You can start your networking with people you already know. You shouldn't expectthem to point you to specific jobs, but they can comment on your resume, howyou describe yourself, your career plans, and your talents. Discussing such topicswith friends and relatives may lead you to intriguing areas you've never thoughtto explore. And these people have friends and relatives of their own who couldturn out to be valuable resources.
We'll call the people you already know and their connections your A group. Duringthis initial round of meetings, you will ask about and get referrals to people your contacts think will be relevant resources for you, such as professionalsworking in your field of interest or people who work for organizations thatinterest you.
These people, your B group, may or may not know of any specific jobopportunities, but they can provide valuable information about current needs in yourfield, where your skills might fit, what you should emphasize in your presentations,what you need to learn, and resources you can access. The B contacts, if dulyimpressed, can also introduce you to other B contacts and possibly to people inthe C group.
The C group consists of people who could hire you if a need exists and you seemto be qualified. While there may not be an immediate opening for you, a well conductedinformation and referral meeting with a C person might lead to aninterview a month or two later, as well as to introductions to other B and C contacts.While a telephone call will usually suffice to set up a meeting with an A groupperson, an approach letter, followed by a phone call to set up an appointment, isusually a more effective and appropriate means of contacting a B or C group person.
ABCs of Networking
The people in your A group might include:
Friends
Relatives
Friends' and relatives' friends and relatives
Alumni of your college who work in your area of interest or who haveparticipated in the same extracurricular activities as you
Professors
Professionals (lawyers, doctors, architects, etc.) you have come to know
Neighbors, past and present
Former coworkers
Anyone you think might be interested in something you've done, such asvolunteer work or research.
Your B group contacts might include:
Professionals in your field of interest.
People who know people or organizations in your field of interest.
People employed at organizations where you might like to work, or at similarorganizations.
Consultants, entrepreneurs, authors, and other experts in your field of interest.
you describe yourself, your career plans, and your talents. Discussing such topics with friends and relatives may lead you to intriguing areas you've never thought to explore. And these people have friends and relatives of their own who could turn out to be valuable resources. We'll call the people you already know and their connections your A group. During this initial round of meetings, you will ask about and get referrals to people your contacts think will be relevant resources for you, such as professionals working in your field of interest or people who work for organizations that interest you.
A Taste of Networking
Here are some typical examples of how networking can power your job searchif you know how to discuss your background and aspirationsas well as howyou would like your contact to help youin a way that is interesting, credible,and reasonable.
Your meeting with your roommate's brother (an A contact) leadsto an introduction to his tennis partner, who is a partner in one of the majoradvertising agencies in Mumbai (a B contact). Your discussion with him in turnleads to an introduction to the director of industry marketing at Jet Airways,one of the ad agency's clients (a C contact). Through him you find out about agood job opportunity, which you explore.
You get into a conversation with your hair stylist (A contact) and find out that oneof her clients (B contact) is married to a woman who heads a leading NGO(a C contact). Although you doubt you want to pursue a career innonprofit work, a meeting with this woman leads you to reconsider and interviewfor a position with her organization.
Your meeting with your Aunt Shalini (A contact) leads to an introduction to herarchitect friend Naidu (B contact), who is designing a farmhouse for the CEOof company XYZ (another B contact). When you meet Naidu, you mention yourinterest in market research, which leads to an arranged introduction to his clientwhen the CEO visits the construction site. The CEO is relaxed on this occasionand readily agrees to discuss his plans for XYZ and to introduce you to the headof marketing (C contact). This results in a series of interviews and eventually ajob offer, which you negotiate and finally accept.
