Hi David- great to get some insight into what your working and thinking on. And also great to hear an update on your job search. I was wondering about that. I haven't been actively (or passively) looking, but I'm interested in learning from others in case I decide to go in that direction. I appreciate your sharing. A couple questions:
* how important do you think linked in is? recruiters and HR folks look at it. Have you done stuff on linked in to oriented it better towards a job search?
* have you gotten useful feedback when you've asked for it? In my limited experience, I haven't gotten useful (or, I think candid) feedback even thought I want it and don't mind if it's rough.
* Is any of the application/interview process fun or interesting? What is surprising?
1 - The single greatest value I get from LI is finding intros to people at target orgs. I'll see that a participant at a workshop I facilitated four years ago is now working where I'm applying. Or even more tangentially, that person's grad school classmate is now working where I'm applying. I'm now pretty shameless about asking for that introduction. To make the most of that, I've gotten rigorous about sending connection invites to everyone I've ever interacted with professionally. Those connections are also good for finding job postings via the feed. (LI's actual job search tool is, comparatively, useless.)
2 - Re useful feedback: Often no. But one recruiter wrote that "they were looking for folks who were more recently within an organization." I didn't recall them asking a single question about that in the interviews, but it was still helpful to know there may be a certain (mis)perception about what a consultant brings to a role. On two other occasions, the ED and role supervisor shared unprompted feedback when they sent the rejection; those highlighted my strengths more than shortcomings, but that's still helpful feedback.
3 - I like getting to know new orgs and having an excuse to make some new connections. I've been surprised by how many of the roles I'm applying for use outside recruiters; I'm not sure if that's a growing service that more orgs are using, or if it's just that I'm at a different career level than I was ten years ago, or a bit of both.
Some people tell me that LI is really important to their professional profile and one consultant told me that 2/3 of his business comes via LI. But my experience is that it's quite marginal. Valuable sometimes - most often for it's DM function. But it could be that I dont know what I"m doing (likely).
In my more limited job applications I've been impressed by how shitty many recruiters and HR are communicating and following up. It's annoying and disrespectful. I haven't found much useful feedback, either - although sometimes some insight into what they say they want. I had a friend who was going for a very high position at a UN agency and the recruiter was, thankfully, really honest with her: you're white, American and over 55yo. Each one is a big strike against you and means you're likely only a viable candidate if the recruitment is a failure or there's a political crisis. It's actually helpful to hear/know.
On #3 - one interesting/useful secondary goal/benefit from applying is generating new consulting business. I think it's surprisingly common for job candidates to then become consultants for orgs as long as the vibe is good, etc. It's a chance to get to know an org, HR, some of the leadership and also - indirectly, to pitch your value. This hasn't happened to me - but has happened for a bunch of people I know. It's actually one of the main reasons I apply for jobs these days - just to meet folks and talk to them.
Hi David- great to get some insight into what your working and thinking on. And also great to hear an update on your job search. I was wondering about that. I haven't been actively (or passively) looking, but I'm interested in learning from others in case I decide to go in that direction. I appreciate your sharing. A couple questions:
* how important do you think linked in is? recruiters and HR folks look at it. Have you done stuff on linked in to oriented it better towards a job search?
* have you gotten useful feedback when you've asked for it? In my limited experience, I haven't gotten useful (or, I think candid) feedback even thought I want it and don't mind if it's rough.
* Is any of the application/interview process fun or interesting? What is surprising?
Great questions!
1 - The single greatest value I get from LI is finding intros to people at target orgs. I'll see that a participant at a workshop I facilitated four years ago is now working where I'm applying. Or even more tangentially, that person's grad school classmate is now working where I'm applying. I'm now pretty shameless about asking for that introduction. To make the most of that, I've gotten rigorous about sending connection invites to everyone I've ever interacted with professionally. Those connections are also good for finding job postings via the feed. (LI's actual job search tool is, comparatively, useless.)
2 - Re useful feedback: Often no. But one recruiter wrote that "they were looking for folks who were more recently within an organization." I didn't recall them asking a single question about that in the interviews, but it was still helpful to know there may be a certain (mis)perception about what a consultant brings to a role. On two other occasions, the ED and role supervisor shared unprompted feedback when they sent the rejection; those highlighted my strengths more than shortcomings, but that's still helpful feedback.
3 - I like getting to know new orgs and having an excuse to make some new connections. I've been surprised by how many of the roles I'm applying for use outside recruiters; I'm not sure if that's a growing service that more orgs are using, or if it's just that I'm at a different career level than I was ten years ago, or a bit of both.
Some people tell me that LI is really important to their professional profile and one consultant told me that 2/3 of his business comes via LI. But my experience is that it's quite marginal. Valuable sometimes - most often for it's DM function. But it could be that I dont know what I"m doing (likely).
In my more limited job applications I've been impressed by how shitty many recruiters and HR are communicating and following up. It's annoying and disrespectful. I haven't found much useful feedback, either - although sometimes some insight into what they say they want. I had a friend who was going for a very high position at a UN agency and the recruiter was, thankfully, really honest with her: you're white, American and over 55yo. Each one is a big strike against you and means you're likely only a viable candidate if the recruitment is a failure or there's a political crisis. It's actually helpful to hear/know.
On #3 - one interesting/useful secondary goal/benefit from applying is generating new consulting business. I think it's surprisingly common for job candidates to then become consultants for orgs as long as the vibe is good, etc. It's a chance to get to know an org, HR, some of the leadership and also - indirectly, to pitch your value. This hasn't happened to me - but has happened for a bunch of people I know. It's actually one of the main reasons I apply for jobs these days - just to meet folks and talk to them.