It can be easy to think senior executives never have to worry about being out of work, but that ignores some recent headlines. Joel Ewanick, once the marketing wunderkind of the auto world, recently lost his job as head of marketing for General Motors.

Ewanick was credited with putting Hyundai on the auto map, transforming it from just another import to a brand that today rivals Toyota as a major Asian nameplate. His accomplishments there got him snatched away by Nissan which then lost him to General Motors, which has been in desperate need of some brand revitalization.

Former GM executive Joel Ewanick. He should always be job hunting.

But Ewanick apparently moved too fast and too unconventionally at GM, so now he’s suddenly job hunting.

True, someone at that level will likely not be looking for long and certainly doesn’t face the economic uncertainty the average Joe or Jane faces when they get booted. But the point is that everyone, no matter what level, should always be job hunting, always be thinking of a plan B should the job you have suddenly disappear. Even the mighty can fall.
–John N. Frank