Using LinkedIn for Networking

Hey fellow monkeys!

All of us know the importance of networking. It seems like now days without having a "connection" getting in is about as hopeless as finding a hot engineering girl at school; it just doesn't happen. So my question to you my fellow monkeys is...

What is the appropriate way to use LinkedIn to attempt to network?

How does one go about approaching alumni on LinkedIn who could give two shits about you and your shit dreams?

Is it as simple as saying "Hey I see you graduated from ______, I go there! Hire me!"

So monkeys what's the best way to contact alumni through LinkedIn and what is a proper/cordial way to greet them and introduce yourself.

 

First start with an email introducing yourself and your interest in their industry and ask for any advice they can give you. Then when they reply, go from there as they may not provide opportunities but by being cordial may introduce you to one of their friends or someone they know who may be able to present an opportunity to you.

 

Is adding random people you don't know with a message saying senior seeking advice blahblahblahblah a bad idea?

Because obviously even if you join a lot of groups there will still be some people you can't contact/send a message to so this would be the only way you could contact them apart from paying for InMail at it's ridiculous/absurd price

 

I've been introducing myself and just asking if the person has time to answer a few questions i have. It's worked well so far. I'm coming from a small liberal arts school and the alums i've talked to know how difficult it is to break into banking, and therefore are generally very receptive to lending a helping hand. I actually just e-mailed an MD today who gave me his number and told me to call whenever. As long as your polite, most people are willing to take a few minutes out of their day to help you out, if for nothing else than to just gauge the type of students that are at their former school.

 

You start off by being interested in them. If you're talking about alumni then that really applies. Tell them of your interest and desire to learn, ask them how they got where they are, what resources they used, what advice they might have for you. Don't come off too needy, just genuinely interested. Depending on how they respond, how receptive they are to that first email, then you can take it up a notch, do a phone call or something. I haven't done the linkedin networking a ton but those from my school have been very receptive and willing to talk....though the response time on Linkedin sucks. There's always a big lag. Once you have them talking, I'd move the venue from Linkedin messaging to email and phone or in person if they're open to it.

 

Yeah i just add them as a classmate and write a pretty concise message. If they accept and respond you already know they are at least willing to hear you out and and answer some quick questions. Like i said before, my school doesn't pump out IB's ( seems like literally every kid does big 4 accounting) so most are just happy they're kids interested in IB.

 

follow up to my first comment, OG banker nailed it. I just sent a message to an alum and she responded that I should find a time to call her! Shes a managing director at a boutique in SF! Be professional and be interested in what they have to say. Don't go in asking for a job through a message

 

I have tried contacting higher-ups by just adding them as a connection and having a short message in the invitation box about my intentions and have gotten about 50-50 response rate. Some add me as a connection but don't respond to my message and I then get their email from their profile and contact them that way and get a good response rate. But like I said its hit-or-miss but honestly I think it's a great way to network if you have a good linkedin page and you can put a face to your resume by having a picture and all

"If you survive to my age and you rack up a CV like mine, you can look at HR and say, "Fuck you. I don't try out."- Eddie
 
turtle:
I have tried contacting higher-ups by just adding them as a connection and having a short message in the invitation box about my intentions and have gotten about 50-50 response rate. Some add me as a connection but don't respond to my message and I then get their email from their profile and contact them that way and get a good response rate. But like I said its hit-or-miss but honestly I think it's a great way to network if you have a good linkedin page and you can put a face to your resume by having a picture and all

Thanks your advice is v useful.

 

There are great ways to use linked in but not exactly ways you would think. The best way to do it is search "companies" in the search box and type in firms/banks/etc that you are interested in and it will pop up who in your network or alumni from your university works there (if one of your contacts knows someone who knows someone). That way you can ask the people you know to connect you. Works very well, thats how I got one of my big introductions.

XX
 
SECfinance:
I've done what turtle suggested before - sent my "pitch" in the connections box when asking them to connect.
can you share the pitch should look like?

should u be direct and say u want a job? or generally ask for career advice?

 

i just used my university's alumni contact website which i hope most schools would have. alumni have to register to be on it but there's a search function by company. i'd search for alumni at a company i wanted to apply to and the website lets you send them a message through the website (hide's their email) and if they reply back, you get their email.

i actually managed to get an offer through networking... contacted an alum who used to work at a company i was interested in. during our convo he asked me where else i was looking, i mentioned another firm (where i got an offer) and he said he had a good friend from bschool who currently works there and he forwarded my contact info to him. talked to his friend who forwarded me res to HR and landed interviews.

i probably talked to 30 people in the course of my job search and they all came from my university alumni website or leads from there.

 

This is actually how I got my interview and eventually offer. Searched for all the banks in the area that you would like to work, make a list, go to the website and get the number, call them and ask if they offer internships and/or are hiring analysts. I played the numbers game and eventually got a few interviews and eventually landed an offer. Just have to play the game and eventually something will work out for you. Obviously won't be the big dogs in the BBs or upper MM, but still a lot of good opportunities out there if you work hard.

 

Personally I use linkedin to find people, but almost always email them directly to their professional email adress (which you can almost always easily guess). I found that this approach works better and people feel more inclined to respond because its less effort to reply from a professional inbox (i.e. from blackberry when they have time, etc.) i believe.

 

To OP,

Networking can get you jobs, and linkedin is God's gift to man in terms of networking.

This is from my personal experience - I have leveraged Linkedin a lot during my college years and have had a pretty high response rate, so I'm going to share with you how I did it. All you need is the will to do it.

1) If you're not already connected to the person on Linkedin, you can't message him (and most of the time) people don't check linkedin messages anyway. So that's why you should e-mail them regardless of your connection with them.

2) Find the person you want in ABC firm, go to WSO e-mail structure or ask a friend within ABC firm (easier if BB) to look up said person and acquire e-mail address.

3) Now for the e-mail part, if you guys have shared connections, talk to the connection person about cold e-mailing this guy, asking the connecting person if you can use him/her as a reference.

4) Cold e-mail title : Referred by - XYZ, Greetings

5) Subject: mention that you came across his profile on linkedin through a connection or by random chance and would like to get connected.

6) Good luck!

 

I got an interview and eventually a job through linkedin. Cold-emailed bunch of people, was able to establish a good rapport with one of them, and he was super helpful in me getting the job.

p.s. also, because I was friending too many people I do not know, LinkedIn blocked my account (but there was a button at the bottom to unblock it by agreeing not to add bunch of people again)

 

Also--Try adding open groups that the connection you are seeking is a part of (worked tremendously for me). Then you can Connect as a "member of the same group." Just another food for thought. Also you can sometimes guess emails using standard email structures when prompted for one under the "other" tab. Always personalize the LinkedIn greeting. Biggest mistake most people make trying to 'cold connect.' Had a very high success rate using this method.

Cheers!

 
Anacott_CEO:
This is actually how I got my interview and eventually offer. Searched for all the banks in the area that you would like to work, make a list, go to the website and get the number, call them and ask if they offer internships and/or are hiring analysts. I played the numbers game and eventually got a few interviews and eventually landed an offer. Just have to play the game and eventually something will work out for you. Obviously won't be the big dogs in the BBs or upper MM, but still a lot of good opportunities out there if you work hard.
You used this for regional boutiques? What kind of success rate? How many interviews/offers? Are you doin' legit analyst work now?
My name is Nicky, but you can call me Dre.
 

It can be done.. I usually email them directly at the address they menton on their page; or google "email convention" for their firm. Mild success rate.

I'm on the pursuit of happiness and I know everything that shine ain't always gonna be gold. I'll be fine once I get it
 
Big Dreams:
Hey WSO,

Quick question on LinkedIn Networking; How do people go about this? I am from a non target (UMass) and just decided to search on Linked to see if I can find any alum's that are not hidden in the IB field. I was surprised to find a hand full.

How do I go about talking to them; Just add and then Linked Mail them or some other way. Sorry if it sounds dumb I have no clue how I should use this to my advantage in a right way. I know they all won't respond but even if 1 does that's worth it.

Thanks!

What I do is use linked in to find the names of the alums and their firm; then I use the database of e-mail formats that can be found on WSO to e-mail them on their work e-mail.

I have found that the response rate is much higher this way and it also shows a little effort and initiative.

Just my two cents.

[quote=patternfinder]Of course, I would just buy in scales. [/quote] See my WSO Blog | my AMA
 
  • look them up on LI
  • most likely you will share groups with them (if not start adding IB, M&A, umass, umass alumni, PE/VC, finance groups)
  • the only way to connect with them is through that group you can now add that person and/or message.
  • obviously say you are a student at umass. mention something about their background showing that you actually looked at his/her profile.
  • keep knocking on doors as much you can
  • don't be annoying follow up every 2-3 weeks
 
pikachu:
- look them up on LI - most likely you will share groups with them (if not start adding IB, M&A, umass, umass alumni, PE/VC, finance groups) - the only way to connect with them is through that group you can now add that person and/or message. - obviously say you are a student at umass. mention something about their background showing that you actually looked at his/her profile. - keep knocking on doors as much you can - don't be annoying follow up every 2-3 weeks

It may just be my linkedin, but being a part of the same group doesn't allow you to message them anymore.

 

Your goal during a networking call of that nature is to allow the other person to discuss his role/industry as much as possible while also showing that you are a smart guy s/he would be willing to back in case they are hiring. This means attaining a sort of conversation balance where you are not letting him exclusively talk or talking exclusively yourself.

Ways to structure it might include: 1. Introduce yourself, give a short pitch (min long at most) of your goals and mention that you would love to receive some advice/guidance regarding X, Y, Z. 2. Let them talk about their industry/role. As they talk, ask 1 or 2 smart questions. You should be able to do so because you should go into the call doing extensive research on the person and their job. 3. Ask them about their career progression. People like talking about themselves. No one in this industry is a rock star. The fact that a 21/22 year old kid is interested in his life is actually cool. 4. Bonus: Draw on common threads. Did you go to the same school? Great, you have something to bond over. 5. Ask him what he would do to break into a junior role if he were in your situation. S/he might give you general advice in which case you thank him for it and follow up later stating how that went. Or S/he might straight up ask for your resume so they can pass it to HR or to his contacts.

Remember, the more you do these calls the better you will get. Don't worry if you stumble, just make sure you don't make it awkward or desperate. Be genuinely interested, apply basic social skills and you will develop a contact/mentor/friend.

 
baddebt88:
Your goal during a networking call of that nature is to allow the other person to discuss his role/industry as much as possible while also showing that you are a smart guy s/he would be willing to back in case they are hiring. This means attaining a sort of conversation balance where you are not letting him exclusively talk or talking exclusively yourself.

Ways to structure it might include: 1. Introduce yourself, give a short pitch (min long at most) of your goals and mention that you would love to receive some advice/guidance regarding X, Y, Z. 2. Let them talk about their industry/role. As they talk, ask 1 or 2 smart questions. You should be able to do so because you should go into the call doing extensive research on the person and their job. 3. Ask them about their career progression. People like talking about themselves. No one in this industry is a rock star. The fact that a 21/22 year old kid is interested in his life is actually cool. 4. Bonus: Draw on common threads. Did you go to the same school? Great, you have something to bond over. 5. Ask him what he would do to break into a junior role if he were in your situation. S/he might give you general advice in which case you thank him for it and follow up later stating how that went. Or S/he might straight up ask for your resume so they can pass it to HR or to his contacts.

Remember, the more you do these calls the better you will get. Don't worry if you stumble, just make sure you don't make it awkward or desperate. Be genuinely interested, apply basic social skills and you will develop a contact/mentor/friend.

I quoted this just in case someone did not realize how awesome it was the first time. Thanks a lot you addressed every concern I had during my first networking call of this nature.

 

Did you delete the other thread and start a new one?

edit: Nevermind.

The answer to your question is 1) network 2) get involved 3) beef up your resume 4) repeat -happypantsmcgee WSO is not your personal search function.
 

Again, I don't see why not. The system doesn't punish you, and, in fact, encourages you to add as many people as possible by seeing people you are connected with by up to 3 degrees of separation. It may be tacky, but I don't care, I need a job.

 

Dude, you really can't just add people you don't know. You can certainly get their email addresses from LinkedIn and email them but just adding them as a connection is more likely to turn them off than it is to get them to help you in any meaningful way.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 
monkeysama:
Again, I don't see why not. The system doesn't punish you, and, in fact, encourages you to add as many people as possible by seeing people you are connected with by up to 3 degrees of separation. It may be tacky, but I don't care, I need a job.
happypantsmcgee:
Dude, you really can't just add people you don't know.

Priceless conversation. haha

 

I would feel that individuals that you add would either A. wonder who the hell you are or B. know that you are addin them just for a job

What I did was look on linked in for names and put their names into a cold email format. And even after I spoke with them/networked with them I was sometimes hesitant about adding them considering I had no work affiliation besides them forwarding my resume.

 

You seem to think the system won't punish you. You'll find out soon that if enough people that you invite say they don't know you, they will restrict your account from adding new people.

So, good luck with all that.

 

There seems to be a misconception. I am adding people from this site, because in general I know who has insightful commentary and who I respect, and who I do not. I am not adding potential recruiters randomly. I am sending them a message if linkedin allows me too which it does if we have enough people in common, or are in the same group.

I got two call backs and an phone interview lined up from today's efforts, so it seems to be a strategy worth continuing.

 

Wow callbacks from LinkedIn invites??

I don't know, just kinda seems like fb stalking to me lol.... Course, I've never tried so.

I don't accept sacrifices and I don't make them. ... If ever the pleasure of one has to be bought by the pain of the other, there better be no trade at all. A trade by which one gains and the other loses is a fraud.
 

I think it's a great idea, you add 100 people and at least 10 of them will think they they were supposed to remember you from somewhere. Tacky, but also brutally effective.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 

This whole situation kind of reminds me of a book my Mom had when I was younger called something like 'Getting Passed the Gatekeeper' (or something). It was basically a collection of sketchy ways to get someone's secretary/assistant/phone answering person to put their boss on the phone. I'm sure it worked but some of the stuff was just ridiculous. I guess if it works and you're in a situation like monkeysama then you have to do what you have to do.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 

Look take it from someone who has had considerable success networking on Linkedin. Adding random people is not the way to go. What worked much better for me was finding out which groups those people were members of, and then adding yourself to those groups. Then when you guys are members of the same group, you can make the request, and in the "how do you know..." section, you select the option that you are both in the same group.

Joining groups has benefits of its own. If you contribute to discussions and get your name out there on those groups, people start noticing you, especially if you say intelligent things. This is exactly what happened to me. I joined a group, and the partner I work for was a part of it too. He came across my profile, and asked his recruiter to have me meet with him. After this meeting, he offered me the job, and since I was already employed elsewhere, I had signifcant leverage in asking for a very high salary and title.

-MBP
 

everythingsucks - that's more or less exactly what I am doing. I am contacting by message people who share a group with me that work at companies I want to work at. I've sent out about a 1000 messages and had about 50 people get back to me in a positive way.

 
bossman:
Not that easy...people will only help if they see some kind of connection...no one likes random people asking for help, advice or coffee break

I would definitely disagree. I know multiple people (3 for sure, 1 guy has some leads but nothing definitive) who have secured fairly solid and reputable gigs from linkedin networking. I will agree that you need to have some commonality with who you are contacting but that really isn't that hard. For starters, you have your entire alumni network, all of which should have a linkedin group. You can also look at fraternities, organizations you were a part of, your high school, etc.

Maybe you are being too aggressive. Tell whoever you are trying to contact you are interested in what they do and would definitely like to hear more about their role if they have 5-10 minutes of free time at some point. If you are upfront about having a limited network in the industry, a lot of people will be sympathetic to your cause. In addition, some people enjoy the ego boost and will answer because they respect the fact that you tried to contact them. The others, which are unfortunately the group that you have most likely been dealing with, will ignore you and not be of much assistance.

Keep trying, it works.

 

I'm not sure if you guys are referring to just cold-emailing using information procured via Linkedin or actually sending "InMail"; I do the former.

So far, I've had a decent hit rate through broad cold-emailing. Initially, I had segmented my audience by first targeting alumni, ethnic minorities, foreign nationals, members of the LDS church, those that have studied abroad in China, liberal arts colleges alums, general non-targets, etc- essentially anyone that would be socially marginalized on the street and would therefore be more receptive to scrappy self-starters coming from non-traditional backgrounds. However, once I realized what it would take to break in off-cycle, I just started emailing individuals at the VP level and above en masse.

I've had a good amount of responses and coffee meetings- coffee with MDs at every bulge bracket and I even got a group head at a top BB to bring me into the accelerated interview process through a snap of a finger (note: I've already graduated, don't have an offer from my SA, non-target school, the email itself wasn't even unique but rather copied and pasted). People may disagree, but I really think it comes down to how you structure your email and how many times you send it out.

 

Pretty successful with meets, but in the end a simple connection isn't always enough. When you meet up with this people be prepared to really 'wow' them and show them that you want to learn.

Most of the time it ends with me giving them my resume and they put in a 'referral' to whatever department it is you want to get into.

Also, keep in constant contact (monthly) just to let them know you're still looking. You never know when spots free up.

 

I've had very good success through LinkedIn. I'm coming from a complete non-target and I live in the middle of the country, a terrible place for finance. I can't go out to coffee with the people I talk to, but I get at least some response from >33% of people I reach out to. That ranges from analysts to MDs. There are very few alumni from my school in finance, but I'm contacting everyone that is. The majority of the people I contact I'm only "linked" to through groups. Put the effort in and make sure your profile looks good and you can have success. It's a numbers game, so don't be too picky. Also, don't limit yourself just to people in IBD. One of the best contacts I made was an alum whose MD in marketing at a BB, and my top pick. She put my resume in front of one of her friends who's an MD in IBD. The banks are big, but it gets smaller the higher you go. Make sure to reach out to higher-ups in other divisions that you have a stronger connection with and they might be able to get your resume looked at.

 

I've had tons of success with LinkedIn networking and cold-emailing. It's like dating though. Don't blow your load and give them your resume / ask for referrals on the first or even second communication. I began my messages by saying that I don't have lots of contacts and am interested in their career path, ie how they went from college to IBD. Everybody loves talking about themselves, so this works pretty well. This strategy also lets you do a lot of listening and learning before you open your mouth and potentially saying something stupid. At the end, they will have realized that they talked the whole time so will offer to talk again or help you if they can.

It's August, you have time to play long term and develop basic relationships. Be genuine in your desire to learn.

 

I had about a 35% response rate. Got inMails from a few VPs, associates and analysts; never got responses from MDs. All in all, LinkedIn can be a useful networking platform if you can find enough common points: school, city, country, military branch etc...

 

I am in the same boat you are, except im trying to get an internship, so i will def check back on this thread to see how it goes

Follow the shit your fellow monkeys say @shitWSOsays Life is hard, it's even harder when you're stupid - John Wayne
 

Ideally, you should start reaching out to your school/company's (I don't know where you are in life) connections so you can start with something in common first, which will up your chances by a lot. If you feel like you need more connections than what you already have, just start emailing everyone you can. Your success rate will be very low, however. But once you start networking on linkedin, it's a numbers game.

--Death, lighter than a feather; duty, heavier than a mountain
 

join groups that are applicable...school alumni, sport, etc. the more groups you are in the more people you will be able to message.

send messages to people who are of interest that are alumni. send them a message, with something peronal, so they know you aren't just copy pasting.

you should get some responses. conduct informational interviews.......then hopefully land an interview

its a grind, but it can help. good luck

 

I would disagree with you there. I just went through SA recruitment and relied heavily on networking (specifically through LinkedIn) to get my foot in the door. I actually had the best traction with IBD'ers who I didn't really have anything in common with (school, region, fraternity, etc.) So don't shy away from someone just because they aren't an alumni from your school.

Brokencircle hit it on the head: it's all about exposure. Literally try everyone you can, because sometimes all it takes is a strong rapport with an associate or VP to get you a first round (depending on the firm's HR Dept.). Also, don't discriminate on the basis of position. Don't be afraid of cold emailing an MD, because if he agrees to speak with you and you do well in an info interview then you're money. Some time ago I cold emailed the US Head of IB at a strong boutique who later agreed to jump on a call with me. I found out about a first round interview the next week.

As for attaching the resume: I did it with every email I sent out so at the very least my res would get forwarded over to HR and I would be in the system. But it's really up to your discretion based on the strength of your resume.

And never never never just copy/paste, because you're bound to make a mistake and use the wrong firm's name, or call the banker the wrong name, or use different fonts. Attention to detail is everything to these guys.

Good luck, man. Hope it all works out for you.

 
irishpoker03:
I would disagree with you there. I just went through SA recruitment and relied heavily on networking (specifically through LinkedIn) to get my foot in the door. I actually had the best traction with IBD'ers who I didn't really have anything in common with (school, region, fraternity, etc.) So don't shy away from someone just because they aren't an alumni from your school.

Brokencircle hit it on the head: it's all about exposure. Literally try everyone you can, because sometimes all it takes is a strong rapport with an associate or VP to get you a first round (depending on the firm's HR Dept.). Also, don't discriminate on the basis of position. Don't be afraid of cold emailing an MD, because if he agrees to speak with you and you do well in an info interview then you're money. Some time ago I cold emailed the US Head of IB at a strong boutique who later agreed to jump on a call with me. I found out about a first round interview the next week.

As for attaching the resume: I did it with every email I sent out so at the very least my res would get forwarded over to HR and I would be in the system. But it's really up to your discretion based on the strength of your resume.

And never never never just copy/paste, because you're bound to make a mistake and use the wrong firm's name, or call the banker the wrong name, or use different fonts. Attention to detail is everything to these guys.

Good luck, man. Hope it all works out for you.

This. I would concur with everything he said. Ask about what they do and tell your story. Don't come across as pushy but try to develop a connection and find a way to at least discuss your experience/interests and give yourself a fighting chance. I have been in the process of doing this over the past few months and have been very successful. You would be very surprised what people from your city/fraternity/school will do to give you help. So far, I have had at least 3 people pass along my resume that have given me interview op's with 2 different firms. Its late in the process for many of the larger banks but you should have a decent amount of success with smaller, mid-market firms who don't have rigid hiring processes.

 

I've had pretty good success using linkedin for networking. The large majority of alumni that I reached out to has at the very least gotten back with me- just join your school's alumni group and then send them an invite to connect request. If you send out enough requests, you should also have success contacting people outside your alumni network. Just join a finance/i-banking group- once you join that group, you have access to each members profile and you can send them an invite to connect. Obvioulsy this will won't be as effective as networking with alumni but if you reach out to enough people, you should be able to make some solid contacts.

 

LinkedIn = pure gold

seriously, it's basically the be-all end-all of my networking, at least to start off, as i go to a non-target and have no personal finance connections. i've gotten a few interviews through linkedin (after lots of networking and re-networking of course)

good luck!

p.s. join lots of groups - you can choose not to display them on your profile, but generally you can search message anyone you share a group with, which is extremely helpful. join the huge finance ones, college recruiting ones, alumni ones, any other interests, etc

 

Try to keep it brief and to the point - who you are, where you go to school and that your interested in the industry / their firm and would like to briefly chat about these things with them. More than not you'll get ignored but there are always people out their that are willing to help.

 

I agree with above - sometimes my response rate is 70%, sometimes it's 5%, sometimes it's 0%. It's a volume game - you lose nothing by copying and pasting the same message to a dozen people (change the name and company as appropriate obviously).

Also, I always make a reference to how I found their name, whether it's an alumni group, an industry group, an interest group, mutual connection, etc. Maybe it's just me, but I have the feeling that when people realize that you found them because they joined a group and opted in to receive messages from other members, they're more likely to respond.

Hope it helps,

Dublin

 

I always make sure to say where I found their name. And yeah, just e-mail as many people you can; analysts, associates, MDs, whoever. You never know who can end up helping you out. As the person mentioned above, its a pure numbers game...

 

Hey guys, How effective it is to add random people in groups (like finance) that work at firms you're interested in for networking? I'm from complete non-target, and there aren't many alumni in I-banking, so I have to look into other avenues. What is the best way to do this? Inputs appreciated.

 

Don't add random people. That's just dumb.

-------------------------------------------------------- "I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcom
 

Linkedin is really really helpful for gathering information and a different way to network. However you have to be careful who you contact or who contacts you. I've had some ass-hat at google, probably in some ops position ask me to join his network because he had some potential job opening. I looked into it and it turned out to be some 23 year old at Goog trying to add numbers to his network with the promise of a shitty back ops position. This guy was really just trying to pump his network numbers up.

========================================= We are excited to formally extend to you an offer to join Bank of Ameria
 

I wouldn't actually add someone as a contact to begin with - simply send them a message (which you can usually do without adding them). I'd think it would be weird if someone I didn't know added me as a contact, but not if they just sent a message. If you end up talking to them on the phone or in person, and in some case even by email, then I might add them as a contact.

 

Wingman, not every school has a 'regular alumni approach'. At my alma mater, for instance, the career services office did not give out names of alumni at all - they simply instructed students to join the school's "Alumni and Students Networking Group" on LinkedIn. Direct email is the way to go, if that's possible, but in many cases it's not, and LinkedIn has given me a pretty good success rate.

 

You're over thinking this. Connect w/ them and send your message. You don't need to mention that they viewed your profile, they know they did. Just introduce yourself and set something up.

'Before you enter... be willing to pay the price'
 
BepBep12:

You're over thinking this. Connect w/ them and send your message. You don't need to mention that they viewed your profile, they know they did. Just introduce yourself and set something up.

Thanks for your reply. I don't ever do that so its kinda strange to me. Is it a normal practice to add people who viewed your profile?

How would you go about HR recruiter who viewed your profile (and you previously applied to his firm)?

 
Formula T:

I don't think connecting right off the bat is a good idea. Send an email to him using the BB's template and ask for a phone call then connect afterwards.

Different strokes for different folks, but what's really the difference between a cold email and a cold LinkedIN connect w/ a message? Same shit IMO.

'Before you enter... be willing to pay the price'
 
Formula T:

I don't think connecting right off the bat is a good idea. Send an email to him using the BB's template and ask for a phone call then connect afterwards.

Wouldn't sending an email to him be even more aggressive? I used to send these often, back when I was desperate in search for internships/contacts. I had great results with cold emails, but many people don't like when they are contacted out of the blue.

I am trying to leverage this "opportunity" somehow. He did not view my profile randomly; I have some history with this bank and they have my CV in the database for sure.

 
Xaipe:

Normally what i did is just to connect to him. If he passes, it is like a signal; means he doesn't dislike your profile or doesn't think it'd be a waste of time to connect to you. Then right after he accept your request, before he forgot who you are in 3 days, send him an email inviting for brief call or coffee break. It works extremely well for me.

I think he looked at me because my profile might be interesting for his team. He might be screening other candidates as well. I will certainly do something here, I don't have anything to lose and competition is fierce.

When you add people (that you don't know), do you pick "friends" option or something else?

Coffee/lunch won't work for me, since he lives in a country far away from me. Phone call or email are pretty much my only options. I would ask some brief question if he decides to connect. But first, I think it would be smart to introduce myself when sending request to connect.

 

The reason why people don't like you contacting them out of the blue must be because your emails are either annoying or you are an awkward person.

Cause I've found great success by just sending a polite and short cold email. Don't over think this and just connect like how normal human beings connect

 

I am just a college kid, so take this with a grain of salt, but I have had several bankers at top banks randomly add me because I looked at their profile. I think we tend to overthink this networking thing.

 

I literally had this happen to me three times in the past two weeks...

I'm creeped out when someone adds me and sends me a message like they know me or try to suck up a lot. I only had those three random people add me and ask to chat about ER, but all three were all gay about it and were sucking up way too much. For example, all of them said shit like: "I admire how you broke into the industry from a non-target, it's inspiring to me"...spare me all the bullshit, I'm only one year in myself and you don't even go to my school.

This is probably just my personal preference, but at my junior level I would rather have a direct and simple message "Hey, I found you on here because I'm interested in X, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to chat about X". I would much rather talk to someone normal than some drone that copy pastes the same heart-warming message into all of his cold emails.

I don't really care about your non-target sob story, I went through the same shit and I never blamed my non-target status (even with how much my school sucked).

Anyway, I'm done ranting. When I reached out to people asking for informational interviews/time to talk, I always kept it simple and straight forward.

Under my tutelage, you will grow from boys to men. From men into gladiators. And from gladiators into SWANSONS.
 
Flake:
I literally had this happen to me three times in the past two weeks...

I'm creeped out when someone adds me and sends me a message like they know me or try to suck up a lot. I only had those three random people add me and ask to chat about ER, but all three were all gay about it and were sucking up way too much. For example, all of them said shit like: "I admire how you broke into the industry from a non-target, it's inspiring to me"...spare me all the bullshit, I'm only one year in myself and you don't even go to my school.

This is probably just my personal preference, but at my junior level I would rather have a direct and simple message "Hey, I found you on here because I'm interested in X, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to chat about X". I would much rather talk to someone normal than some drone that copy pastes the same heart-warming message into all of his cold emails.

I don't really care about your non-target sob story, I went through the same shit and I never blamed my non-target status (even with how much my school sucked).

Anyway, I'm done ranting. When I reached out to people asking for informational interviews/time to talk, I always kept it simple and straight forward.

+1

 
Flake:
I literally had this happen to me three times in the past two weeks...

I'm creeped out when someone adds me and sends me a message like they know me or try to suck up a lot. I only had those three random people add me and ask to chat about ER, but all three were all gay about it and were sucking up way too much. For example, all of them said shit like: "I admire how you broke into the industry from a non-target, it's inspiring to me"...spare me all the bullshit, I'm only one year in myself and you don't even go to my school.

This is probably just my personal preference, but at my junior level I would rather have a direct and simple message "Hey, I found you on here because I'm interested in X, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to chat about X". I would much rather talk to someone normal than some drone that copy pastes the same heart-warming message into all of his cold emails.

I don't really care about your non-target sob story, I went through the same shit and I never blamed my non-target status (even with how much my school sucked).

Anyway, I'm done ranting. When I reached out to people asking for informational interviews/time to talk, I always kept it simple and straight forward.

What about the overall tone in e-mails/phone calls? Being formal (words like hello, Mr. or Ms. ___, regards, sincerely ...) generally feels awkward to me, particularly if it's someone just a few years older than me.

Also, is it fine to be less formal with even older people in a division for which you already have an offer? These aren't people I've met, but it's not exactly random cold calling either.

 
Flake:
I literally had this happen to me three times in the past two weeks...

I'm creeped out when someone adds me and sends me a message like they know me or try to suck up a lot. I only had those three random people add me and ask to chat about ER, but all three were all gay about it and were sucking up way too much. For example, all of them said shit like: "I admire how you broke into the industry from a non-target, it's inspiring to me"...spare me all the bullshit, I'm only one year in myself and you don't even go to my school.

This is probably just my personal preference, but at my junior level I would rather have a direct and simple message "Hey, I found you on here because I'm interested in X, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to chat about X". I would much rather talk to someone normal than some drone that copy pastes the same heart-warming message into all of his cold emails.

I don't really care about your non-target sob story, I went through the same shit and I never blamed my non-target status (even with how much my school sucked).

Anyway, I'm done ranting. When I reached out to people asking for informational interviews/time to talk, I always kept it simple and straight forward.

Hmm regarding the bolded part, I was wondering what's the best way to follow up after you've asked a few questions though? Usually, when I do things like this, they will just answer the Qs I already have an answer for, I thank them, and then nothing comes out of it. I'll be very honest, right now, I'm a senior and have no job offers lined up for this summer, so I really need to network solely to get jobs and I need to do it pretty quickly. If you were in my shoes, how would you go about networking through linkedin? Also, assume for the sake of simplicity that I'm looking at corporate finance jobs since for ER (the other area I'm looking at), there are smaller shops and I can probably email the higher up people there.

Pretty women make us BUY beer. Ugly women make us DRINK beer.
 
Flake:
I literally had this happen to me three times in the past two weeks...

I'm creeped out when someone adds me and sends me a message like they know me or try to suck up a lot. I only had those three random people add me and ask to chat about ER, but all three were all gay about it and were sucking up way too much. For example, all of them said shit like: "I admire how you broke into the industry from a non-target, it's inspiring to me"...spare me all the bullshit, I'm only one year in myself and you don't even go to my school.

This is probably just my personal preference, but at my junior level I would rather have a direct and simple message "Hey, I found you on here because I'm interested in X, I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to chat about X". I would much rather talk to someone normal than some drone that copy pastes the same heart-warming message into all of his cold emails.

I don't really care about your non-target sob story, I went through the same shit and I never blamed my non-target status (even with how much my school sucked).

Anyway, I'm done ranting. When I reached out to people asking for informational interviews/time to talk, I always kept it simple and straight forward.

+1

The Auto Show
 

^Does joining groups really do anything though? I've joined a few but no one really helps people out it seems.

@Flake, imagine someone sent you an email on linkedin that read something like this:

Dear Mr. Flake (or whatever your real name is),

My name is (first/last name) and I am currently a student at (non-target u) studying finance. I am interested in pursuing a career in i-banking/equity research* and I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions about the firm and industry, as well as some advice for breaking in.

I am thinking about starting to email people on linkedin like this, but I think it needs work (it ends a bit abruptly, no?). Any tips on how to improve it? Also, how would you amend it for someone who doesn't go to my school (the first few people I'm gonna email will be from my school, so that in case I screw it up, they won't hate me too much since I'm from their school...or at least I hope so)?

Thanks a lot for the help guys!

Pretty women make us BUY beer. Ugly women make us DRINK beer.
 

have you tried searching for the IB campus recruiters on Linkedin? When I was looking for an SA position, I came across a lot of them simply by searching "campus recruiter" and the bank.

This way you can email them directly (I've seen a few "email protocol" forums on WSO). The only downside is you can't say you were referred by anyone, but it might be better than reaching out to random ppl on Linkedin, hoping they'll respond and ultimately hoping that they'll pull for you when interview selections are being made. just a thought.

 

Hmm the thing is, none of those recruiters come to my school, so wouldn't it be a bit weird if I emailed them from a non-target?

Pretty women make us BUY beer. Ugly women make us DRINK beer.
 

I would personally respond to that. In fact, I'm meeting with some kid next week who added me on LinkedIn out of the blue. He had a very similar msg to that. I also always warn people that I probably can't tell them something they don't already know, but they always ask to meet anyway...makes me feel a little guilty for wasting their time.

But like I said, this is all my just my personal preference.

Under my tutelage, you will grow from boys to men. From men into gladiators. And from gladiators into SWANSONS.
 

I guess it's a matter of personal preference. Flake sounds really laid-back and informal, which is good for all of the nervous seniors out there I guess. But here in my country (in South East Asia) you have to be pretty formal in your tone, you don't want to sound inappropriate with someone who is more senior than you and who you haven't established a good personal relationship with. I would always be careful and err on the safe side, if the other person replies in a much more cheery/informal tone later, I'll adapt and loosen the "suck up" :)

My formula for success is rise early, work late and strike oil - JP Getty
 
Quarterlife:
I guess it's a matter of personal preference. Flake sounds really laid-back and informal, which is good for all of the nervous seniors out there I guess. But here in my country (in South East Asia) you have to be pretty formal in your tone, you don't want to sound inappropriate with someone who is more senior than you and who you haven't established a good personal relationship with. I would always be careful and err on the safe side, if the other person replies in a much more cheery/informal tone later, I'll adapt and loosen the "suck up" :)

That makes sense too...

Under my tutelage, you will grow from boys to men. From men into gladiators. And from gladiators into SWANSONS.
 

OK, I have another question:

I still don't really see how linkedin is that effective for making contacts, so I must be missing something. There's a couple of companies that I've been looking at and I found a couple of people on linkedin that I might be able to contact potentially. The thing is, I don't really know how to contact them without adding them because there's no feature to message them first and even the personal message feature when adding someone is really limited in terms of # of characters allowed. This makes it really hard for me to give them a story about what I want, why they should consider adding someone they hardly know, and some pleasantries so that I don't come off as a tool.

So does anyone have advice for HOW to reach out to people on linkedin? Am I really supposed to just randomly ask for an add and then hope that they add me back and then respond to my mail? Any tips on how to personalize the message in a reasonable way? I guess the biggest things I'd want to convey in that short personalized message is that:

  1. I am interested in their firm and want advice for breaking in
  2. They shouldn't feel obligated to add since I know they are busy but would appreciate if they could help me

So does anyone have tips regarding this?

Pretty women make us BUY beer. Ugly women make us DRINK beer.
 
Al Bundy:
OK, I have another question:

I still don't really see how linkedin is that effective for making contacts, so I must be missing something. There's a couple of companies that I've been looking at and I found a couple of people on linkedin that I might be able to contact potentially. The thing is, I don't really know how to contact them without adding them because there's no feature to message them first and even the personal message feature when adding someone is really limited in terms of # of characters allowed. This makes it really hard for me to give them a story about what I want, why they should consider adding someone they hardly know, and some pleasantries so that I don't come off as a tool.

So does anyone have advice for HOW to reach out to people on linkedin? Am I really supposed to just randomly ask for an add and then hope that they add me back and then respond to my mail? Any tips on how to personalize the message in a reasonable way? I guess the biggest things I'd want to convey in that short personalized message is that:

  1. I am interested in their firm and want advice for breaking in
  2. They shouldn't feel obligated to add since I know they are busy but would appreciate if they could help me

So does anyone have tips regarding this?

Email their work email.

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 

Use a combination of LinkedIn to find names of analysts/associates/recruiters, and WSO Database to find email format for the firms.

You would get a much better response rate using email than LinkedIn messages, from my experience.

"There's always money in the banana stand" - George Bluth Sr.
 

LinkedIn is a great tool to use. However, you will need to continue to network over the phone, in person, etc. to get anywhere. But once you make some connections you can see who they are connected to. It's a great way to nonchalantly ask your contact once you have established a good relationship if they know anyone at XYZ company in ABC department.

 

I think having an account on LinkedIn is good. I don't think you want to stalk people, but it helps you get a better understanding of various industries and what companies are major players. In addition, recruiters definitely use LinkedIn. I have had a fair amount of recruiters cold contact me via the site.

 

Well assuming you aren't yet connected with the people you want to be you only have one choice with LinkedIn - use the 300 symbol window to intro yourself and to ask for an informational interview.

From my experience your conversion will be about 10% and when you send too many (500+) invites out LinkedIn will reach out to you and tell you to stop or they will ban you.

So use cold email instead:)

The way Ah see it, is that it took a revolution f a bihllion people for your darn short to work out!
 

I've had great success with LinkedIn so far.

I look for alumni in my area, search my school database for email addresses, and send emails asking for an informational interview. I wouldn't specifically mention that you want an informational interview, because 80% of the time they have no idea what that is. Just ask to talk on the phone or meet for a cup of coffee for 15 minutes.

Most of the time, they tell me how impressed they are that I had the balls to cold email them and ask to meet up.

Consumption smoothing is retarded. If you stay in this game for a handful of years, money will be the least of your worries. Live it up, because this is the one time in your life where you might actually have time to spare.
 

Extremely helpful for prospective monkeys. For people already in the business, not to such a great extent, but certainly helpful. Alumni contact info held by schools is not 100% accurate, and when you message someone on LinkedIn, chances are your message goes straight to their personal e-mail inbox. Plus, why limit yourself to alumni?

Personally I started heavily networking on linkedin a few weeks ago, and now find myself using linkedin more than facebook. I can see it being helpful for people in the industry wanting to make a lateral move.

 

As a student, highly doubtful. You aren't willing to pay for the upgraded service so you get half the features the site offers, professionals aren't willing to accept your connection because you add no value to their network at this point, and it's a bit creepy to cold-message people through a public profile when you haven't ever met them (nor do many people respond to LinkedIn messages). You're far better off networking through your alum base and cold-emailing, far less strange to get an unprompted email than a hit on your LinkedIn.

I am permanently behind on PMs, it's not personal.
 
Khara 3alekon:
@ monty09, can we keep this constructive information only please.

monty might have giving the most constructive information yet... who cares... do what YOU need to do to get YOURSELF a job... no one is going to do it for you or hand you a job.

The answer to your question is 1) network 2) get involved 3) beef up your resume 4) repeat -happypantsmcgee WSO is not your personal search function.
 
helpmepleasethx:
I'm not all that thrilled about the prospect of people from the past googling my name and seeing the unprestigiousness of my job...

Once I get a good job, I'll obviously create a Linkedin.

you should get your priorities in line. it's probably more important to find a job than to worry about what some fuckheads you knew a few years back would think of you at first glance...

 

My current position was secured because a former employer had a client who worked for my bank. He emailed the banker my resume + a great rec, and boom I got it. There was an absolutely zero chance that my former boss would have known to network me with that bank without me finding the connection through LinkedIn.

Maybe I'm one of those random success stories, but couldn't hurt.

Maximum effort.
 

Get a LinkedIn. Don't worry about the "unprestigiousness" of your employment history. Get your name out there and a way for people to get in touch with you. Also use LinkedIn and reach out to people that are doing what you want to do. You'd be surprised how much you can learn and you might get lucky and pull off something similar to kraziazi.

Couldn't hurt HMPT, go for it!

 

don't worry about others as you get older and more mature/wise, you will stop giving a shit about people from the past and whether if they're looking down on you. So what if they do? Just live your life, not wrapped up in what people think about you, and find your own happiness.

 
helpmepleasethx:

The fact that I have not had a prestigious job I think wouldn't bode well for having a Linkedin. Also, I'm not all that thrilled about the prospect of people from the past googling my name and seeing the unprestigiousness of my job...

I understand where you're coming from. Maybe you could use just your last initial, make your profile private, or put some generic job title (Financial Analyst) on your Linkedin.

 

You can change the visibility on your account. You could also just have a blank CV, like I do. All I have down is my school name (wish that was gone, too...)

I just pitch people with the connect message. Either way, you don't really have anything to be ashamed of, you're looking for a job in finance, and have some socially benefiting experience - more than most can say. The only people you should be worried about are those that can help you move ahead, otherwise fuckem.

 

Honestly mate, just make a LinkedIn. I simply made one, updated all the information necessary keeping it real posh and all, (everything real of course), got myself to 500+ connections and never opened it again. But, it continues to reap benefits when working with people and/or trying to work with people.

 

Yes very usefull.. wouldn't it be great directly approached by HR of GS IBD rather than some sh*** headhunter who must see you first and tell you are not suitable... Headhunters market is definitely a decreasing phase

 

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Odit ut eum nam odit dolorem vel saepe. Rerum voluptas vel enim quo asperiores nam. Sequi inventore temporibus sit reprehenderit iste et magnam.

"One should recognize reality even when one doesn't like it, indeed, especially when one doesn't like it." - Charlie Munger
 

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