Career Corner How to Make the Most of Your Career Networking Opportunities Part I Are you just out of college, or have you been working for a little while but havent quite found your career niche yet? If so, then youre probably no stranger to the Career Fairs or other networking events that everyone always seems to be talking up. Are they worth it? Should you keep at it? What should you do at these events to help make a stronger impression? Here are some tips to make the most of these events: 1) Get clear on what youre looking for. What kind of job or opportunity do you want? Keep it short and sweet so you can communicate it easily. Practice that as your elevator speech for meeting new potential employers or future colleagues. 2) Tell everyone youre looking. This includes friends, family, fellow students – even professors. You never know who might know someone in the field youre interested in. Keep your resume updated and your business card handy if you have one, so that when an opportunity arises you can easily pass this information along.
Has LinkedIn Gone Too Far with Recruitment I remember when LinkedIn was a nice professional network, great for catching up on old colleagues and a source for professional introduction. The discussion areas were good, and the sharing of information, expertise and advice was fruitful. Then, lets be honest: Us recruiters took over. We saw it as an opportunity to headhunt, without phoning and pretending to be 10 different names to 10 different people in the employer of our unwitting target talent. There were people sharing their career history and attributes on a public forum, and available to connect. Well, actually (despite merely fuelling the short-term career cycle) I happen to think this is good news – we are more aware of our options these days; being headhunted (well) or identified for our skills and worth (well) is flattering to us, and we are better aware of our market position we only have to say “No” if we don’t want another job. It’s when you have 10 offers a day that are ill-conceived, that the ‘flattery’ becomes an irritation.
LinkedIn Gone Too Far with Recruitment