Yesterday a man who works for a company I would really like to work for came in to my current place of employment. He mentioned where he worked, I mentioned that I had applied there recently, and we talked a bit about the field. My job is ending any day now, so I’m trying to line up a new one. He mentioned his division was hiring in a couple weeks. I mentioned that I have relevent experience. He gave me his name and work number.
So what do I do now? I was thinking of finding an address for him, sending in a resume, and then calling him to follow up? Does that sound right? What kind of timeline is appropriate in these situation?
I would call him first. Is he the actual person doing the hiring or does he just work for the division? Call him, he obviously thinks this if ok if he gave you his work number, and say this is even, we met at such and such time and place and I am following up to see if your company is taking resumes at this time? If he is friendly ask him what they are looking for and see if he can give you any tips or advice.
There is no harm in calling him and asking him what your next step should be, he gave you his info so that you could. If I gave out this info to someone I would expect that they would call me in the next few days.
Call the guy today if you have not already done so.
“Hi [Mr Guy] this is even sven, we met [yesterday/last week/whatever] at [even sven’s company].”
pause to see if he remembers you.
“Anyway, I was calling to follow up on our conversation about your company. I don’t want to take up too much of your time but I could really use your advice.”
pause to see what he says.
“Well, I’ve heard great things about your company and I’d really like to find out more about opportunities there. Can you suggest who I might talk with to find out more about it?”
The point is subtle but important: you are asking this guy for advice NOT pestering him for a job.
Now, if you get voicemail, what do you do. Some people will argue that you should never leave a voicemail message. I go the opposite way. I say to say that stuff in a voicemail. When you leave your number, speak VERY SLOWLY, and REPEAT your number. Everyone says their number way too fast when they leave a message.
Just treat your relationship as a friendship now. Give him a call in a few days like you would any friend. Show you are genuinely interested in a position his company has open. Ask him what you need to do next to get an interview, etc, etc.
Call right away. The longer you wait, the less likely he is to remember you.
The most important thing to find out is if he is the hiring manager. If he is, ask him about jobs he has open, qualifications, and tell him you’d like to send him your resume.
If he’s not the hiring manager, ask him for the name of that person. Contact that person, tell them you heard from Mr. X (mention him by name) that there is an open role that you’d be perfect for. Then ask him for details of what he’s looking for. That’s important, because if you sell yourself to him based on Mr. X’s job description, you may be missing what the real job description is. So get that first. Then tell the hiring manager why you’re great for the job and ask if you can send a resume in.
It’s important to remember is that you aren’t imposing. If you have what they’re looking for, they’ll love to talk to you. Of course, don’t be too aggressive or annoying.
I agree call, right away, and ask if there are any opportunities. Often people feel funny about soliciting too boldly. Don’t worry too much if he is the hiring manager, the company might have bonuses for people who bring in resumes. Hiring managers are thrilled when someone shows a good resume, I know this from experience!
Do it, don’t be shy, and good luck. Remember that if you are right for the job you both benefit.