These days it is conventional wisdom that it is not what you know but who you know that matters when finding a job. I say it all the time. I wrote a book about networking with a structured job search, “The Job Search Marketing Plan“. But does it really work?
That ZAPPO you heard last week wasn’t a snow storm. It was NETWORKING MAGIC at work again!
Kim is a friend from church. She is a high energy bubbly HR leader with an expertise in training and development looking for a new opportunity. This isn’t her first job search. Kim saw a job opportunity posted online for a very large employer in our region. She put in the several hours required and submitted her application for the job. But she didn’t stop there.
Kim dove into my LinkedIn data pool and discovered that I am 1st connections with Tamara in HR at that very large company. Knowing Kim, she probably reached out to other people too. She sent me a note requesting an introduction to Tamara as part of her pursuit of that posted opportunity.
I refreshed my memory about Tamara by checking out Tamara’s LinkedIn profile then sent Tamara a note reminding her where and how we met and introducing her to Kim who is networking into that company about a particular job.
Tamara responded to us both that same day enthusiastically. She remembered hearing me speak last year at NOHRC, a large regional HR conference where we met. She copied in Laura, the HR person who knows about the opportunity Kim is pursuing. In this way, Tamara moved Kim down the line closer to her goal.
Laura responded enthusiastically to us all welcoming a conversation with Kim and a further introduction to the hiring manager.
I responded to Tamara with an invitation to coffee at the 2015 NOHRC conference coming up in March.
Smiles and (virtual) handshakes all around! It was magic.
This entire process took a matter of minutes over a two day period. It wasn’t hard.
Let’s summarize what happened in that short period of magic:
- Kim made two more connections and met some folks who can help her job search. She is now more than an application to her target company.
- Tamara and Laura met a new connection that might be new talent for their company. No guarantee but at least the possibility exists where it did not exist before through the application process.
- Tamara and I got reacquainted.
- I made a new connection with Laura.
Networking IS magic. THAT is how it is done!
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