The professional network
Getting known and getting help: strong and weak ties, the hidden market and referrals, the circles to approach, the online profile, the outreach message, the informational interview and keeping the network alive.
- 25 cards
- 5 topics
- Free
The outline, topic by topic
Each topic is weighted the way the exam weighs it.
- Concepts
- Questions
- Sort and link
- Scenarios
- Understand
A few cards from the deck
Professional network: what is it?
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The people who know you through your work or studies and can inform, advise or recommend you.
It is built before you need it: classmates, alumni, teachers, tutors, technical communities. Asking for help from someone you never met is possible, but far less likely to work.
Which profile headline will help a recruiter looking for a development apprentice find you best?
- Computer science student, web development, Python, SQL, seeking an apprenticeship
- Code enthusiast, curious and creative, always ready for new challenges
- Looking for new stimulating and rewarding professional opportunities
- Second-year computer science student at a university institute in Lyon
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Computer science student, web development, Python, SQL, seeking an apprenticeship
A recruiter types job and technology keywords: the headline should hold your programme, your field, two skills and what you are looking for. Nobody searches for adjectives.
An informational interview is for asking for … about a job, not for ….
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An informational interview is for asking for advice about a job, not for a position.
A precise, limited request (twenty minutes to talk about a job) is hard to turn down; 'do you have a job?' forces the other person to say no. Trust comes first, the offer comes after.
Weak tie: what is it?
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An occasional relationship with an acquaintance you rarely meet, who often moves in circles other than yours.
Your close contacts know the same people and the same offers as you. A weak tie opens information your circle lacks, hence its weight in a job search.
An alumna of your institute, a database administrator, agrees to talk to you for twenty minutes. What do you prepare?
- A printed CV to hand to her so that she passes it around
- An internship request to make in the first minute, before wasting her time
- Nothing specific, so that the conversation stays natural and low-stakes
- Three precise questions about her daily work and career
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Three precise questions about her daily work and career
A person giving their time expects preparation. Precise questions show you read her profile and let you leave with usable information.