Although the internet seems to be getting all the attention from fearful or laid-off workers, this is the time to take charge of your network building. And that's true whether you're secure in a job or about to get the axe.
I've often suggested that networking is the process that every business person believes in, but practically no one acts on. Now comes a brief article by Phyllis Korkki in the NYTimes making the same argument, even more directly. Do you have to do networking to find a job? she asks. Unfortunately, she responds, the answer is an unqualified yes. I would hope that the business public will begin to recognize that our economy is a highly networked economy And jobs go to those who have a broad network of "influentials."
A small network of friends simply won't do the trick. Birds of a feather flock together, and the fact is that feathered friends know the same people. That won't provide you with much in the way of intelligence opportunities. What you want are a large number of networks--not merely a single network. All you need to know is the broker in each network--and that person will have entre to his or her set of networks.
The rule for finding jobs is that opportunities are usually found through a friend of a friend of a friend--thrice removed. In a tough market it will probably take more than that. But that's why distant networks with a contact broker are so important.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't use the internet, but I certainly wouldn't rely on it. I have colleagues whose networks were so extensive that when they were let go, they had another job before their time ran out on the current job.
The most knowledgeable person on networking is Ronald Burt at the University of Chicago. But Keith Ferrazzi has an excellent popular book--NEVER EAT ALONE. My own experience helping people build networks is that the language of conversation is missing--so they don't know how to talk about the issue with possible brokers. In the near future, I'll put up some language on my white pages--so watch for it.
