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With business people and students working from home, the way in which networking occurs for the near future will likely shift to more phone and Zoom-based calls. There also may be a tighter labor market, making internships and full-time offers more competitive. As a result, students and young professionals have to maximize these networking opportunities. Yet, many do not have the training or experience to know how to manage the networking conversation in a way that motivates an executive to want to help them.
To provide insight on the common mistakes and advice on how to avoid them, I reached out to business people from blue-chip companies (i.e., Fortune 100 size firms) who invest a lot of time networking with business students and young professionals. This is the second part of a two-part series that focuses on advice regarding the do’s and don’ts of networking calls. Make sure to read part one as it provides important insight into what is reasonable to expect from executives and how to network effectively via email.
1. Failing to have an agenda. One individual indicated that in some networking calls, the “awkwardness creeps in right at the point when pleasantries and intros are done, and the conversation needs to switch to the career.” It is at that point that the student (remember the student reached out to the executive) needs to seize control of the conversation just like they would be expected to do as the manager of a brand or business.
The fix: Have an objective for the networking session. Be prepared to have to lead the shift from pleasantries to business (for example, write the sentence down ahead of time). Make sure to explain what your objective is at the beginning of the meeting and make sure to have a number of questions prepared in advance. You can always adjust on the fly, but you should have a plan ahead of time to ensure you get the most out of the engagement. See here for more insight on how to navigate the actual networking call.
2. Failing to be organized and focused. One individual suggested that a common faux pas is failing to be organized and focused. This is similar to the point above – having an agenda – but bears repeating.
The fix: The above individual suggested: “I would advise students to try to be organized about their approach - via prioritization based on: interest, industry, job function, etc. I feel that clustering opportunities by their skill set/stories/transferable skill will help them navigate conversations and focus their research in a more cohesive way since it is difficult to navigate recruiting across multiple types of roles and potentially across industries (especially in a situation where they are scrambling in a time of crisis).” His essential point is to organize your questions in a logical sequence. In combination with the point above, have a clear objective for the call and an organization that enables you to achieve that learning objective in a sequential and logical manner. An additional benefit is that you are demonstrating: preparation, meeting management, ability to generate relevant insight, and so forth—all terrific skills that companies desire.
3. Failing to have enough questions to fill the time. One individual indicated that if after two questions, the young professional says that they only have one more question, this signals a lack of curiosity about the most important brand you’ll ever work on—your own. You want to make sure that you never run out of questions.
The fix: I know what you are thinking right now: “How do I communicate respect for the executive’s time and not overstay my welcome by asking a lot of questions?” The way you do it is to: 1) Communicate that you are nearing the end of the allotted time and you want to be considerate of their time. In some cases, the individual will say that they have more time and you keep going. In other cases, they will say thank you and at this point you pivot and summarize the key takeaways and next steps. 2) Never run out of questions. Always have enough to fill the time (and be prepared should the meeting go long). You should demonstrate your thinking skills through your questions, so take care with developing smart, insightful, questions. Don’t use generic, off-the-shelf questions.
4. Failing to show gratitude and communicate next steps. I’m fortunate that I work at the Darden School of Business, where almost all students know that it is a common courtesy to express gratitude via a thank-you email after somebody has given you the gift of their time and counsel. However, one manager indicated that it is also important to communicate your next steps. As he suggested: “When the person leading the call can recap a conversation to other stakeholders and indicate next steps, it just shows ownership, leadership, and a conviction to get things done. If a student spent (a few) minutes recapping our call with key things we discussed and highlighted a couple next steps they would take, I would be more inclined to help them in the future and maybe even fight for them with our Talent team.”
The fix: Be prepared to summarize—in a short manner—key “takeaways/learning” from the discussion and your next steps. This is a terrific exclamation point to the discussion and sends the executive a message that you listened, internalized the insight, and have a game plan. The benefit, as the executive above suggested—it may motivate them to want to help you even more. Also, always express appropriate gratitude for the time and counsel that the executive provides through a thoughtful and typo-free email/handwritten card. Depending on what you want to achieve, I have found that handwritten thank you cards can: 1) breakthrough the clutter (increasing the likelihood that they are remembered), and 2) help strengthen the message that you are sending about your gratitude. But be thoughtful about when and why you would want to do this. There are times when I use emails to express gratitude and times when it is appropriate to use a more extensive, handwritten card.
5. Failing to understand that networking is about building a relationship, not checking off a phone call. One individual indicated: “95% of the students I have networking conversations with only reach out to me for one call and maybe a follow-up email. If I only talk with you once in September or October, it's hard to remember that conversation when we're deciding on who to extend interview offers to in December. You need at least 2 strong advocates for you at a company: You want to make the decision to extend an interview offer to you as risk-free as possible. Don't make me have to go out on a limb to advocate for you - you need to be your biggest advocate. Invest the time in a couple of meaningful relationships and it will pay off.”
The fix: Identify a few individuals at your target firms that you really connected with and keep in touch. Importantly, the above individual is on the recruiting team at his firm and so these people make decisions on who they invite for interviews. This is different than connecting with somebody, say a VP, who will not be involved in the recruiting process. You want to try and stay in touch with a couple of folks from the recruiting team (they tend to be more engaged with on-grounds recruiting and the decision makers). You can do this by sharing updates or connecting before a campus visit to see if you can set up time with the manager on grounds. Also, follow signals from the manager. If they suggest that they would like to reconnect in the future, ask them what would be best for them and highlight this in the next steps (and thank you note). Again, you don’t want to be a burden, but staying connected, in a low maintenance manner, can help put you at the top of the manager’s list to recommend.
For more insight into networking, see: 10 Rules on How To Network without being Annoying.
Join the Discussion: @KimWhitler
