Networking, in our case meaning contacting people we know in order to find new employment, fails due to the following:
– A lack of grace and tact when approaching others.
– An attitude of “You are my friend. You have to employ me.”
– Hiring an acquaintance for all the wrong reasons: not because they are qualified, but because we e.g. have a feeling of obligation.
– After employing a friend, especially if it is a close one, the new employer-employee relationship may become awkward at best and in the worst case scenario might lead to inadequate and harmful business decisions. The fine line between friendship and business relationship can become a vast gray area of questions marks and uncertainties.
– Only when you start working with somebody, do you get to know to their real selves. You can easily become disappointed in them and it’s then very difficult to undo your hiring decision or the recommendation, especially as we speak of executive positions.
– If you were hired by a friend or thanks to a friend, resigning from the new job (whatever the reasons may be) can become uncomfortable as you might feel that you are in debt with them.
– It might happen that employees find out that the outside hire was purely motivated not by qualification but by relationship. Even worse, if somebody from inside the company that would have been more competent, was passed over. Conflict can be expected.
– Recommending a friend you hardly know might put you in an uneasy situation, especially if the person turns out not to perform as expected.
I, personally and professionally, do recommend “networking” as a channel to generate leads that might result in job offers always when the job hunting person does it skillfully and gracefully. At this point I’d like to quote an Executive Search Consultant who declined our invitation to participate in this e-book, “[…] For that you need life experience, emotional maturity and a whole set of soft skills from all involved parties.” While “that” refers to the recruitment process, I believe it to be true for the entire job hunting process, including and especially, networking.
If you want to discuss your professional situation confidentially or if you considering hiring Career Angels for support, contact Bichl.Sandra@CareerAngels.eu who will personally match you with the most appropriate consultant. For efficiency, add your CV and availability for a Skype call.
