Social Networks and Career Development

One of the fascinating things I have learned from both my 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,which he later revisted. 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.

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.

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 and Web 2.0

The most interesting aspect of the evolution of the Web is the potential change in how social networking takes place. In the “Strength of Weak Ties” pattern that Mark Granovetter identified,there are limitations. When I am talking to a person about their work / career needs,I can often make one or two suggestions about who they could talk to. My experience is that this is very common. We each can think of a few people who someone would do well to connect with. This of course works and is very powerful. The challenge is that I don’t always remember all of the people I know and I have absolutely no idea who those people in turn know.

Web 2.0 changes this dramatically. Social networking sites provide two significant opportunities for people who are engaged in career transitions research.

First,they can engage in dialogue with people they did not originally know through online discussion forms,thus building relationships outside of their previous network structure. There are literally millions of specialized discussion forums and blogs on the web that enable individuals to actively participate with others and get to know them,develop shared insight and understanding and this can lead to strategic career information.

The second opportunity is the emergence of sites that are intentionally designed to amplify one’s current social network. In my own experience of these systems,they are beneficial in that they help one to maintain their existing network and expand the network. An example of this is LinkedIn. Every time someone in my network changes roles,they can update their ‘profile’ and let me know about it. This helps us to keep in touch. However,the more intriguing element is that it is possible for a person to identify someone they would like to do career research with,whom they don’t know (i.e. the owner of a specific company) and identify the linkages in their social networks to that specific person. They can then arrange a series of referrals to initiate a meeting. This aspect has proven to be very powerful as is enables individuals to extend their reach well beyond the traditional capacity of a network.

To understand this further,I highly recommend watching Zella King’s Tedx Manchester address (special thanks to Tristram Hooley for the link). She provides excellent insights into how we can benefit from this sociological perspective. In her talk,she focussed on FaceBook and the use of TouchGraph. However,her message is equally applicable to using LinkedIn and LinkedIn Maps. You can view my LinkedIn Map below.

Enjoy! Rob Straby