick & Struggles. Address the recruiter by name, show some knowledge of his or her specialty, and keep it short, since "long shows desperation." Aiming at multiple recruiters within the same firm is generally taboo. E-mail is preferred, because it's easier to respond to. The magic words to ensure a callback? "Please let me know if I can help you on any other searches even if I'm not a candidate." Says Hack: "It's just natural that you'll keep someone in mind more if they've helped you."

The same holds true for networking with peers, says Robert Gold, a Schroeder client and recently appointed Insight Pharmaceuticals CFO. He says his biggest takeaway from past searches is that "a good networking call is not so much about what someone can do for me." Instead, he says, ask what you can do for them, and then add, "By the way, I'm in transition." — A.N.S.

Name:
Scott Whitehurst

Previous Jobs:
CFO, animal-health division, Novartis;
VP of finance, PC division, Hewlett-Packard

Reason for the Switch:
Tension between division and corporate bosses

Current Position:
Interviewing for jobs in diverse industries

Quote:
"I'm prepared to take an offer, but only if it's exactly the right company, in exactly the right place, doing exactly what I want to do."

Name:
Adam Luger

Previous Jobs:
Finance manager at Pfizer;
Accountant for San Diego Padres

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