The ExecRanks Reviews 131

I was a member for about 3 months - despite the glowing praise for my background by the person who helped set up my profile, there were not many relevant opportunities, and those whom I did apply to never responded (or I suspect reviewed the submissions at all). Waste of time/$

I used ExecRank (now called AdvisoryCloud) for 1 whole year. In that year, I received 5 total application requests, which are supposed to work off your skills tags on your profile, but 2 of them I had no related expertise in at all. I went on to apply to a total of 8 positions that fit my skill set and only ever heard back from one of them, which led to an interview. The interview went very well and the person stated they wanted to work with me, but then they completely flaked a few weeks later. Overall, a complete waste of time and money that I would not recommend anyone doing. Their business model is backwards, they should be charging the companies and vetting them better instead of charging the executives $200 a month for just a profile. The only reason I am giving 2 stars instead of 1 is because despite this whole thing being a wash, every representative I spoke to through email or over the phone was pleasant and helpful, so they have decent customer service at least.

Had 2 conversations with a sales rep this last week. Although very pleasant and congenial, she could offer no specifics regarding (a) the population/industry mix/location/stage/for profit vs. non-profit of hiring companies; (b) the number/geographic distribution/ seniority of the 11k+ subscribing members; (c) the attrition/renewal/success rates of existing subscribing members; and (d) ExecRank's model for incentivizing and evaluating its sales staff / account managers. It is very possible that, in isolated cases, their model works. But their lack of sales tools to inform and comfort the prospective "up front" paying director is very puzzling and provides no solid footing to make an informed decision. Hence, you are rolling the dice... It was interesting that the company's response was that it was reasonable to expect such metrics, but that they just did not have them to share. As reasonable as the business concept appears to be, it is a high risk proposition / charitable contribution with no reasonable path to a WIN-WIN.

I clicked on it through LinkedIn and I assumed they were associated given the very similar logo-type and colour. I was wrong. They are not associated at all and just promote through LinkedIn's platform. Beware!!!
I should have done more homework before signing up, but as other people are mentioning in their posts, they get you on the phone and push their way into charging your credit card, not telling you it's completely non-refundable if you are unhappy with the actual service. I thought they were a recruiting service, and I've never had to pay for one of those before (the company that hires you pays them a 'finder's fee').They have their 'specialists' to 'help' you develop your profile, but all it is is a bunch of stuff from your LinkedIn profile that you talk with them about over the phone. The only difference is, when you log into your profile, it's full of spelling mistakes and they just tell you that you can go in yourself and edit. Also, I had a specific industry in mind for directorship roles, and they swore up down and sideways that they had placed many candidates in roles in that industry. I get there, and there is not even one company listed. Also, rather than promoting you to director roles, you get messages about people wanting to apply for consulting roles with YOUR company... Just brutal. Their customer service got back to me fairly promptly when I complained, so that was a plus and they gave me a discount to stay on because I was 'an allstar candidate'... aka allstar sucker. Figured it'd be worth $95/month if I actually get placed. But we're 6 months later and not even one opportunity so I need to cut my losses. PLEASE DON'T SPEND YOUR MONEY with ExecRanks!!!! If you have a burning desire to get rid of cash, donate to a charity. At least you'll be some doing good for the community.

This is maybe the worst experience I ever made with a company. I was stupid enough to believe in what they are promising. They never followed their own process which they have sent at the beginning. They became active the day I have sent the quitting note and promised to do this and that for me and even reduce the fee if I stay. I have got another email from a so-called manager - when I answered him a few minutes later, I received an answer from somebody else, saying, he is not available.If you want to waste your money and work with clones-join The Execranks.
Most of the board position they have offered had been from companies which are looking for funding and offer equity (because they are most probably not able to pay you anything). The idea might be good- the company is a nightmare.

Subscription trap. They charge 200 for setup but all they give is about 6 lines of background in your profile. They should be ashamed. You also need to ask for cancellation 15 days in advance. Very unflexible and unreliable company

I would urge caution to anyone considering signing up. I was sent countless emails before I finally decided to talk with the company. The rep told me I'd be a great fit while clearly only relying on limited LinkedIn info. It didn't take long for the rep to start talking cost to me. This struck me as odd. I'm not accustomed to paying for headhunting services prior to being placed. I told the rep we could talk again in a few days when I had a chance to consider it. In that time, I did a bit of research which set off many more red flags. I emailed the rep asking for specifics about client turnover, what percent of clients get placed in any sort of position, a list of the companies that have actually hired through the site, etc. I made it clear that I wanted answers to those questions before we were scheduled to talk again. Instead, the rep called at the scheduled time and left a message, stumbling over the fact that she didn't have the details I asked for. There is zero chance that this company doesn't have detailed data on churn and placement. The fact that they won't provide it should be all anyone needs to know. This stinks to high heaven. Can some people find positions through this service? I'm sure a few have...it's a numbers game, but the odds appear to be horrible for customers. Furthermore, this is not the avenue most boards or executives would pursue in finding advisers or board members. This business strikes me as misleading and unethical at best. Caveat emptor!

This company delivers nothing - just takes your money. I seriously don't know how anyone works at this company. Who can believe in this business model? Moreover, it provides poor customer support when wishing to terminate.

A true money pit. Buyer beware.

There is no sustainable business model here.

Complete waste of money.
When I signed up it seemed like a good service. They carefully reviewed my resume, recommended online courses and assisted writing a bio as well as recommended opportunities. I was very active, applied for opportunities and then nothing... No rejections, no acceptances, no interviews, nothing at all.

After giving this several months, I decided to cancel, and here's where the real fun began. I called them up to cancel my subscription, and after clearly indicating that I wanted to cancel, they kept charging me.

Stay away!

Horrible horrible company. I had to spend 4 hours proving to them they did NOTHING they said they would. Just to get them to cancel the account. No chance they'd listen to the recordings of the sales person that lied up and down to me and didn't do ANYTHING they said they'd provide. Such a stressful horrible experience.

I just read their response to my review. Yes, they never said they wouldn't refund my money. WHY DOES THAT MATTER??? THEY WILL NOT GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK. it's been two months now. I paid them $1100 on September 24th. Supposedly I'm getting a refund. It is now November 24th. I have no refund. Lots and lots of crickets, lots and lots of lies, but no refund. Don't believe what was written in their review, and if you want to give $1100 to a company that promises to work for you, and other than making you wait, does NOTHING they say, and won't give you your money back, you have come to the right company!!!

ExecRanks has been one of a few bright spots in our start-up.

Yes In my opinion, this is a classic bait and switch operation. They sell you on how you can benefit from their service (while you're paying for it), but then later tell you it will take some time (up to a year) to start getting paid. You are paying them the whole time though.

Then they start sending you people to advise you (when it was supposed to be the other way around). You are supposed to pay these individuals who have also been duped.

Should have done my homework before signing up. It is a multi-level marketing scheme. "Start Applying to 1000s of Open Advisory & Board Seats" is what they claim. "Start paying us to send you advisers" is what they should say.

I had said that my firm would not be interested in hiring advisors, but that's all I got from them. When I asked for a refund, they said it would not be possible. Don't know why it wouldn't be possible. Just issue a credit. They’re slick and subtle in the way they sell this “service” and know that people will ask for their money back.

Execrank was able to get me a board position within 2 months of joining. It's a great platform to network, talk to other execs in the field, as well as target certain board seats.

Promises promises...
Nothing doing!

I too got the barrage of emails touting their power of Advisory and Board placements, only to quickly sniff out a one-sided deal, where you pay up front for - from what I've seen all over the internet - not much in return.

My suggestion to them was to offer an alternative model where where they take a cut of each placement, vs asking for payment up front. That way, both sides have skin in the game.

Great Customer Service

The rest is hot air. Site doesn't work. Education offered is empty and meaningless. >11,000 paying Advisors chasing the same unpaid startup advisory opportunities. Appointments with potential advisors disappear.

Nothing here but a good idea.

The ExecRanks have provided excellent resources for The Zoological Lighting Institute. Even though we are a Nonprofit and slightly outside of the typical scope of the company, service to us has been top notch and we are finding a host of executives that will enable us to succeed in our unique mission to support science through the arts for animal welfare and wildlife conservation. Most importantly, the team is professional, pro active and have worked hard for our success.

Unfortunately most of the opportunities posted are for advisory boards. Clients are very slow to respond (either positively or not) - I still have applications from mid April.

Website can be slow.

In general it feels a little expensive.

Excellent-- no reservations, I would recommend this company to anyone