Job Search Toolkit
Alumni - Job Search Toolkit - Connecting
Connecting
Once you have all of your Marketing Materials prepared, you are ready to approach the market. Technology has impacted and continues to evolve the way organizations source talent. Recruiters have embraced the widely available searchable databases of professionals (like LinkedIn) where they can pull candidates rather than push a job listing. Perhaps the most important impact of LinkedIn and other social networks is that hiring managers, themselves, now have easy access to their professional networks – allowing them to source candidates without the help of a recruiter.
Job seekers need to adjust to these developments to become "visible" and reach targeted companies and decision makers. On the following pages we provide information and resources to help you access them using the channels below, with Networking being the most important.
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Networking
Most job openings, especially at senior levels, are sourced through networking. Networking maximizes your exposure and helps you to gather information that can lead to job opportunities. Networking is about building supportive, symbiotic relationships. Only when you have built up trust and credibility with a contact can you begin to rely on that person for job leads or a direct referral. When you set up a networking conversation, have an agenda with clear goals, such as:
- Establish a relationship and build credibility
- Offer a clear message of what you are looking for and why. Your story!
- Collect information about openings or potential openings and how talent is sourced
- Get introductions to additional relevant contacts
- Set up an opportunity for continued dialogue
Pro tips:
- Write thank you notes and keep network partners up to date on your progress. They can keep assisting you if you stay visible and keep them informed.
- Keep a record of contacts, phone conversations, thoughts, interview debriefs etc. Networking isn't "linear" and there can be long gaps between interactions; these notes become invaluable for refreshing your memory.
Recommended reading:
- Make Your Contacts Count: Networking Know-How for Business and Career Success by Anne Barber and Lynne Waymon (2007)
- Wait, How Do I Write This Email? Game-Changing Templates for Networking and the Job Search by Danny Rubin (2015)
- View the ACS Networking for Job Search Presentation
- Darden and UVA Alumni Directories
- Executive Search
- Affinity Resources
Most job openings, especially at senior levels, are sourced through networking. Networking maximizes your exposure and helps you to gather information that can lead to job opportunities. Networking is about building supportive, symbiotic relationships. Only when you have built up trust and credibility with a contact can you begin to rely on that person for job leads or a direct referral. When you set up a networking conversation, have an agenda with clear goals, such as:
- Establish a relationship and build credibility
- Offer a clear message of what you are looking for and why. Your story!
- Collect information about openings or potential openings and how talent is sourced
- Get introductions to additional relevant contacts
- Set up an opportunity for continued dialogue
Pro tips:
- Write thank you notes and keep network partners up to date on your progress. They can keep assisting you if you stay visible and keep them informed.
- Keep a record of contacts, phone conversations, thoughts, interview debriefs etc. Networking isn't "linear" and there can be long gaps between interactions; these notes become invaluable for refreshing your memory.
Recommended reading:
- Make Your Contacts Count: Networking Know-How for Business and Career Success by Anne Barber and Lynne Waymon (2007)
- Wait, How Do I Write This Email? Game-Changing Templates for Networking and the Job Search by Danny Rubin (2015)
- View the ACS Networking for Job Search Presentation