When it comes to recruiting the three big criteria are: networking, application package (cover letter, resume, and transcript), and interview. Even after you get a job, networking is still one of the most essential life skills to have. Either we shy away from it and allow ourselves to be outshined by others, or we grab the bull by the horns and learn how to thrive.
In today’s article, I would like to share seven (7) tips on “what not to do” from an employer’s perspective.
Networking styles and results can vary so much from person to person, as well as by the nature of the event you are attending. These are mere guidelines that you can adapt to your own personality and field. Some points may not be true depending on the representative talked to – we are all different.
1. Lack of rapport
DO NOT just fire away questions from your pre-constructed agenda without acknowledging my answers. It shows a lack of active listening, inability to smoothly communicate, and can be a rather dull conversation for me as I’ve probably already done 10 Q&A’s at this point with questions very similar to your own.
DO follow-up on my replies and build with natural conversation (good topics to mention are sports, food, and travel). The smoother it is, the better. Huge points if you can find a common topic of interest (hint: LinkedIn search)
2. Poor body language
DO NOT keep a neutral face expression or look disengaged. Are you bored talking to me? Why aren’t you enjoying the conversation? I need someone who is capable of easily getting along with others – this includes being able to positively engage with body language.
DO smile as it gives me a friendly and warm impression of your personality. Once when I was the President of the school’s consulting club I decided to hire a person who was super energetic and had the ability to make the person on the other side of the table cheerful despite her lack of experience. She turned out to be a superstar and now works at one of the top consulting firms.
3. Not observing other people
DO NOT limit your learning to yourself.
DO observe other people and what is working and not working for them. Most of my networking style was simply a compilation of the best traits I saw from other people, as well as an avoidance of the negative traits I saw.
4. Joining the death circles
I’m referring to a group of people gathered around the representative. These can be very dangerous groups to be a part of if done incorrectly. Naturally, the more comfortable/outspoken person will outshine the rest as they lead the conversation. The rest of the people will usually blend into the background and be lost in the representative’s memory.
My advice: If you are not yet comfortable with networking, avoid them. It can be a very competitive environment to be in where, usually, the person with the most networking experience will outshine everyone else. Since you aren’t that person (yet!), don’t waste your time and move onto non-group settings.
If you do decide to enter such a circle, the rewards can be large if you are experienced enough to be able to smoothly lead the conversation and engage with the representative whilst the other students remain quiet.
Personally, I liked learning by observing the people controlling the conversation in such groups. What are they doing? How are they talking? How are they doing it? How can I adopt that into my own style?
Being simply an observer in such groups has helped me learn a lot about networking techniques and strategies that I brought into my arsenal for future use.
5. Analyst vs. Management
I always felt that analysts are easier to converse with and more open to teach you, as they probably just recently started representing their firm and haven’t done many networking events yet.
Meanwhile, management has most likely already done a lot of networking events during their career, and thus have discussed the usual topics many times. As well, they are naturally more mature and have more life experience. I believe it is for these reasons that I found it harder to have an engaging conversation with them.
Also – keep in mind that management usually has a much stronger influence on interviewing decisions.
My advice: If you are still not as comfortable with networking as you’d like, talk with the analysts first to help you become more comfortable with networking and figure out your style.
If you are comfortable with networking, I recommend going straight for management. That was my strategy for the last 2 years of university and it almost always paid off.
6. Taking it personally
You are not going to hit it off with everyone. You will have conversations where you and the representative simply don’t click.
Quite frankly, you won’t have 100% chemistry with everyone you talk to. Or the representative might not be the most talkative person. Or you were just unlucky with the flow of the conversation.
My first few times networking in university, I was unlucky to talk to a few representatives who weren’t the most lively or outgoing people. I immediately blamed myself and thought that I had poor communication skills and was a boring person. I never should’ve doubted myself.
I should’ve shrugged it off and moved on.
7. Leaving networking until senior year
Try to attend as many company info sessions as possible (but not so many that you neglect your studies) to improve networking skills.
Networking in first year is often overlooked because most students think there is zero opportunity to get a job and/or you will get unnoticed over the upper years. The truth is I personally am impressed when a first year approaches or reaches out to me to make an introduction. You might lack the technical skills or you might not be polished, but I can sense your drive and will be happy about it.
At some point in time you need to learn how to fluently navigate these networking sessions. This will only be possible after you bite the bullet and attend multiple info sessions. I started attending info sessions in first year, felt uncomfortable multiple times, but it ultimately paid off.
NOTE: If you don’t spend time reflecting after each session and create new do’s and don’ts for your next networking opportunity, you are doomed to repeat your faults and not improve yourself.
Jason Oh is a management consulting professional at Novantas, specialized in financial services strategy consulting. He holds experience helping Fortune 500 financial institutions with product management, commercial due diligence, go-to-market strategy, and distribution channel strategy. He’s also an avid traveller with passion for FinTech, marathon, and blogging.
Image: Pexels
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