How to Develop Opportunities Through Networking

Finding the Hidden Job Market

Experience has shown that informal networking is a very rich source of job leads and information about unpublished job opportunities. Successful networking requires that you have as many contacts as possible hear your story, so they realize you are in the job market.

Sources of Possible Contacts

To begin developing your network, secure names of specific individuals. These names can be obtained through several means:

Professors, friends, relatives, and former employers- or any professionals these people recommend.
Members of professional associations.
People in the information business - resource center directors or librarians.
Human Resource directors, public relations officials or public information specialists.
Community service agencies or area chambers of commerce.
Alumni contacts-can be accessed through an appointment with a career consultant.

Once you have identified people with whom you wish to speak, you can now plan to interview them. This is a powerful tool known as informational interviewing. Your objective during an informational interview is to gather career information from professionals in your field(s) of interest.

How to Contact People in Your Network

A. By Phone
When calling to schedule an appointment, three points should be covered:

Offer a personal introduction.
Identify your purpose for seeking an appointment.
Arrange a mutually convenient time.

Tips:

Write an outline or script of what you are going to say on the phone. This will decrease your anxiety and ensure that you will obtain all the necessary information. Additionally, you will be perceived as organized and professional.

If you are having problems getting " past the secretary," call before 9:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. Chances are, the individual you are trying to reach may be answering his/her own telephone.

If you are calling as the result of a referral, state that person's name early in the conversation.

Indicate you need only 20 to 30 minutes of the person's time. (Make sure you adhere to this timetable.)

Express the need for a personal interview as opposed to a telephone conversation.

B. By Letter
As with phoning for an interview, a letter requesting an appointment should include:

Personal introduction.
Purpose for seeking appointment.

Tips:

Type all letters in business format and double check for good grammar and spelling.

Always indicate in the concluding paragraph that you will be calling on a specific date (usually one week after you mail the letter) to arrange for a convenient appointment time. (Make sure you adhere to this timetable.)

Maintain an organized file of all letters.

Tips for the Experienced Professional

Expand your basic network to include individuals you have known and interacted with over the past five, ten, or twenty years.

Make a list of at least 100 people who might be helpful to you in your job search.

Include on your list friends and relatives, past and present neighbors, former classmates, past and present colleagues, previous employers, members of professional associations, and social acquaintances.

Since people in your network also have networks, try to link your network with theirs.

Continue to create new contacts for your network by trying the " cold turkey " approach (i.e., the phone book).

Visit My Monster, or learn more about conducting your entry-level job search on MonsterTRAK.

Return to MonsterTRAK Career Advice Archives

The purpose of this article is to both provide information and facilitate general dialogue about various employment-related topics. No legal advice is being given and no attorney-client relationship created. Please see the disclaimer for further limitations and conditions.