How to network? (job searching)

In My Humble Opinion
1

Ok… I recently got my MBA, and am working on a 2nd MS degree in IT and Management, and only have 3 credit hours to go to get it. So I’m in the market for a new job.

Conventional wisdom says that online ads/newspaper ads are just about useless, and that networking’s the way to go.

My problem is that my circle of friends is pretty well completely non-technical. The majority are architects or legal people, who don’t know anyone technical, and when they do, it’s the 18 year old PC guy/cable monkey at their office, which isn’t much help.

My school friends are unemployed like me, for the most part, and those that aren’t, generally don’t live around here (Dallas/Fort Worth).

The only lead I have is the alumni association for my undergrad college. My graduate school’s alumni association is pretty pathetic, and they don’t have any events.

Anyone have any idea on good networking ideas? I’m fresh out.

2

bump, please read forum descriptions before posting. Thank you.

Moved to IMHO.

-xash
General Questions Moderator

[aside]Are we celebrating Move to IMHO day today ?[/aside]

3

Hey, xash, I thought we weren’t supposed to bump threads. :dubious:

Oh. That kind of bump. Never mind.

Well, as far as networking is concerned, posting to the SDMB counts. Chances are there a couple dozen people who are experts in your field who, although not regular posters, would be able to suggest some good resources or leads on where to look for work.

This is probably a bit late to be telling you this if you haven’t done it, but this is also why a lot of the upper-level colleges stress the need for extra-curricular involvement and activities. If you’re active in your community, you know people outside of school who might be able to help you find work.

I, on the other hand, got my current job through a monster.com profile, so, YMMV.

4

I think there are two basic forms of networking. You could say the word is used equivocally, as the two forms have a lot in common, but also a lot not.

Hard-Core Networking

This is where you really do know a lot of good people based on years of experience. Or you’re like GWB, have a lot of rich relatives who know other rich, connected people who want to do things for you to get favors from your relatives. Etc. etc.

At any rate, there isn’t much you can do in the short term to build such a network. Over the long term, you’ll want to meet the right kind of people to build up connections, alliances, etc.: a real network, not the silver spoon type (like that of GWB).

Every-Which-Way-But-Loose Networking

This is what career counselors advice, and, yes, it really can work wonders. This is where you write up in Excel, etc., every damn person on the planet you have ever met along with their contact info. And you contact every person, tell them you’re job hunting, and do they have any information? THEN you ask them to give you the name of ANYbody who could POSSibly help you, too. It doesn’t matter how pathetic the contact is, you want them! Then you call those people up, and so on. Like a chain letter.

This means you’re going to have to call, fearlessly, a whole lot of strangers up on the phone. Most contacts won’t be worth anything. Many dead ends. But you’ll almost certainly come up with someone you have a spark with–who might really be able to help you, now or later. And you add that person to your “hard-core” network.

Good luck in your job search!

5

What Aeschines said. Good advice.

Consider networking to be your first job - apply yourself to it the way you would getting the job done.

Do research online

  • identify associations and networking groups that focus on your areas of interest
  • join message boards focused networking
  • attend job fairs

No lead is a bad lead. Get ready to deal with lots of rejection and opportunities that go nowhere. Buck up and get your family and friends to be supportive - you are going to need it. It is really really hard to put a happy face on and go out there and sell yourself.

Other keys:

  • Make sure your resume is in order and share it with EVERYBODY.
  • Have business cards made up with your contact info so you can hand them out - always have 10 or more on you.
  • Prepare “scripts” - 2 - 3 sentences you will say when calling someone on the phone, when meeting someone in person or as the intro to an email. Memorize these and practice them in the mirror. No, I am not kidding.
  • Make sure your appearence is in line with the type of job you are searching for. If you aren’t sure, do some research and find out - suits? Biz Casual? Shorts?

Good luck.

6

What WordMan said!

Yes, associations and groups. You can go to seminars and chat people up. Anything! It’s got to be balzout and shameless–but, of course, polished.

The biz-card idea is also good.

There are a million tricks, millions, but here’s a great one for getting people on the phone. 90% of the time the person you want will not answer.

Most people will go, “Is Mr. Miller in?” Pretty-please-can-I-talk-to-him? The admin now knows you’re just another person who wants something.

Instead go, “Uh, John please, this is Bill Turner.” You go ahead and state your name right there! Now it sounds as though both John and everyone else should know who you are. Your chance of getting connected is now much, much higher.

You gotta be crafty. Honest, kind–but crafty like a fox.

7

Some more ideas. (The ones so far are good.)

Ask your friends for the names of IT people where they work, and call them. Ask those people for other names.

Make sure everyone knows you’re looking. I got my present job because my neighbor knows an HR guy in the company, and the HR guy happened to know they were looking for someone just like me. Someone on a committee I was on was looking for a job and sent me his resume. Another manager walked in, asking for help in writing a job req. It turned out the guy who sent me his resume was a perfect match. I had the resume on my screen, so I turned it around and told the manager here’s your guy. He got hired.

Look for tne names of people in articles, in the newspaper, or who give talks at seminars, and call them. No one ever does this. i’m pretty visible in my specialty, and a few students send resumes, but hardly anyone calls. Most times I wouldn’t be able to help, but I have gotten a few people jobs. Sometimes I know other companies who are looking to.

Good luck!

8

Make yourself useful. Some of these strategies, while good in terms of increasing your odds through sheer numbers, could wind up wasting your time if you come across as just someone who needs a job.

As you join organizations, attend meetings, collect business cards, etc. find ways to be useful. As a techie there are lots of ways to be useful to non-techies, especially. Depending on what type of techie you are, you might wind up working in a non-technical firm. Or the non-techie may be friends with or married to the right technical contact for you.

Pass along helpful information, volunteer with non-profits, invite fellow job seekers along with you to networking events. These actions position you as a leader.

And once you get the job, don’t stop networking! Because the truth is the best networks are the ones in place before you need them!

9

I do computer networks, and on moving to Los Angeles, I joined the local Cisco User Group - an absolute grassroot organisation of nerds who’ll spend their free time meeting up to discuss Cisco networks. I volunteered to give a presentation (on a carefully selected subject) and actually got two job leads in a week. They didn’t pan out, but still…