Job Search Hot Tip #5: Evaluate Your Network

One of the struggles facing job search candidates is that their personal network of folks who can refer opportunities is terrible. Most professionals and executives wait until they need a job to think about their personal network. The process of building your network so that great opportunities continually drop through the funnel to you takes about 4-6 months of full time work if your network is inadequate.

Why is an effective network so important to conducting an effective job search? Most of the best jobs are filled through networking and referrals – probably at least 80 percent. Very few outstanding jobs are filled through recruiters and advertising. Therefore, if the best jobs are filled through networking and referrals – doesn’t it make sense to have a great network that can surface these opportunities for you?

Your network is what you should be working on when you don’t need it. What would working on your network encompass – a few minutes a day calling someone in your network to say hello and stay in touch, sending a link to an article they might enjoy, updating your LinkedIn connections by adding important network members, and scheduling a quick coffee on the way to work.

Let’s examine your network. Most professionals and executives use LinkedIn to keep track of their 1st degree connections to people in their network.

Key point about using LinkedIn as a networking strategy to uncover job opportunities. You have to work your network! Just being connected to people is worthless. What does working your network mean? It means spending 15 minutes a day sharing and commenting on articles other members of your network have posted, posting your own original content, posting articles with a sentence or two of insight, answering and posing questions in LinkedIn Groups, and searching for additional connections-relationships for each of the four groups listed below.

I recommend 4 groups on LinkedIn as part of an effective networking strategy:

• Group 1: People who could be your boss – previous bosses, those at target companies, well-connected potential bosses on LinkedIn in your segment or industry.
• Group 2: Peers – people holding the same job as you in target companies or industry segments. Many of them hear about opportunities, but are not interested, and would be willing to pass the lead on to you.
• Group 3: Reverse Engineered – who are those people who can introduce you to the hiring manager or future boss. For example, CPAs might know CFOs you would like to engage since you’re looing for a Controller position. Perhaps, benefit consultants would know HR Directors if you’re seeking an HR Generalist or Manager role.
• Group 4: Recruiters – especially those recruiters that specifically conduct searches for candidates in your target companies, job level, and are talking to the hiring managers to whom you would also like to be introduced.

Here are some useful questions to rate yourself 1-5 (5 being the strongest):

• What’s the size of your network in each of these groups (150-200 in each of the first 3 groups is probably an average beginning)?
• What is the total count of 1st degree connections on LinkedIn in each group?
• Out of your 1st degree connections, what percentage would return your call or email/LinkedIn message?
• What percentage of your 1st degree connections in each group did you have a live interaction in the last month (email or LinkedIn exchange, phone call, or meeting)?

Anything less than a 4 rating to each question should highlight a networking issue/problem, and lead to specific tactics to improve.