Yet Another Reason Networking is an Essential Component of a Job Search

There is a solid and in-depth article at Ask the Recruiter entitled The Secret Handshake: Why Networking is Vital. The article provides a detailed explanation of why networking is important for job seekers and how to build networks of both quantity and quality. The author, Dakotta J.K. Alex, hits on several of the common reasons for networking both during a job search and throughout one’s career.

But I thought that the most important point that he made with regards to networking is that it is probably the best way to find information on jobs that are NOT advertised. It is a fairly well-known statistic (and I have no idea how accurate it is, but I’ve seen it quoted in several places) that less than 25% of all job openings are ever advertised to the job seeking public. This would seem to make sense, since most hiring occurs through networking and there is often no reason to advertise an open position when a qualified and available candidate is already waiting to fill it as a result of an existing relationship. These positions – the ones that are never advertised to the public – are typically the best jobs to have. They are often created with the candidate in mind and are more talent acquisition by an employer than the filling of open employment needs. And yes, there is a big difference.

Networking takes time and effort and the results it yields are difficult to measure. But those that do it and do it well will always have an advantage and find better opportunities to advance their careers.

Tags: career networking, job search, networking, unadvertised jobs, unlisted jobs

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