Strong and Weak Networks

One of the things that is important to understand about how networks function, is that they can help and hinder a person’s career development depending upon how they are structured. In the following diagram, you will see that Diane is in the centre of a network. If these six people were the only ones she tried to connect with, she would have very limited opportunities. What social network analysis has shown over the decades, is that networks like this are ‘embedded’, they are made up of friends, associates and relatives and they don’t know anything more than the individual at the centre.

The key to effective career network development it so make connections with the contacts that you do not know but they know your contacts. In Mark Granovetter’s terms, they are weak links. It is through the connection with these links that most people find work. Referring to the diagram, the most important contacts for Diane are Ike and Jane, whom she only knows through Fernando and Garth. These are the types of contacts the will lead to opportunities and positive change.

Social Networks and the Hidden Job Search

Mark Granovetter researched how people get jobs by studying executive, professional, technical, and managerial workers who had recently found jobs. His data indicated that:

• only 10% of jobs were found through ads
• 9% were found through agencies
• an astonishing 74% were found "informally"

“Informal" methods of job finding are those whereby the job seekers exercise their own initiative in building on personal contacts and making themselves known to potential employers. They are differentiated from "formal" methods, which rely on advertisements and/or employment agencies.

Granovetter's data also indicate that of the people who found jobs through personal contacts, 43.8% had new positions created for them.

Granovetter concluded: Personal contacts are of paramount importance in connecting people with jobs. Better jobs are found through contacts, and the best jobs, the ones with the highest pay and prestige and affording the greatest satisfaction to those in them, are most apt to be filled in this way.

This research lays the foundation for understanding how profound social networks affect ones career development.

Social Networks

One of the fascinating things I have learned from both my anecdotal observations of people and review of literature is the nature of social networks. Whether one considers a job search campaign, the development of a new business, the growth of a new political campaign or party or a community initiative, social networks provide the foundations through which change does (or does not) happen! In order to understand how the Web2.0 is revolutionizing career management, we need to start by understanding the power of social networks.

What are Social Networks?

Social networks are a way of both describing and understanding how people interact and affect change. In 1973 sociologist Mark Granovetter published a paper called The Strength of Weak Ties. In it, he described his research which showed that people get jobs, not from people close to them, but from casual acquaintances he called "weak ties".

What often seems to happen is that people form into groups where everyone talks to each other but they do not talk to people outside the group. That means that ones friends and people close to them probably know all the same people and job opportunities. To get new information a person has to go outside of the group and thus an acquaintance (a weak tie) is often be the link that helps the person to succeed.

These links can be "running into someone you used to work with you haven't seen for a while" or "meeting someone in the shopping line". Social networks bridge the world with people working, attending school and communicating with each other in every country in the world. We are just a few links from almost anyone.

A great way of visualizing social networks is to search Google Images.

Much of our day to day life is interaction with other people and the patterns of interaction influence so much of the events around us, especially our careers.

Web 2.0

When I reflect back on the history of the career development field, the birth of the Internet really initiated a major change in how career development takes place. However, the emergence of Web 2.0 has brought in an even more profound shift to what career building means today. The ease of which people can co-create knowledge that helps one to learn, grow, plan and make significant changes is phenomenal.

There are many examples to choose from, as starters, I recommend getting to know both LinkedIn and Technorati.

Happy Co-creating!

How Not To Network!

Today I received a request that came through a mass e-mail campaign. This individual had sent out a request through their entire e-mail list looking to find a job. Someone on that list suggested that they talk to me to access someone else I knew.

There was no discussion about their strengths, what they had to offer, how they could make a difference, etc. It was all about them, what they needed and how could someone help them to get what they wanted.

I have helped many a person network in their career; however, I find that there are generally two types of approaches: those who are taking, and those who are sharing and giving. The person described above was taking; it leaves one feeling cold, like not helping.

In my experience is critical to make it the highest priority to approach this whole process as a relationship building exercise for mutual win-win. True networking is about building community, learning about what others’ needs are and how the skills and abilities that you have can help solve the problems out there.

I encourage you to take the high road in your career!

All the best, Rob