5 Steps to Effective Alumni Networking in a Job Search

5 Steps to Effective Alumni Networking in a Job Search5 Steps to Effective Alumni Networking in a Job SearchAlumni can be some of your most valuable job search networking contacts, but only if you utilize them effectively.Unfortunately, most candidates have the goal of an introduction and its usually the wrong goal. When you pick an alumni networking goal thats achievable (one that is in the contacts power to deliver) and that delivers maximum impact to your job search, alumni can be a huge help to your efforts.The strategy of alumni networking wasnt always so important. When there were candidate shortages prior to 2007, most companies had written or unwritten policies to give a guaranteed interview to anyone who came through a company employee from anywhere within the organization. Pre-2007, when so many employers had guaranteed interview policies, it didnt matter how you networked because volume of networking was more important - it was literally just a random numbers game.Fast fo rward to todays job market, where spray and pray doesnt work. Todays effective alumni networking techniques are far more focused, with specific targets, goals and actions. When you learn how to leverage them in the right way, alumni networking contacts can represent tremendous inroads into employers.5 Best Practices to Use When Networking With AlumniFind the right alumni Use alumni networks to gain information or access to hiring managers in departments of your target companies to give you the widest reach. Too often, job seekers use their alumni networks to try to directly reach hiring managers and HR managers. Contacting HR managers is leid the best use of networking efforts, since their job is to keep candidates away from the hiring manager - theyre gatekeepers who may not have good information about the hiring managers real problems. If youre looking for hiring managers in your alumni directory, youll limit the reach of your networking. Alumni directories only list limited numb ers of hiring managers in your area, representing a small number of companies, even in huge schools with large alumni networks. By combining your alumni directory and Linkedin into your networking research, you can find exponentially more alumni who can lead you to the right person.Ask for information Reach alumni who can provide company/department/hiring manager inside information. Why would you ask these valuable contacts about what jobs are open when you can find that on the companys Web site? Instead of asking for something your fellow alum probably cant provide (a job), ask for something they can provide thats far more valuable to you - information. fruchtwein candidates dont have a clear idea what you really need in order to be ready to meet a hiring manager (besides just a positive attitude). To make your best first impression, you need to be ready by already knowing whats on the hiring managers mind, and what the biggest problems, most difficult obstacles, greatest opportun ities and priorities are.Build bridges The right alumni to reach are often ones who arent easy to contact because theyre busy people. Find alumni (often outside your target company) who know and can lead you to someone else within the company that can provide inside information. Of course this information isnt listed in your alumni directory - this will take some digging and groundwork using Linkedin and (gasp) your phone.Have an alum vouch for you Vouching can be one of the most valuable ways a fellow alum can assist your job search. When youre trying to reach a contact within your target hiring organization, its tough to build trust because youre a stranger. Weve been taught not to trust strangers from when we were young children, so why would you expect adults to suddenly act differently? Vouching changes this because when a common acquaintance tells your company contact that youre OK, that youre trustworthy, the walls come down and, usually, quick trust is built.Get an introduc tion to hiring managers While most job seekers make this the most immediate alumni networking goal, it should be one of the last. At this point, most of you are asking why? Most candidates rush to set up sessions with hiring managers prematurely, before they are ready. You only get one chance to make a first impression why would you want to put yourself in that situation before you have the necessary information to wow the hiring manager (see 2 above). Only after you understand the hiring managers most pressing issues are you ready for an introduction. Once youve prepared in this way, youll give the hiring manager two main impressions That youve already solved his/her most important problems, and that youre somehow a mind reader.Alumni networking can be one of your best networking opportunities - its important to know how to maximize the effectiveness of these opportunities. You may be tempted to go in for the quick kill, immediately asking for a job or to be introduced to the hiri ng manager. Its not your fault - job search used to be easy. When there were candidate shortages, you could make all sorts of mistakes and still land a good job in a reasonable timeframe. Businesses from the 1940s until 2007 faced slow growth unless they could find reasonably qualified candidates the businesses who could find candidates would grow, while those who were too picky would stagnate. A market with job shortages changes what works and what doesnt.So be careful in how you network with alumni, so you make the most of this valuable resource and create the maximum help for your job search.