Sprint to a New Job in 2025: Week 2

Starting 2025 off strong!

Welcome to week 2! Last week, we covered finding great jobs, and this week, we’re talking about NETWORKING!! Below, you’ll find a guidance for referrals, informational interviews and more!

Here’s what’s ahead for the rest of the year:

Week 3: Applications and Resumes

Week 4: Interviews

Week 5: Compensation and Offers

Week 6: A final wrap-up/remaining questions that have emerged from you all!

Make sure to submit your questions as well - I’m going to cover at least 2 per week!

If you think this sprint will be helpful to your network, invite them!

P.S. If you’re looking to upskill during your job search, my partners at Skillshare are running a 50% off promo

Can I really network my way to a new job?!

Networks can be invaluable in your job search - leverage your networks to learn about jobs, get referrals and introductions for jobs you’re interested in, and more.

Ideally, networking happens organically, and is an ongoing process. You want to have networks you can tap into when you’re job searching. It’s easier to ask for help when you’re already connected with folks. But I know lots of folks are building their networks while job hunting.

At this time of year, a few unique opportunities:

1. You can send an “end of year wrap up” to your community letting them know what’s new with you (including your job search!)

2. You can reconnect with recruiters and see if they have insight into openings in the new year.

3. With folks have more flexibility at the end of the year, why not try scheduling a few coffee chats?

And here are a few resources to do that:

• Curious about how to find contacts at companies? I share a few tips here.

• And in this video, I share templates for reaching out to your personal network, recruiters, etc.

• And here’s a free guide for “informational interviews” that might be helpful for those coffee chats.

And finally, let’s talk about one of the areas that folks are always most curious about - referrals!

The Coveted Referral

<previously shared 2/28/24>

Referrals are often treated as some fast track to an offer. So let’s talk a bit more about referrals - how recruiters treat them, how to get them, etc.

How do referral programs work?

Some places I’ve worked have had formal referral programs that included incentives for making referrals. Other places have had more informal programs.

Some places have capped employee referrals (for example, an employee can make just 5 referrals a year) while others allow unlimited referrals.

Some places give referrals some special benefit (for example, they guarantee a recruiter screen for all referrals) while others simply review them alongside everyone.

Hiring teams will generally give referrals good consideration and the referral has the benefit of someone on the inside who can vouch for them or offer more context. So I’ve seen this translate to interviews for people who a team might normally be on the fence about. But I’ve never seen that translate to an offer for someone who isn’t really well-qualified. Companies ultimately care most about hiring the best talent they can get - referral or not.

So the headline here? Referral programs vary greatly. The one thing pretty much any referral has done in my experience is ensure that the team reviews the applicant and gets back to them (even if it’s a no). And with the market in 2024, that’s sadly better than many applicants are getting.

Do referrals increase your chances of getting hired?

The vast majority of hires for pretty much any company come from direct applicants. Referrals are usually a much smaller piece of the pie at most mid-size or large companies - 10-20%.

So most hires are NOT referrals.

That said, referrals are also a much smaller portion of the applicant pool (maybe 2-5% per role at most companies) so they may be more likely to get an interview or be hired than a direct applicant just based on the smaller sample size. (For example, if a company has 95 direct applicants and 5 referrals, even if they interview 10 direct applicants and just 1 referral, the referral had a far higher rate of landing an interview.

In my experience, being a referral DOES increase the chances of getting an interview mostly because you get reviewed more quickly and there’s someone who is vouching for you who knows your work.

That said, random referrals don’t have as much impact. An employee who knows nothing about your work simply dropping your name without much context doesn’t help.

And most importantly, you still have to be really well qualified for the role. You MAY get an interview, but it’s unlikely to land you an offer without also being well-qualified.

So what’s the best way to get a referral?

1. Build your networks before you need them. If you’re employed right now, strike up conversations with former colleagues, especially those at companies that you’re interested in. Follow people at companies that interest you and strike up (online) conversations with people. Those could be people who refer you for roles in the future!

2. When you’re job hunting, let people know what you’re looking for early and remind your community you’d love referrals. Make it easy by outlining what roles, job titles, etc. you’re interested in. You can share this on social media, in an email to friends, etc.

3. When requesting a specific referral, you can make it easier for the person by sharing your resume, and a few lines about what makes you a great fit.

4. Platforms like Workfolk or Refer are platforms where people can refer people for jobs listed on the platforms (or find jobs and ask friends to refer you!)

5. There are also platforms where people request referrals from folks they don’t know. Because many of these work as a market place where people “sell” their referrals, I don’t personally recommend any of them - I think a lot of jobseekers get taken advantage of. That said, you can try this at your own risk if you like!

The Bottom-Line on Referrals

As a recruiter, I always appreciate referrals since there’s some extra vetting of the candidate from someone who knows the individual and the company. But I have declined plenty of referrals based on not aligning with the hiring team needs.

As an applicant, if I can get a referral to help with my application, I do. But I’m aware that the referral is no guarantee of an interview, and have had plenty of referrals that did not convert to interviews!

If you can get authentic referrals for jobs you are well-qualified for, I think they can give you a boost in this competitive market, mostly because they will get eyes on your application more quickly.

So, by the time you receive next week’s issue, I would encourage you to:

1. Reach out to someone and set up a networking chat!

2. Write your end of year wrap-up and let your network know what’s new with you.

Up next? Creating an application that helps you stand out!

🙋Answering Your Questions🙋

Each week, I’ll answer one (or more!) of your questions in this section. You can submit your questions here.

I’ll be totally honest that I am not super familiar with government jobs and contingency recruiting like this. What I would likely do in this case is:

1. Research the profiles and the companies they represent. Look up reviews online. This can help you get a sense of who is more likely to be reputable.

2. Ask them about relationships, about how many roles they’ve filled for the department, etc.

Once you commit to an agency, I would just let the others know that you’ve committed to working with someone and they also have direct relationships, but should anything change, you’ll reach out.

As long as it’s a government organization or a 501c3, you should be good! Job boards like Idealist

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