Why You Need to Network Now!

Notable quote: In a recent interview on RecruitMilitary Live, Retire Sergeant Major of the Army Jack Tilley “Networking is the key to success!”

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Truth Bomb Inbound, 10 seconds!

Hanging up your boots? Here’s a hard truth for many veterans to swallow.? All that experience you have on your DD-214, all those badges, all those patches, all those ribbons, all those schools, all those deployments you’ve racked up… most employers couldn’t care less.? What they really want to hear is what you can do for them.? As a veteran or transitioning service member you need to go beyond all that and market yourself as a valuable commodity in the workforce, not for what you have done in the past, but for what you can deliver in the future.? You have to put yourself out there and connect with other human beings and communicate your worth and that means NETWORKING!

Why is networking important?

Reliable sources tell us that well over 80% of the job offers extended in the last few years have been as a result of some form of networking. That is to say that personal relationships, outside of the chain of events typically associated with job seeking, have resulted in employers connecting with the candidates they eventually hire. So, what does this mean in practical terms?? It means that applying for jobs online, submitting that digital application, uploading a resume and waiting for a response has a less than 20% chance of resulting in a job offer.? Those are not winning odds.? The hard truth here is that if you are not networking during your transition from the military or during your search for your next career opportunity, you are fighting a losing battle.

Where does networking occur?

Networking happens in a number of ways.? The first place networking happens is in good old fashioned face to face in person events.? Tap into your local veteran community to learn about veteran centric social events.? These don’t need to be stuffy buttoned up suit and tie affairs.? With chapters in 9 states the Veterans Beer Club hosts networking events that are all about growing camaraderie, making connections and hoisting a few cold brews while doing so.? Some events are more formal and focused.? Attending career fairs such as those sponsored by RecruitMilitary are a solid gold opportunity to connect with employers, veteran services organizations and fellow veterans while marketing yourself for employment.? Career fairs do not only occur in large stadiums and conference centers, they also happen virtually.? In 2024, RecruitMilitary will host more than a dozen virtual career fairs providing participants with the opportunity to connect with dozens of employers in real time, all of whom are interested in hiring military talent.

Networking happens in digital space in a way never before seen in human history.? Digital networking events often look like heavily populated Zoom calls with a handful of guest speakers and a laundry list of transitioning servicemembers, veterans and milspouses all looking to make connections and expand their network in a meaningful way.? As of today, until a viable competitor comes along, the best place to network in the digital environment is on LinkedIn.? Now if someone told you a presence on LinkedIn is not important, that LinkedIn is just another overhyped version of Facebook, you are getting advice from the wrong people. LinkedIn currently has about a billion members in over 200 countries including 94% of all Fortune 500 CEOs. ?If you are looking to expand your network and start making things happen for yourself professionally, LinkedIn is the digital arena you want to be playing in.

How do I begin?

“When should I start?”? I get that question quite often.? The answer I always give… “Yesterday.”? My grandfather used to say that it was raining when Noah started building the ark so you shouldn’t wait to get started on something important. Networking is the most important thing you can be doing if you want to beat the odds in a career search and LinkedIn is the heaviest weapon in your digital arsenal.

Get started by building and optimizing your profile.? Start with a quality, professional-looking headshot.? Make sure you are wearing civilian clothes, not your most recent command or promotion packet photo. Completely and thoroughly fill out every section of the profile.? This will take time, but there are no shortcuts to success.? Once you’ve done that, start building your network with a goal of making 500+ connections.? I know that sounds like a daunting task.? But so is completing a 12-mile road march in full kit and most of us have figured out how to do that, one step at a time.

Start by sending connection requests to friends, family and co-workers and expand your network outwards from there.? Former colleagues, former direct reports and former leaders come next.? Service members that you know who have already separated are perfect for connection requests.? Not everyone will respond.? Don’t take it personally.? Keep moving forward.? Ensure that everyone you meet at networking events and career fairs becomes a connection on LinkedIn. Connect with LinkedIn groups and forums and sign yourself up for professional newsletters which are associated with the career field you are seeking to enter.? Begin reading and responding intelligently to content that is being shared. Engage in dialogue. Like, share and repost content that relates to your career goals as it will appear in your feed and can inform anyone who views your profile as to where your professional interests lie.

Once you are comfortable with your LinkedIn profile, start using LinkedIn to research the employers you are interested in and to connect with people that work in the industry you are seeking to enter.? These connections can lead to dialogue, those dialogues can be converted to phone calls and Zoom calls commonly referred to informational interviews.? An informational interview is a short, informal meeting between you and someone in a company or industry in which you are hoping to start a career.? How do you secure one of these informational interviews?? Simply ask.? Be bold.? Ask if that person has 15 minutes they can spare to chat with you about opportunities in their industry.? Then set up the call in Zoom, Teams or whichever video conference platform works best for you.? Be prepared to provide them with a resume if they ask for one.? Do this and you are on the fast track to getting connected with employment.

This whole process requires you to take initiative, to be bold and to be resilient.? This will take you out of your comfort zone.? Get over it.? Expect to be ignored, ghosted and to hear “no” more often than you like.? Military service isn’t for the faint of heart and neither is wading into the civilian job market.? But keep moving forward, because firing off resumes and clicking apply on 100 job listings and waiting for the phone to ring, the majority of the time, just does not work.?

Get started today by building your RecruitMilitary job seeker profile, uploading a quality resume, and getting registered for a few events, both in-person and virtual.? Get that LinkedIn profile optimized and start making connections in the job market.? Get out into your local veteran community and start meeting people that you can convert into connections.? They used to say, “it’s all about who you know”.? Well guess what?? They still say that.? When should you get started? YESTERDAY!