One of the most common mistakes I see in anyone who's trying to make a career switch or who’s going through the job search is to rely on online applications.

What matters (especially in the age of AI, when anyone can put together the perfect resume and cover letter) isn't the number of applications you click “Submit” on. It's the quality of the relationships you already have.

TODAY’S TAKEAWAY

Master the warm handoff.

CEOs don’t get their jobs by applying online. They end up at the top because someone they know (or who knew of them) pulled them in.

THE STORY

How this 2x CEO got her job (and what we can learn)

It’s 1984 and a young chemist named Rosalind Brewer is working as a research scientist at Kimberly-Clark, the company behind Huggies, Kleenex, and more. She has a stable job and a clear technical career ahead.

Fast forward four decades, and Brewer has become:

• CEO of Sam’s Club

• COO and Group President of Starbucks

• CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance (the parent company to Walgreens, Duane Reade, and more)

• Interim President of Spelman College

How did she do it?

She mastered what I call the “warm handoff.”

She started by doing a good job. Then, she used every opportunity she could to meet people who’d go on to remember her and keep her in mind.

Here’s how it happened:

• 1984 to 2006: While at Kimberly-Clark, Brewer met the company’s CEO, Tom Falk, who saw her good work and encouraged her to move from research to manufacturing and global operations. She took his advice and, in doing so, went from scientist to leader.
  

• 2006: Brewer ended up in the spreadsheet of an executive recruiter who was tracking executive-level moves. The resulting outreach led her from Kimberly-Clark to Walmart as President of its U.S. East business, where she caught the eye of then CEO Mike Duke, who became her mentor.
  

• 2012: When Walmart needed a new CEO for Sam’s Club (a Walmart division), Duke, now an active sponsor of Brewer’s, personally championed her to become CEO of Sam’s Club. This promotion also made Brewer the first woman and first Black person to lead a Walmart division.
  

• 2016: One day, Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks, came to visit Walmart’s headquarters. When then-CEO Doug McMillon (read my story on him here) couldn’t meet him due to a last-minute scheduling conflict, Brewer took McMillon’s place—and went on to leave a positive lasting impression on Schultz.
  

• 2017: Howard Schultz—who remembered how impressed he was with Brewer during his visit to Walmart the prior year—contacted Brewer to join the Starbucks Board of Directors and then asked her to step into the role of COO and Group President later that year.
  

• 2019: When Amazon was looking to fill a seat on its Board of Directors, it went looking for someone who had physical retail expertise to help it grow its Whole Foods and Amazon Go businesses. Who did they find? Brewer.
  

• 2021: When Walgreens Boots Alliance went looking for a new CEO, it needed someone who had “strong expertise in digital and technological transformation.” Who had this experience, thanks to Amazon and Starbucks? Brewer.
  

• 2025: Brewer had long served as Chair of the Board of Trustees at her alma mater, Spelman College. When the school needed a new President, whom did they tap? Brewer.

THE UNSPOKEN RULE

Master the “warm handoff”

Brewer's story demonstrates how everyone at the top gets their job in 1 of 3 ways:

1. By meeting someone higher up, impressing them, and then getting tapped by them when an opening comes up

2. By building a reputation as someone who's an expert in a certain area, and then picking up the recruiter call when it comes in

3. By getting a foot in the door as a volunteer, advisor, or board member

…and doing this consistently over decades (41 years in Brewer’s case).

So, the next time you find yourself wanting a certain role, consider whether they are even accepting applications through an online portal. 

You may be surprised: They may have already found someone through a warm connection!

See you next Tuesday for our next story and unspoken rule,

Gorick

WHAT I’M READING

Here are 3 articles that I found interesting recently (no paywalls, although it may depend on your cookies):

1. “The secret to happiness? Feeling loved” (University of Rochester)

2. “Risk-averse parents are fueling Britain’s ambition crisis, VCs say” (CNBC)

3. “Why winter in the US is crazy this year, in five charts” (MSN)

MORE OF MY WORK

Every newsletter is free and a fraction of my work. Here are 4 of my paid offerings that may interest you:

1. Keynote speaking​​: If your organization is looking for speakers for your internship program, new hire orientation, new student orientation, manager training, all-hands meetings, recruiting season, year-end performance evaluation season, or something else, let's chat!

2. How to Say It: Flashcards that teach you to know what to say in every high-stakes professional setting via hundreds of fill-in-the-blank scripts (just like the examples above). Free shipping on all orders over $40.

3. The Unspoken Rules​: My Wall Street Journal Bestseller that Arianna Huffington calls “a blueprint for anyone starting their career, entering a new role, or wanting to get unstuck.” Used by top companies and MBA programs.

4. Soft skills crash course: Hard skills get you hired, but a lack of soft skills gets you fired. Equip your interns and early career talent with the essential behaviors of high performers in just 3.5 hours.

Gorick Ng
[email protected]​
Harvard career advisor | WSJ bestselling author | Fortune 500 keynote speaker | First-gen

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STORY SOURCES

1. It’s 1984 and a young chemist named Rosalind Brewer

2. While at Kimberly-Clark, Brewer met the company’s CEO, Tom Falk

3. Brewer ended up in the spreadsheet of an executive recruiter

4. where she caught the eye of then CEO Mike Duke

5. personally championed her to become CEO of Sam’s Club

6. first woman and first Black person to lead a Walmart division.

7. due to a last-minute scheduling conflict

8. Howard Schultz contacted Brewer

9. asked her to step into the role of COO and Group President

10. help it grow its Whole Foods and Amazon Go businesses

11. “strong expertise in digital and technological transformation.”

12. When the school needed a new President

13. Rosalind Brewer in 2023 via Bloomberg