Why Networking is Essential for Today’s Job Hunting

Why Networking is Essential for Today’s Job Hunting

Are you are looking for a new job? Whether you are out of work or looking to change careers, it is critical that you learn the art of networking. So many people, especially those around age “40 something or higher”, have no thought what networking is all about. Job hunting today is so much different than it was 5, 10 or 15 years ago. Those of us of working age remember what it was like succor in the 1990′s during the “Dotcom” era when jobs were almost around every corner, especially here in California and the Silicon Valley area. Those days are long gone and now for each job opening there are hundreds or sometimes thousands of applicants per position. What about on the employer’s side? How do they use networking for their advantage? . My article will discuss the importance of networking (both online and in person), professional networking Vs social networking, details of some of the best online sites for professional networking, and how do employer’s utilize professional and sometimes social networking

Why is professional networking so important?

In a 2009 SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) poll, it was said that 67% of the job seekers received a job offer due to a referral from family or friends and 56% received an offer from a colleague referral. Today it is all about who you know in order to come by a job. This makes it really tough to compete in the labor market and not all of us necessarily know people who can get us a job; this is especially true if their workplace is downsizing Vs hiring.

Professional Networking Vs Social Networking

Professional networking is more for “business to business” relationships or in a job seeker’s case “candidate to business” relationship. In order to be successful in business, you need to have contacts and the same goes for the professional job seeker. Contacts are your gateway to success in the job market and can also allow you to find out about jobs that are not being advertised elsewhere. Many companies are now utilizing the professional networking sites, and even sometimes the social sites to advertise their job openings. This is a great way for the companies to save money in advertising and to reach a Huge online job seeker market.

Some great examples on how to use the professional networking sites are listed below:

1. *To hook up with old colleagues who may be a great resource for a job opening or for future notice of openings.

2. * To find jobs posted that may not be available on other job searches

3. *To showcase your professional profile and be able to upload your resume and elaborate on your skills so companies can recruit you

4. * To have friends or co-workers upload a recommendation on why you would be a immense candidate.

5. *To get boom contacts to those who will be hiring

6. *To ask those contacts who work for a particular company to offer advice or inside information on the hiring process of a company.

I have a stout example of the one I listed on #6. Just last week I was contacted for an interview for a position I really want at Heald College. The interview was said to be a “group interview”. I have done many panel interviews where 3-4 people are all interviewing me at the same time, but never an proper “group interview”. When you look it up, there are a couple different interpretations of what to expect. I looked up Heald on Linkedin (the most common professional networking site) to catch a contact person who might be able to answer my question. I was able to directly send that person an email and ask her what I might expect. She was not certain if the space who will be interviewing me would do things the same way, but she was able to tell me exactly how hers went. She also gave me suggestions on a few questions that I should be prepared to reply. Though the interview was a puny different than hers, she was correct on the questions I should be prepared for. Fair having some knowledge of what to question can really give you the advantage over some of the other job candidates.

To use social networking sites for a serious job hunter, I would not recommend it as your only source. It is fine to contact friends via Facebook or Myspace to ask if they have any openings at their workplace, but you will be leaving out some very important possible contacts if you limit yourself.

One more tip. Remember to be professional! That is why they are called professional networking sites and are to be faded for business only. When you email others, do not talk with them like they are your best friend from high school, even if that person really is. Spend well-liked sense and you need to come off as being a serious job candidate looking for a career.

Professional Networking Websites

The top site which I would highly recommend is Linkedin. Linkedin is free to use for most of its services and to be able to send what they call “in mail”, you need to upgrade to the paid package. Many times I have been able to contact and send email without a problem, but some of contacts will only allow “in Mail” in order to send direct emails to them. With Linkedin you can search for jobs (which will also list contacts you may have for that company), search for specific people, companies and join various groups. I would recommend that you utilize all of its services for the best impact. Joining specific groups to your line of work, is a great way to ask those “in the business” specific questions relating to getting your foot in the door or even to critique your resume.

Another site which looks good is called Xing. This is a global networking site which is similar to Linkedin where you can search for people, companies, and jobs and join various groups of interest. Your profile can also be as detailed as your want and can also be searchable by other search engines. This site also offers even more features for those who are premium members, but you can access many great features as a free member.

The last site which I checked out is called Spoke. They too are similar to the above sites, where you would area up our profile a profile and be able to search for people, companies, jobs and more. You are allowed up to 3 trial “emails” with their free membership and accept even more features if you upgrade. This site does not seem to have as many features as Linkedin or Xing nor the ability to join specific interest groups.

Out of the three listed above, I would still tend to make Linked in my number 1 site. They seem to offer more for their free membership as far as being able to contact others and Xing also looks to be a worthwhile one to join, especially for those seeking global contacts.

Professional Networking (in person)

You do not want to limit yourself to only signing up with online networking sites. There is still no replacement for making yourself visible to the outside world and let them know you are a serious job seeker. I would recommend that you attend any local career fairs you are able t attend and build yourself seen. Career fairs allow you to narrate with those who are directly hiring, personally hand them your resume and sometimes you can net “on-the-spot” interviews. This way is still one of the best ways to network. Right away companies will regain a feel for you as a potential employee, and you are able to secure a better idea of what companies you may or may not wish to work for. To find local career fairs in your plot, visit the National Career Fairs website. Another option would be to call the career services department at your local college, university or call your Employment Development Department. Some other options for this information would be to visit career websites such as: Best-Career-Site, Indeed, CareerBuilder, or Monster.

How Do Employers Consume Professional and Social Networking Sites to Their Advantage?

These days companies are looking for ways they can cut costs and an easy method to do this is with their advertising costs for recruitment. Professional networking sites are the ideal place to reach a mammoth audience of serious and professional candidates for a minimal cost. Not only can the companies post jobs, they can also search the candidates’ profiles and seek out specific qualities they are looking for. Some employer’s consume the social networking sites as well to reach those that might be younger crowd or has specific traits they may be looking to attract.

How do the employer’s use the social networking sites against you? This is what I cannot stress enough; be extremely careful on what you post on your social sites which might be deemed as very unprofessional or worse yet, completely unacceptable behavior to an organization. This will hurt you for a very long time and make it difficult to earn a great job because of your actions. Don’t post pictures of yourself falling down drunk at a party, running around half naked, or trashing other people (your boss, friends, co-workers), etc. This will get back to the employer, whether you are job hunting or already have a job; it can have a large negative conclude either procedure.

Here are a few eye-opening statistics (SHRM Poll 2009):

–25% use social networking sites to do background research on candidates

–36% agree that social area profiles will supply information on whether they feel the person will be a good “fit” for the company

–If a job candidate’s social networking site or tweets show unprofessional behavior, 41% said they would be a lot less likely to hire that person and 45% said they would be somewhat less likely.

Pick my advice and beget sure you watch what you post. Your next great job opportunity might be totally messed up just from one night of fun. It is stunning to have some fun in your “off” time, but be shiny about it and don’t post it on your Facebook or MySpace.

Hopefully you now have a better idea about the good, bad and ugly of networking and how you need to use it to your advantage to get your next stout job. Networking is essential if you want to compete in the labor market and the more contacts you have the better you are. Also, as I mentioned, don’t forget about networking in person and go to any job fairs you are able to in your dwelling and always act and dress professionally when you do so.