News from the Trenches: the power of your network

The Power of Your Network

I lost my role due to a reorganization during the holidays. I loved the company I had been working for, loved my role and my team, and loved our clients. Unfortunately, a decision was made by the company that impacted a large group of people, including me. I found myself in a position where I involuntarily had to find my next career adventure. It was a real bummer. The time of year didn't help.?The timing coincided with 100,000+ tech layoffs.??And being over age 50 and highly compensated added to the complexity.?

The good news is that the company I left treated me fairly and gave me a decent separation package. I knew it would take a while to find my next role and was fortunate to get a package that bought me some time.??

Before beginning my search, I had to think hard about what I wanted to do next.?I’ve done lots of different things throughout my career.??Which experiences and competencies did I want to lean in on??What types of companies did?I want to work for??How would I answer the question:??What kind of role are you looking for??I spent a few days doing this.??I asked a few friends and close former colleagues for input. I put together a draft statement of purpose, knowing that it would evolve over the next few months as I explored potential opportunities.

After a bit of soul searching, and with my draft purpose in hand, I updated my resume and my LinkedIn profile and put together a networking one pager using Darcy's template.?This helped me edit my story and crystalize where I wanted to focus my search.??It also made it easier to talk to people about what happened to my last role and what I wanted to do next.??It gave me a foundational script that I could adapt and edit for any networking conversation and helped me put my best foot forward.

I also put together a list of people and companies to pursue in my search.?In terms of people, I started with the contacts on my phone.?If the person was on my phone, I figured we had a close enough connection at some point that I could contact them now via LinkedIn, text, or email.??I had contacts that were recent, and some that I haven't talked to in 10 or 15 years.??If they were in my phone, it seemed to me there was little risk of reaching out.??

As for companies, I made a list of companies I admired in my industry.??Who was doing great work???Who had great client case studies at industry conferences and in the industry news???The good news is that I had one or more contacts in most of them already in my network.??I also included the companies where my best former colleagues now worked, some of which were new to me.??I used LinkedIn extensively to research and identify my foot-in-the-door contacts for companies where I did not have a current connection.??If you’ve done a good job throughout your career building your network on LinkedIn, this will be the time when that pays off.??????

I built a spreadsheet to keep track of all the people and companies I planned to contact, the dates of my outreach and conversations, what happened when we spoke, and my next steps.??Then I started working my list.??If it was a more recent contact, I texted them.??If it was an older contact, I messaged them on LinkedIn.??I’m not going to sugarcoat it, reaching out to people you haven’t talked to in a while to tell them you lost your job and are looking for a new one is tough.??This is where you need to try to be as brave as possible.??What’s the worse thing that can happen???They don’t respond???The best thing that can happen???They connect you with someone looking for a person just like you for their team.??

My approach was simple.??I generally started with something like this:?

“Due to a recent restructuring at my former company, I'm looking for my next career adventure.??I’m reaching out to you to reconnect and maybe brainstorm a bit.??Please let me know if you have a few minutes to chat over the next week or so.??I'd love to hear what you are up to these days and pick your brain a bit regarding my search.”??

This is my voice.??Yours may be different.??Your outreach should be an authentic reflection of you, your voice, your brand, and how you present yourself to the business world. I modified my outreach based on my relationship with the person, but this is the kind of message I sent.??In my opinion, this initial outreach should be short and specific.??You’re looking for a job and want some help.??People will either respond, or they won’t.??In my experience, most people responded right away and scheduled time with me.??I was often surprised by who did – and who did not – respond.??In most cases, people were happy to reconnect and to try to help.??

When you’re doing this search, how you show up is everything.??This is a time to be positive and forward-looking.??This is not a time to appear mad at your former employer, or scared or desperate for a job, even though you may be feeling that way.??Rather, this is a time to present yourself as the answer to someone’s prayer.??The one and only person who can do an important job that needs to be done for a company that wants to do great things. This is the time for your superpowers to shine.??And this is a time for you to find the role of your dreams.??I truly mean this.?????

As for the call itself, even if you think you know the person well, you should prepare.??Spend time looking at the person’s profile on LinkedIn.??Look at their job history.??Find common ground.??Research the contacts you both know.??Research the people you know at the company where they currently work.??Research the company they work for so you understand what they do and whom they do it for.??Always, always, always look at the careers section to see if there is an open role remotely close to what you are looking for.??That is one of the easiest door openers: “I saw an open role and am not sure if it’s a fit.??I thought you could help me navigate.”??Always prepare 4 or 5 questions specifically for them.??Make it clear that you prepared and are interested in them and their company.??I literally spent at least 30 minutes preparing for each and every call, each and every time.??It helped me feel confident on the call and demonstrated my intentions to find a role where I could make a great contribution.??

For me, it helped to think of networking as a discovery process for a project.??And until I found my next role, the search itself was my project.??I wanted to figure out as quickly as I could how/if a person could help me, and determine if I was both interested and a fit for the company or role uncovered through the conversation.??If I thought there may be a fit, I kept pursuing it.??If not, I moved on to the next one.??If someone ghosts you, let them go.??If they are interested, they’ll know how to find you.??Above all, you don’t want to waste anyone’s time and energy, especially your own.??Positive forward motion will win the day.

In all, it took me 3 months to find my role.??During that time, I talked to more than 150 people, and made or took a call with literally anyone who was willing to speak with me.??Every morning, I stepped into my office around 8:30am and worked my network until 5pm or 5:30pm.??I planned my outreach and calls for the day or the week.??I booked time on my calendar to prep for an upcoming call.??I also booked time on my calendar following each call to prepare and send a thoughtful and relevant follow-up call after we spoke.??This structure mirrored the kind of structure I was used to in my previous job where my calendar was filled with meetings, calls, and things to get done.??In between calls or scheduled tasks, I read up on industry news, or researched topics I was interested in.??I did a few webinars.??I kept my brain busy.??I kept my attitude positive.

I should mention here that the follow up note you send following a networking call is really important.??In many cases, you will be asking someone to introduce you to someone else.??Or they will offer to do that naturally.??Either way, a well-constructed note sent after the call should thank them for their time and ideas, and summarize a few key points about your skills/search based on the conversation.??I found it helpful to provide a few sentences about me and my search to make it easier for them to forward on to others they thought I should speak to.??You don’t want to put the burden of that on your contact.??Write it for them.??Who is better equipped to talk about you than you?

One thing I did not do is apply blindly to roles on LinkedIn, job boards, or the career postings on company websites.??This did not seem to be appropriate for the kind of role I was seeking.??At my level of seniority, I needed to be introduced to a leader or hiring manager by someone who knows me and what I bring to the party.??In other words, I needed an endorsed introduction for a role which may or may not be posted yet.??I needed to lean on my network to help me find a role I was uniquely suited for.??And I needed to stand out in a sea of smart, capable people looking for a role.?

What worked for me is to know my strengths and passions, be laser focused on my purpose, methodically work my network, chase down any and all leads, prepare for and be on time for every call, and send follow up thank you notes designed to progress to the next step process.??Stay positive.??Look forward, not backward. Get comfortable talking about yourself and what you bring to the party.??

Along this journey, I created and evolved my statement of purpose, my resume, and my LinkedIn profile based on the conversations I was having.??I adjusted my pitch based on what I learned from the many conversations I was having.??In this process, I also reconnected and networked with some really amazing former colleagues and met some incredibly interesting new people who are now part of my network.??My network has both expanded and become stronger as a result of this effort.??

This is the process that worked for me.??I am starting in my new role next week and am very excited about the role, the team, and the company.??My separation package was good enough and I am thankful for it.??And now I am on to the next chapter in my career adventure.?

I hope I don’t have to embark on this kind of search again any time soon, but feel confident that my network would come through for me if/when I need it to. I was pleasantly surprised by how helpful people were, and plan on actively nurturing my network so I can be helpful to others.???Afterall, networking is a two-way street.?