Dickon,
G-SPOTs question at the end is the key. Why do you wish to get into corporate? It is very different to the airlines and working for a PT company as a line pilot will never bring the financial rewards.
Have a look at the thread below and my post of 5th Oct 03.
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthr...hreadid=103809[/URL]
I personally feel it is the person who I look at when employing, not their qualifications provided they meet the minimums. It is true that most low hour pilots do not posses any great degree of handling skill purely because of their experience.
I also do not take any notice of instructor ratings as most FIs never progress beyond PPL level because that is all they ever see and most of it is just watching someone else fly.
The best investment, IMHO, is an advanced flying course of some sort which will build handling skill and awareness. Then do a type rating. Low hours does not really matter and orders for new Biz jets are going in faster than the manufactures can fill out the sales slips at the moment. There will be plenty of work next year and operators will be looking for people with a rating so they do not have to fund one or carry the risk of failure.