“Even in a digital age, word of mouth is the best way to find a job,” says Businessweek's Chris Farrell in the June 18 issue. That's still true for recent grads. I’ve been thinking for some time that I was wrong-headedly beating a dead horse on the issue of face-to-face networking. Especially with the all-present digital networking buzz. Turns out, says the research, I wasn’t off the mark.
The online networks are trying to replicate the word-of-mouth, face-to-face networking. But with limited success. A large body of research reveals that 50% or more of all new jobs are gotten through informal channels such as family or friends. And that’s still true today. Indeed, even Charles Purdy, the senior editor at Monster Worldwide, reinforces the fact that “Hiring has always been based on reputation and who you know.”
Social networking tools, says Chris Farrell, allow people to build up a network. Ummmm. Not quite. What Farrell and many others fail to emphasize is that the ultimate key to success is a high quality network. The potential for a high quality network built solely on the web is seriously limited.
Really effective networks provide information about jobs, work, organizational culture and useful company contacts. McKinsey’s James Manyika says that for recent grads, a quality informational network is difficult to come by. And as Wharton’s Peter Capelli has emphasized, employers control everything about the process. “They define the job, they create the requirements for the job, then they decide how the word gets out to people, recruiting-wise. They set the rate of pay, which helps determine how the attractive the job is, and then they handle the selection part where they look at the applicants and sort them out.” That makes for very poor odds unless you’ve got an internal company contact or just happen to be the purple squirrel a company is looking for.
On top of all that, the recent study by Capelli emphasizes that the hiring software really sucks. And further, companies tend to be looking for someone who has the exact experience they’re looking for—the so-called purple squirrel. That’s a very unique person. This means that you’re going to have to figure out how to get around the hiring software. So the best advice is to see whether you can get to a real person where you can make the case about why you’re the employee they’re looking for. Of course, once again, you need that quality contact or two.
Who you know: the “quality contact”
One route to the quality contact is through internships. It’s new and even tough for students to be thinking about internships early in their college career, but using summers for those internships is one route to quality contacts. Strategic thinking about an internship is a must. If at all possible, it’s important to intern at medium and larger firms with people in the know. Make certain you do your best and get to know the knowledgeable folk.
The second route is often overlooked: temp jobs. Temporary grunt jobs at middle-sized or major corporations can help with your finances, but also provide contacts who can recommend you based on your observed performance. Temp firms also provide a great deal of free training, what other companies are less willing to do. More and more, people who’ve been out of work for a long period of time are finding that temp jobs can offer a lot more than a few bucks: training and contacts.
The third route to quality contact is through volunteer work with strategic non-profits. Non-profits are always looking for free helpers. Non-profits inevitably have a few people in the know in the work community. They’re good for contacts—if you’ve performed well for the firm.
My little network secret
Few seem to be aware that the best networked folk are non-profit fundraisers. If a fundraiser has been in the business for a few years, she or he knows everybody of substance. "They know somebody who knows somebody." But you’ll probably need a good contact to get to that fundraiser. They’re going to be very cautious about recommending someone.
Networking rule number one
Networking is all about giving, not getting. So before you start making those contacts, figure out what you can bring to that person. That’ll require some creative thinking and the insights of experienced folk. But you’re not going to get very much help unless you’ve got something to give. Networks are like banks: You can’t withdraw unless you’ve made some deposits.
But keep this on the front lobe: It's not what you know, but who you know.
Flickr photo: malbordesign