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Recruiter Tips & Tricks: Social networks and networking
October 6, 2011
Introduction: Jeff Moore, lead engineering recruiter at Google, continues the
Recruiter Tips & Tricks
series with a post on one of the most important parts of your job search: networking!
OK, welcome back everyone. I hope the job search is going well and you’re having fun with it. Having a little fun will serve you well and help you keep things in perspective. Now you’ve got a great resume and you’ve started meeting with people to learn about roles. Awesome stuff, I love it. Now the hard work begins...networking. Networking is a must in a modern job search. More than ever you need to be building relationships and using those connections to get you in the door. Networking is hard, but you’ll find the more you do it the easier it gets. Here are a few tips I think will help:
Start slow
- Jumping in with both feet is tough. You’re new at this and it’s not comfortable. So, take a deep breath and start slow. Reach out to a former teacher or professor who you’ve always admired and ask them for thoughts/advice on your job search. Maybe it’s a former roommate or club member. Talk to someone and get comfortable with the idea of talking to people about your job search.
Set goals
- I’m a huge believer in setting goals, especially around something like networking. Setting goals will give you a sense of accomplishment and allow you to define your search by more than just “I’ve got a job!”. So, set a goal and work towards it. You’ll thank me for this tip later.
Organize
- Networking is about relationships....and helping each other accomplish things. In order to do this well, you need to be organized. This is where “social media” comes into play. On your Google+ account put people into special circles (my personal favorite is “recruiting peeps”) and organize them so you can target specific sets of people for your search. Same with your other social networking tools...use the notes and tagging features to put information into each contact so you know why you are connected to them. Start now and make those connections work for you.
Make it real
- Tangent alert....as we’ve gotten more connected with technology we’ve gotten LESS connected in real life. In order to network most effectively you need to meet people in person (can you imagine!). Put a face to the voice and build a real life connection with the person. How you do this doesn’t matter - coffee, lunch, dinner, drink, ice cream....whatever, just get out there and be a person!
Pay it forward
- Networking is not a one way street. Frankly, the best networking is when both parties can take something from the conversation. Additionally, you never know when someone can help you or when you can help them. So, if you meet someone and you can help them with something...do it! Pay it forward!! Make the world a better place with your networking...and it will come back around, I promise.
OK, that’s it this week. Networking is hard, but you’ll find the more you do it the easier it gets. I hope you find these tips helpful. I’d love to hear from you, so comment or ping me on my
Google+
if you have any success stories you’d like to share. Happy hunting, you’re doing fine.
Posted by Jeff Moore, Lead Engineering Recruiter
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