Jodie Prieto-Rodriguez ⋅ Pittsburgh, PA Allegheny Health Network- Highmark Health ⋅ 21 years experience

Ciro:

There are many different ways to do an elevator pitch. I have found that using templates and tweaking them to your purpose helps. I believe that the pitch should contain the following:

1. Who you are
2. synopsis of your professional credentials
3. statement about the organization you're interested in and their work
4. Close on how you can add value to that organization

There are many ways to construct the pitch. I would recommend taking a template and using it in a "mad-libs" approach, e.g.,

“Hi, I’m X. I’ve spent the last X years learning and growing in my role as X , where I’ve developed and optimized X for X as a Team Lead. One of my proudest achievements was a X project that was recognized as the top X last year. I’ve been interested in moving X (leadership position) for quite a while, and love what your company does in X. Would you mind telling me about any X needs you may have on the team?

The above statement is fairly banal; however, it is a start and will change depending on what or who you are applying with. Points 1 and 4 should not change much. Points 2-3 should be tailored to the organization/profession. Point 4 in the above example is an open ended fact finding question. I suggest using those instead of solid closures, as the prospective employer has all the info they need and can move on to another prospective applicant. Let them decide if they want to contact your with a dangling question. The question should be asked while handing them either your card, resume, or CV. I recommend stapling your card to the resume or CV, it makes it stand out and easier for them to find your papers in a stack.

Tom Hodge ⋅ Chicago, IL HODGE GROUP LLC ⋅ 30 years experience

I had the same question about a year ago & did some online research. There's a lot of stuff that pops up, but here is one I liked: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/elevator-pitch.htm

I sat down with a pad of paper & wrote selling attributes of my company's strong points and then added phrases that related to potential customer needs.

As an example, one service I offer is bookkeeping through Quickbooks Online. My pitch is:

We offer accurate bookkeeping that is always at your fingertips so you can see your company's financial reports anytime you have a question or need an answer. You can enter your sales in real-time and upload your receipts. What coukd be easier?

If the person I'm talking to isnt tech savvy, you switch it to "Your accountant can access your company's financial reports...."

It's a good idea to tweek your pitch depending on the person you're talking to.

Alan Reese ⋅ Naperville, IL Reese Financial Services ⋅ 1 years experience

QUESTIONS the best elevator Q is to ask questions. Are you aware of someone who is looking for an ambitious person that already has their FINRA series 6 and 63 and 65? That would be my question. OR someone that is looking for 10 plus years supervising very large groups in a manufacturing environment. etc. Questions cause them to think and respond a might them become involved...…...Alan PFS, Senior Vice President. PURDUE

Gabriel Hoffman ⋅ Dayton, OH Northrop Grumman ⋅ 40 years experience

My motto is always lead with value and keep it short, my Elevator Speech:
"I collaborate across the enterprise to enhance engineering practice and development of technical staff. I work to apply Agile and Data principles to our work. Also oversee the formal TS Sector Technical Development programs. I wake up every day eager to intelligently apply Systems Thinking to further the development of the next generation of engineers, and rescue disadvantaged children around the world."