Best Alumni to Contact?

I'm trying to network to help for full-time recruiting in the fall. I have a pretty large alumni base to use and it doesn't seem plausible to try to reach out to everyone. So what are the better bets to network with (analysts/associates/MD's/etc, graduation year, male/female, etc)? Should I contact a few levels at each firm or not even bother with certain ones?

Also, since many alumni don't list their position or division (they can be back office staff for compliance for all I know), is it better to tailor the emails with "I am really interested in a career at 'firm name' instead of 'investment banking?'"

 

Where the hell do you get an alumni base!? I've used linkedin and have been able to contact 3 whole people. My schools alumni base is only accessible to bloody alumni! grrrr

 

Your alumni database may be an asset, but it's probably not current and as you already realize, it's really limited in the useful data you can pull from it. The more specific you can be in your networking outreach, the better the results. A generic email to an alum at a target bank who may or may not still be at the bank and may or may not be in IB is not likely to produce great results. Here are some thoughts to get you to the point where you're sending a very targeted email to the right person in the right group.

  1. Start with LinkedIn. You will need to have a profile and have connected to people you know, but once you've done that, do a search on a company you're interested in. You'll see a listing of people in your network (and up to 3 degrees away) that have a connection to that company. Their titles will be much more accurate than your alumni directory and you can see how you know them. Now that you know what everyone does, you can reach out to the right people. Don't forget that the people you are closest to (1st degree) who may not be in the right area of the bank, could make introductions to people they know who are in the right area. Check out these 2 pieces of advice for more info on how to use LI to get a job and how to write effective email intros. 9 Tips to Use LinkedIn to Help You Get Your Ideal Job - http://bit.ly/1bznNH The Email Introductions Most Likely to Open Doors - http://bit.ly/wjaEp

  2. Call the bank and find out the recruiters who are responsible for your school (if you're a target school). Make an effort to reach out to these people before they come to campus. Include in your email a brief paragraph about yourself and what you've done that would be relevant to them. Let them know that you're looking forward to seeing them when they come to campus. If you're not at a target school, crash company presentations at any nearby IB target schools and make sure to talk to the company representatives, get their cards, and follow up.

  3. Let everyone know what you're interested in. Ask if they have friends that are in IB that they would be willing to introduce you to who could answer some questions you have about the business. This is important. You're NOT asking for a job. If they seem willing, arm them with a brief paragraph about you that they can share with their friend in an email intro. It matters a lot that they make the intro. Here's an example of how to do this right that you could adapt: http://bit.ly/zdPMY If you get a meeting/call, make sure you're prepared with some good questions that they can answer. If it seems appropriate, at the end of the conversation ask if it would be ok for you to reach out occasionally if you have additional questions or had news about your job search outcome that you could share with them. If they were super impressed with you, they'll want to stay in touch and they'll want to introduce you to people they know who might be helpful.

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You're kind of looking at this in the wrong way. While you definitely don't want to send out some blanket mass email to 100 people at once, you definitely want to reach out to a decent number of people - remember you are not going to get a response from many people, and out of those who respond, many will only give you a generic answer thatr tries to help, but doesn't offer to go any further. When it comes to networking it's about patient, taking the time, and casting a wide net - if you're treating it as a chore and something to do for the hell of it, those are the types of responses you will probably get back.

I would first target those people who work at the firms that you have the greatest interest in, if you don't know their division, etc, then its fine to send out an email touching base to learn more about the firm, more about which divison they are in, how they were able to break in from your school, etc - it's fine to say that you have an interest in a few areas and are trying to learn more about them if you don't know which division the person is in so that the door is left open, instead of "hi, if you're not in banking, then pretend I never sent this email to you."

IBanker www.BankonBanking.com [email protected] Articles, News, Advice and More Break Into Investment Banking

 

If they don't respond to your email, they are not going to want to talk to on the phone. Respect their schedule, and send the email first. Of course you will get many people that ignore you or blow you off, but that is part of the game. Stay with it, and stay ontop of it - you will get plenty of quality responses to offset the blow-offs.

IBanker www.BankonBanking.com [email protected] Articles, News, Advice and More Break Into Investment Banking

 

Here's an old stalker's tip. If I ever want to find alumni in the industry I always use google.

Type "your college" Then type "hedge fund", "investment banking", "private equity", "trading" etc...

Using this technique I've found contacts ranging from MDs at bulge bracket banks to partners at respectable hedge funds and private equity firms. And it's helped immensely on the job search.

Note: I come from a small school in the midwest so this probably works better if you're not from an ivy where every other alumni works in high finance. Coming from a small liberal arts college though, google beats my career center when it comes to networking.

 
GeneralThade:
personally i have no idea where you can find " alumnis" but i can tell you that you can find ALUMNUS through one of your school's networking services.

if you're going to be an ass, at least do it right. by saying alumnus you're being chauvinistic and ignorant - that would be the male singular, which is not what he wants, and is not correct in the context of his post or your sentence. If you had written "you can find an alumnus," maybe. However, alumni is the plural form, which is what he used in the title. I will therefore give the OP the benefit of the doubt and assume he meant alumni's (contact information), or that it was a typo. You I will assume are an idiot

 
GeneralThade:
you know what screw that, because i dont know what shit school doesn't have a place where you can't find info on "past graduates" of the school. Just my opinion but i'm sure that someone agrees with me.

thing is, his school does. He's just too retarded to use google. So, yeah, your faux pas was not as horrifying. Eric, you owe me: http://www.uclalumni.net/NetworkingCareers/UCLACareerNetwork/

 

LOL thanks drexel

I used that long time ago.

However, after digging through supposedly "4500" alumni there, i found about 5 that work in IB, with one in BB. ( excluding 3 that are probably no longer using their work email anymore..you know why.)

 

I did not read you whole post (it is long) however, if you want to know how to reach out to alumni go to your school's alumni database, find people where you want to work and send them emails. I always try to say in the first or second line and the subject that I am a [] student/alumni so they don't throw it out. The subject is usually [] senior reaching out, then in the text: my name is [] [] I am a senior at [], ... and then I request to give them a call, generally, it is better if you can get one of them on the phone and then let them know what you want/are interested in.

fdba Emory Blaine and BBA or otherwise trying to find the perfect pseudonym.
 

old professors and undergrad alumni...sending emails, asking for phone interviews. If you don't get anything, get into a top 10 MBA program.

You can also cold email other peoplein the industry, but realize that the hit ratio will not be high.

"Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, for knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."
 

Linkedin is a fantastic resource that a lot of people ignore. By doing a simple "advanced search" for the types of positions people have you're looking to connect with, and your alma matter, you should find a bunch of people. Send them a Linkedin message or better yet cold call them.

I had a friend who cold called a bunch of people after looking them up on Linkedin, explained his situation and that he was an alumni, and asked for advice and some background info on how they got started. He followed up with people once a week and was able to get through to a bunch of them. People are pretty responsive to fellow alumni reaching out.

Just remember, when you DO get a hold of them, ask a lot of questions about their background and their advice. Try not to talk too much about yourself. Never underestimate how much people like talking about themselves.

www.wallstinsiders.com www.facebook.com/WallStreetInsiders
 

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