Candidate Search – Case Study for Building Your Network

The company that I work for is looking for a sales person. Yes, we are looking to hire in this down economy. But that isn’t the story here.

The story is how we announced the job posting, which started several years ago. It started when I signed up for LinkedIn when it was a very young service.

Over time, I meticulously built my network. I focused on powerful business connections. Some people criticized me for not connecting to everyone, but I had a standard which I adhere to for those connections. (I use other networks, like Facebook and Twitter to connect with more people.)

And important to this puzzle, I remain visible. I don’t hide. Rather, I saw LinkedIn as an opportunity to share my knowledge, help people where I could, and write testimonials where my words could be powerful.

So the other day, we posted a job on LinkedIn. Within minutes, the flood began.

I reached out to my network, and the people reached out to their respective networks.

The quality of the applicants that we received proves the point.

Afterthought
If you are a recruiter or in the staffing business and you are not yet embracing LinkedIn, you are very late to the party. Here is your invitation to start now.

Afterthought #2
Businesses are now playing catch-up to try to leverage the value of LinkedIn. I saw its value and started building a little at a time several years ago. Perhaps you should ask me what I’m building next.