Kirkwood College
March 29, 2012
Margie Peskin, Search Forward
 My background
 What do you hope to learn?
 Building relationships between people that
can mutually benefit from knowing each other
 Two way street
 Information gathering
 Long term investment
 Professional and personal
 Relevant across industries
 Career mobility
 Mentorship
 Reputation – “brand building”
 At least 60% of all jobs are found through
networking (about.com)
 34% of new hires brought in from outside an
organization were due to employee referrals
(CareerXRoad)
 Family
 Friends
 Classmates – present and past
 Faculty – present and past
 University alumni
 Professional Associations
 Religious affiliations
 Neighbors
 Facebook
 LinkedIn
 Twitter
 Blogs
 Think of 3 things true about you in high school
 You will have 30 seconds to introduce yourself and
then listen to your partner be introduced
 Then switch name tags
 Introduce your “new” self to another person
 Switch name tags again
 Introduce your “new new” self to another person
 Then switch name tags and stop
 If you can’t remember, make something up. You
always need to introduce 3 things
 What was this experience like for you?
 What did you learn?
 Initial introduction – in person
◦ Eye Contact
◦ Smile
◦ Handshake
◦ Listening
◦ Matching
 Initial introduction – phone
◦ Smile
◦ Confirm
◦ Quiet location, good reception
Beyond the introduction
 What are common topics when you first meet
someone?
◦ Weather
◦ Sports
◦ Transportation / road conditions / traffic
◦ School – year, major, living situation
 How well do you know that person now?
 DON’T LEAVE IT AT THE WEATHER!
 Create engaging conversation
 Curious and interested
◦ What is important to them? What are they thinking
about?
 Open ended questions
 Informational interviewing
◦ Leave out the “interviewing”
◦ Always start with information
◦ No resume
◦ Respect the other person’s time
 Phone or email?
 Low to high
 The 30-second commercial
◦ Rehearsed message prevents you from engaging
the other person
◦ Most people like to talk about themselves
 Know your story
◦ Skills and what you’re good at
◦ Background that has led to current place
◦ Concise explanation of your needs and interests
 The importance of follow up
◦ Do what you say!
◦ Send thank you notes
◦ Maintenance
 Career updates, articles, holiday cards
 Organization is key!
◦ MS Excel template for networking/job search
Recommended Reading
◦ Ferrazzi, Keith. Never Eat Alone.
www.keithferrazzi.com
Margie Peskin
Search Forward
319-621-9316
margie@search-forward.com
www.search-forward.com

Kirkwood College March 2012

  • 1.
    Kirkwood College March 29,2012 Margie Peskin, Search Forward
  • 2.
     My background What do you hope to learn?
  • 3.
     Building relationshipsbetween people that can mutually benefit from knowing each other  Two way street  Information gathering  Long term investment  Professional and personal
  • 4.
     Relevant acrossindustries  Career mobility  Mentorship  Reputation – “brand building”
  • 5.
     At least60% of all jobs are found through networking (about.com)  34% of new hires brought in from outside an organization were due to employee referrals (CareerXRoad)
  • 6.
     Family  Friends Classmates – present and past  Faculty – present and past  University alumni  Professional Associations  Religious affiliations  Neighbors
  • 7.
  • 8.
     Think of3 things true about you in high school  You will have 30 seconds to introduce yourself and then listen to your partner be introduced  Then switch name tags  Introduce your “new” self to another person  Switch name tags again  Introduce your “new new” self to another person  Then switch name tags and stop  If you can’t remember, make something up. You always need to introduce 3 things
  • 9.
     What wasthis experience like for you?  What did you learn?
  • 10.
     Initial introduction– in person ◦ Eye Contact ◦ Smile ◦ Handshake ◦ Listening ◦ Matching
  • 11.
     Initial introduction– phone ◦ Smile ◦ Confirm ◦ Quiet location, good reception
  • 12.
    Beyond the introduction What are common topics when you first meet someone? ◦ Weather ◦ Sports ◦ Transportation / road conditions / traffic ◦ School – year, major, living situation  How well do you know that person now?
  • 13.
     DON’T LEAVEIT AT THE WEATHER!  Create engaging conversation  Curious and interested ◦ What is important to them? What are they thinking about?  Open ended questions
  • 14.
     Informational interviewing ◦Leave out the “interviewing” ◦ Always start with information ◦ No resume ◦ Respect the other person’s time  Phone or email?  Low to high
  • 15.
     The 30-secondcommercial ◦ Rehearsed message prevents you from engaging the other person ◦ Most people like to talk about themselves  Know your story ◦ Skills and what you’re good at ◦ Background that has led to current place ◦ Concise explanation of your needs and interests
  • 16.
     The importanceof follow up ◦ Do what you say! ◦ Send thank you notes ◦ Maintenance  Career updates, articles, holiday cards  Organization is key! ◦ MS Excel template for networking/job search
  • 17.
    Recommended Reading ◦ Ferrazzi,Keith. Never Eat Alone. www.keithferrazzi.com
  • 18.