How/Why does networking really make a difference?
I know it is well-known that a lot of networking can really help your cause. How does networking actually manifest its results in the recruiting/interviewing process though?
I am at a target school, and alumni come in to recruit. Are these alumni the ones that are conducting interviews? Are interviewers picked randomly? If so, it is highly unlikely the person you network with in a BB IBD firm will interview you. The most they can do is pass along your resume, and after that you need to be personable, know your technicals cold, etc. etc.
So why is networking so important?
because networking gets you the interview.
Sorry for beginner-type questions, but do you get interviews due to referrals? The more referrals for your resume the more likely it is the HR person is to select your resume for an interview?
It's a great thing, on both a short-term and long-term basis.
The short-term is that as a student, it really does help get interviews. Even if you're lucky enough to have OCR, they don't interview everyone who drops a resume and if a couple people who are deciding which resumes to interview know your name your chances are much better.
I've noticed there is a focus on the short-term both on WSO and elsewhere and that is really unfortunate, because the real benefits show up on the long-term. Assuming that you're networking the right way (staying in touch with people, taking every opportunity to help them out etc.) the people that you're meeting can be solid contacts for decades. This can help you land deals, find clients, get information and so much more. And you won't be using them because you will be doing the same thing for them.
To speak more specifically for investment banking, I believe that extensive networking is great practice for those of us who are considering staying long-term (as VPs, MDs and so on). When you email/call/meet someone, you're trying to sell yourself to them and convince them that you are someone they want to know in 10 years. Taking valuable time to meet you for coffee is like a small investment in NYSE:YOU, one that they hope will one day pay off for the both of you. Anyways, IB turns into a sales job as you get more senior. You're selling yourself and your bank's services to potential clients and selling your client to potential investors. So why not get as much practice now?
This is a joke, right?
Have fun in the back office
Networking is vital to GET the initial interview. But your other questions I am not sure about and I'm actually pretty interested in the answers as well. I'm also at a target school and they send people from each department (S&T, IBD, etc) to recruit. If a target school student applies do their applications go to particular divisions individually?
For first-round interviews, is it the IBD alumni recruiters that will be interviewing you or another division's recruiters as well? Knowing this will help utilize time at info sessions. If you only want IBD, and only IBD recruiters will interview you and not S&T...then it'd be smarter to focus on networking with only the IBD alumni at info sessions rather than everyone?
Think of it this way: if you had a business and a stack of applications, who are you going to hire? The guy with a good resume, or the guy with a good resume who you know? And what's to say you might just like a person and hire them regardless of resume? More to the point, do you really feel like sifting through the stack of resumes?
Welcome to the real world . . .
First off - networking isn't just going into a room with suit and a name tag and forcing conversation for two hours. Networking is creating new connections through experiences. I started a small NFP in college. I worked with one person on a project and she recommended someone else for a different project. That person turned out to be integral in making said project a success. In an indirect way I was networking. I shared my interests with one person, she connected those interests with a person she knew that shared the same interests. That's how you organically expand your network.
My advice - get involved in things you enjoy, and you're network will gradually expand.
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