As many of you may know, I am currently in school getting an LLM in real estate law. I received an email from the school's career services department that brought to my attention an article from early May from the New York Times. The article is about networking in the wake of layoffs and lost business, and is particularly relevant to what I am doing here.
Review of "Job-Search Networks, in all Shapes and Sizes"
from the NY Times May 3, 2009
As I explained above, the article Job-Search Networks, in all Shapes and Sizes was recently brought to my attention. This article is a commentary on the different types of networking efforts that people are organizing today. Right now, there are multitudes of unemployed and underemployed professionals. The article mentions that thousands have flocked to online networking sites, such as Facebook and Linkedin, but focuses on and details different types of offline community networking efforts.
I suggest reading the article (see the hyperlink above) to get a sense of what kind of efforts people are going to in order to expand and strengthen their professional networks. That said, there are several good points made, albeit some are just mentioned in passing.
First, for the jobless and recently laid off, networking can provide a venue for support. Meeting with others in similar situations can help to deal with the hardship of losing a job or losing a big client. That said, the article states a point raised by Duncan Mathison, a management consultant in San Diego. Some networking groups for the recently unemployed can focus on the wrong things. It is easy for these groups to turn into "gripe sessions." Negativism defeats the purpose of networking and can be counterproductive to the goals of the group.
The second point is more prevalent throughout the article, the benefit of face-to-face networking. As I have stated before, online networking tools have been great, but they serve a limited role. Online networking should supplement offline efforts. Face-to-face networking lets you actually get to know somebody and builds trust in that person.
Lastly, and probably the most important point the article makes, networking is a two way street. All the members in a networking group have to be interested in helping the other members, as well as looking to get help. Rachelle J. Center, president of RJC Associates, a management consulting firm in San Fransisco, cautions to be aware of networking groups that have members who are only seeking to take from the group. "'It has to be a quid pro quo,' she said. 'You help them, they help you. Successful networking is as much about what you can do for others as it is about what you can get from them.'"
