It's all about the follow up!

I have learned so much from WSO, so I just wanted to pop in give my success story, to hopefully encourage some fellow students to keep on trucking and develop good habits.

TL;DR: I fostered a networking relationship outside the bounds of "what can this person do for me" and it paid off in a big way.

Last summer I did a PWM internship, and I networked fairly hard with a senior analyst who had previously worked at GS. When I left, she put me in touch with some of her friends from GS, one of whom now works at another BB. Last semester I met with this woman who works at a different BB, we really bonded over dinner, and she put me on the list for first round interviews.

I was not able to make the interview day because of another interview in a different city the same day. As it turns out, I didn't get the other internship. I was pretty bummed that I gambled and lost, but that's life. When I returned from the break this semester, I sent this woman an email saying thanks again for putting me on the list even though I wasn't able to make it to the interview, but that I would love to get drinks sometime (I mentioned something about how I rarely come across good female role models in this industry, so it would be great to get together again) thinking that, even if she couldn't hook it up as far as the internship, she was still a really cool person and might be a good person to know in the future.

As it turns out, I was right. She emailed me back saying that she would love to have drinks and that they actually had one more spot open, if I was still looking, and would I be interested in coming out to the office and meeting some people in the office?

Because I know someone will ask: I'm an econ major at a target with a 3.5.

Takeaways:
1. Work really hard, and network even harder, at every opportunity you have. Even if you don't want to work at your current place, you never know if they will be able to help you on your way.
2. IT'S ALL ABOUT THE FOLLOW UP. Networking isn't just getting a business card and emailing when you need something. It's building relationships.

 

Preach! You don't get anything from meeting someone or getting their business card. You have to build that 1 on 1 relationship, with face to face being nearly a necessity (though in the case of long distance phone may have to suffice, but I'd imagine that would be hard to maintain -- sort of parallel to a long distance relationship)

"They are all former investment bankers that were laid off in the economic collapse that Nancy Pelosi caused. They have no marketable skills, but by God they work hard."
 
meabric:
LearningMan:
So...it's harder for men to use this approach? O_O

way easier, since 75%+ of the industry is men,and the weirdness goes the other way too.

Yeah, but the fact that 25%- is women means that a woman is a lot more likely to help out a fellow XX.

 
Waymon3x6:
my takeaway after the disclaimer:

Go to a target, and get a 3.5GPA

Not necessarily. I applied to a few analyst positions when I was looking to go to the IB world a few months ago, and I'm from a target with a 3.7, Econ major, and a background in equity research... it wasn't enough to get a call or even acknowledgement that they'd received my app. I was also out of cycle for FT recruitment, and granted, my cover letters were probably pretty bad, but I was still, on paper at least, a good candidate. I didn't start getting interviews until I met enough of the analysts and MDs at the firms I was targeting.

What you are on paper doesn't matter as much as how you form relationships and get to know the people that you want to work for/with.

"It doesn't matter where you are or where you came from: it's about where you're going."
 

You guys are getting awful takeaways from this. That the OP got a 3.5 from a target did not help with the first internship inteview where she didn't get an offer. She got invited to an interview she thought she missed out on because she was maintaining a relationship for the sake of the relationship, rather than because she was trying to get a job out of it. I think it is a good lesson for everybody.

And for the gender part of it, gender is just one of a number of ways to make a connection with somebody, and it goes both ways. Men can make a connection based on sports that women will likely be unable to.

 
Best Response

Thanks for all of the kind words!

A couple of comments: 1. You can always play gender dynamics either way. In this case, I appealed to the "female role model" aspect. At my former job, I requested a sit down interview with an MD, and afterward we got to talking and I was able to bring up the fact that I don't have any sisters, so "being one of the guys" has always come naturally and I felt at home in finance. Side note: ladies, learn about sports. I later contacted this MD when his team won the world series, saying congratulations on the win, let's get coffee while I'm in town.

  1. In response to people wondering how to continue the conversation without taking them out for drinks, etc: a) Email them and just say, Hi so and so, I remembered us talking about this, and here is an article about it that I saw in the WSJ or NYTimes. Then, ask a question about it. i.e. "I understand X aspect, per our conversation, but what do you think about Y?" (Don't be annoying (maybe do this like once a year), and only send it if it's something relevant to something you have talked about). b) Google your former bosses/colleagues from time to time. If they have gotten some type of award or done an interview, shoot them an email saying congrats or that you enjoyed reading the piece. c) If you have a career move that you're unsure about, send them an email saying hello again, explain your current situation and ask what they would do in your situation or if they have any advice.

In any of these cases, always suggest drinks/coffee/dinner if distance permits. Face to face is the most important part.

Also, side note: a lot of times women are actually LESS likely to help other women. This all depends on what you look like and how you behave. In general, a bit of humility goes a lot way, and for ladies, no matter how pretty you are, keep it professional at work at ALL times.

Good luck in the hunt everyone! And as always, feel free to PM with any specific questions.

ps. I go to a target but it isn't an Ivy or anything, it's just a decently good public school. I can think of 5 or 6 people off the top of my head who applied for this internship with better on-paper stats than me who didn't get the job. I really do think it's just because of the follow up! :)

 

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