Real Networking
Networking is one of the most overused words in the career management/career search arenas and it is one of the least understood.
The main reason networking is misunderstood, is that there are various stages from making your first connection up to the point that someone is truly part of your personal/professional network. Until that contact is part of your personal/professional network, they really only are contacts that need to be developed.
A true member of your network is someone who knows you personally and professionally well enough that they are willing to stake their reputation on going to bat for you and visa versa. Meeting someone at a cocktail party and expecting to impose upon them next week to introduce you to XYZ Company, isn’t likely going to happen. If it does, your introduction will be tepid at best. Think about it. How would you react to meeting someone who immediately wants you to utilize your network to connect with them when you don’t really know who they are and how your association with them will reflect upon you?
There is nothing wrong with finding a contact name at XYZ Company from someone you met at a cocktail party, but don’t impose on them to make an introduction for you. You then can make the introduction yourself. If the contact you make with the person with XYZ Company is successful, go back to the person you met at the cocktail party and tell them it was and thank them for the information and offer to return the favor. This begins the process of turning that contact into a member of your network.
One of my network contacts and I were discussing this very thing the other day. He mentioned that he received a call from someone he hasn’t heard from in ten years. This person said something along the lines of, “Hey John, glad I got a hold of you. I’m now looking for a CFO position and I thought you may know of some openings.” While this person was not very smooth at making the reconnection, that wasn’t the biggest problem John had with the call. He doesn’t know what has been going on with the person for a decade now. Why should John suddenly drop everything and spend time redeveloping this connection just because this guy called looking for a favor?
The lesson from this story is two fold. First, don’t let your network connections grow cold. Scroll through your contact manager monthly and keep in touch with people. Call them, invite them over, take them to lunch, or send them a snail mail of an article you read you thought they would enjoy.
The second lesson is always being on the look out for something you can do for someone else first. It is much better to be viewed as someone who is a giver rather than someone who is a taker.
Real networks are earned relationships established using the norm of reciprocity. The norm of reciprocity is an interesting little study in psychology. It refers to the strong need many people feel to return a favor in order to discharge a debt. A person who is networking in the truest sense, then, is always on the lookout for opportunities to do favors for others that count as credits they feel obliged to pay back as part of the networking process. In this sense, I guess Don Vito Corleone was the ultimate networker.
Brian Tracy, the noted motivational speaker and author, has a more honorable view than Mr. Corleone: “Successful people are always looking for opportunities to help others,” he said. “Unsuccessful people are always asking, ‘What’s in it for me?’”
Another key to networking is to avoid becoming trapped inside a closed loop. I’m referring here to the importance of branching out to people beyond your industry or function. Unless you do, you’ll have only a narrow circle to call upon when needed. By branching out and developing a broader network, you’ll have access not only to the contacts you made directly, but also to their contacts.
Your external network can be derived from friends, social contacts, people you’ve met on the golf course, whatever. Everyone you meet is a potential network contact – as long as you remember the importance of looking out to find ways to help them.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics did an analysis as to how people found their current jobs. The BLS results showed that 20% of all people found their job through a friend, relative, school/alumni contact or other personal connections. For those earning over six figures, the results were very different. 72% of six figure earners said they landed their positions through someone they knew.
This has led to a flurry of articles and books all extolling the virtues of networking as THE way to land a six figure position. But, as a good manager, you know that understanding the meaning and context behind the numbers is just as important as knowing the actual number itself.
While the 72% number is not wrong, I believe it is certainly misleading to promote this number as the only or the best way to find an executive level position. While my survey of executives is qualitative and not nearly at the level of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, here is what I found.
Statistically speaking, if you are actively engaged in a job search, networking will only yield approximately a 30% success rate, according to detailed research conducted by Mark Hovind, founder of JobBait.com. This is because of the time frame we are dealing with, an active job search means you are looking for a job right now. The probability of you having someone in your network who knows of a six figure position that is open right now that is a fit for you is statistically low.
Now if you are in a passive job search mode, meaning that when you uncover an opportunity you’ll look into it, but you don’t need a job right now, then 72% number is a very real.
The point you have to keep in mind is that how well networking will pay off for you is dependent on your time frame (six months or less vs greater than 6 months) and how well you develop your personal/professional network.
Just collecting business cards and calling as many people as possible will likely not yield the results some pundits espouse if you are not practicing real networking. You have to look at networking as a long-term strategy rather than as a short-term skill.
If you are a novice to networking, don’t let this information get you down! It is better that you know the facts and developed a balanced job search strategy than frustrate yourself and sub-optimize your six figure job search. I also recommend that you start to develop your network NOW! Don’t confuse contacts as members of your network. Make as many contacts as possible, it may lead to job leads you haven’t heard of. And also develop those contacts into members of your personal/professional network. Networking is an ongoing activity that will serve you throughout your career, not just during your current job search.
A friend, mentor and occasional supplier to me, Michael Allen of Allen Search (a retained executive recruiter) pushed me ten years ago to start real networking. Thanks Michael! The efforts have been paying dividends. Not just in career management but in everything from finding a great doctor to getting media outlets to return my call.
If you are looking for a job right now, what is the statistically fastest way to find a quality job? Direct mail! It has an 85% success rate, according to JobBait.com.
