How to connect with people in your target organizations. In my Project Management Career newsletter, one recurring theme I cover is how to target organizations rather than focusing on a job title. My experience is that putting out resumes and applications on job boards is the most ineffective approach. Unfortunately, it’s what most people do. After sharing my story of being laid off, I received this reply. Josh, very inspiring story indeed. I have also targeted a company. How do you network within the company if no one knows you? What or who do I target? Rogelio, this is a great question! This topic is covered in detail in Project Management Career Coaching. Here are some ideas. No matter where you are, strategic focus – Building Relationships. It’s not about handing out business cards to everyone you meet. It’s not an easy process. It will take time. It should be continuous and not only when you need it. Your efforts in networking and building relationships should focus on helping others. This should be your primary goal. When you have questions or need referrals, you have already spent months or even years building strong professional relationships that you trust and like. Example tactic – Professional groups PMI, IPMA/asapm and PRINCE2 APM are just a few of the many organizations that offer local, regional, and international memberships. Local groups are especially great. For example, there is a PMI Chapter in my area that provides plenty of opportunities for new and aspiring project manager to meet other project managers, PMO director, and other peers. Even if you’re not a social butterfly (I am not), you can still have a conversation with someone to find out about their work. The best way to get to know someone is to ask them good questions and listen with interest. People love to share the most important aspects of their careers. It’s best to not interrupt the conversation and take over the conversation. Many new project managers ask me questions and I reply with “Well, that won’t work because of x,y,z.” I think I’ll do abc instead. What did you ask for? It sounds like you already know everything. ?I have to go now. If you ask someone to give their opinion, it’s a good idea to thank them for taking the time and effort from their own experience to answer your questions. Example tactic – LinkedIn. As long as you keep in mind that your primary goal is to build relationships and help others, LinkedIn can be a great tool. LinkedIn is a useful tool. I cover more details in my project management training. However, you can use LinkedIn to: – Volvo Spares And Parts

How to connect with people in your target organizations. In my Project Management Career newsletter, one recurring theme I cover is how to target organizations rather than focusing on a job title. My experience is that putting out resumes and applications on job boards is the most ineffective approach. Unfortunately, it’s what most people do. After sharing my story of being laid off, I received this reply. Josh, very inspiring story indeed. I have also targeted a company. How do you network within the company if no one knows you? What or who do I target? Rogelio, this is a great question! This topic is covered in detail in Project Management Career Coaching. Here are some ideas. No matter where you are, strategic focus – Building Relationships. It’s not about handing out business cards to everyone you meet. It’s not an easy process. It will take time. It should be continuous and not only when you need it. Your efforts in networking and building relationships should focus on helping others. This should be your primary goal. When you have questions or need referrals, you have already spent months or even years building strong professional relationships that you trust and like. Example tactic – Professional groups PMI, IPMA/asapm and PRINCE2 APM are just a few of the many organizations that offer local, regional, and international memberships. Local groups are especially great. For example, there is a PMI Chapter in my area that provides plenty of opportunities for new and aspiring project manager to meet other project managers, PMO director, and other peers. Even if you’re not a social butterfly (I am not), you can still have a conversation with someone to find out about their work. The best way to get to know someone is to ask them good questions and listen with interest. People love to share the most important aspects of their careers. It’s best to not interrupt the conversation and take over the conversation. Many new project managers ask me questions and I reply with “Well, that won’t work because of x,y,z.” I think I’ll do abc instead. What did you ask for? It sounds like you already know everything. ?I have to go now. If you ask someone to give their opinion, it’s a good idea to thank them for taking the time and effort from their own experience to answer your questions. Example tactic – LinkedIn. As long as you keep in mind that your primary goal is to build relationships and help others, LinkedIn can be a great tool. LinkedIn is a useful tool. I cover more details in my project management training. However, you can use LinkedIn to:

Do your research on companies (along with Google and talking to people).
Find out the structure of staffing within organizations
Referrals and introductions are a great way to connect with people who work at or have worked for the companies you are interested in.
As you would face-to–face, ask them questions about the work they do.
Ask experts for their knowledge and experience in groups or get answers
Find out when people in the network are looking for work and help them connect with people you know.
Give a recommendation to people you have worked with (and naturally, build your own recommendations via reciprocation, and not asking for a recommendation directly).