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Working Out Your Network

"It's not what you know, it's who you know."

According to job-finding experts, this tired adage is truer now than ever before. In a job market glutted with recent graduates, an ever-increasing number of people changing jobs, and those reentering the work scene, sending out resumes and answering want-ads isn't enough. Merely being qualified isn't enough. In most cases, jobs are not secured through merit, but rather through other people.

This piece of news may be daunting to the "great unconnected," those who feel shut out of the old boy network, or any network for that matter, and have no father-in-law in the wings waiting to pass the baton. There is hope, however. Experts also agree that everyone has a network; they just don't know how to define it. They liken it to the John Guare play "Six Degrees of Separation" -- the idea being that through a few intermediate people a person can meet anyone.

A network consists of everyone the job seeker knows, plus everyone those people know. Contacts can be made through the gym, school, work, a house of worship, an alumni group or neighborhood association. The job seeker must think of his lawyer, family doctor or anyone that he writes a check to as part of his network. One expert confides, "I network with my dentist. After all, he has his hands in everybody's mouth regardless of their position or status." In short, everyone is connected to some extent, so if a job seeker believes he knows no one, he must alter his belief system immediately.

At the Career Center at George Washington University, director Marva Gumbs, with near giddy enthusiasm, instructs students and alumni on the art of networking -- or as she prefers to call it, "linking" or "connecting."

"Connecting can provide people with either information about a field or actual tips on job opportunities," says Gumbs. "Information is good even if it's discouraging because it can place someone on a different or more direct path. Gathering information gives the person a sense of confidence that will help when he is in an actual job interview situation." Gumbs contends informational interviews are immensely helpful and can often be obtained through a cold call. "Professionals are usually generous with time and advice, but remember," says Gumbs, "this meeting is for information and not a job interview, so don't abuse it."

Gumbs also suggests linking with a professional association that represents the individual's field of interest. Associations can be reached through a directory found at the public library. Some associations will assist those entering the field with information or sometimes even job leads. Trade magazines can also be useful. "Besides containing articles on business and industry," Gumbs points out, "you might read so-and-so got promoted or transferred. Write to him and ask for an interview."

In Washington, there are numerous speaker events and lecture series offered by diverse organizations and interest groups. Gumbs recommends going with a few warm-up lines and a business card (even if it only contains a name and phone number). She tells networkers to introduce themselves before and after the talk, and if they like the event, they can volunteer next time and work the desk. There they can sign people in, check their organization, take their business card and call them later. "No one can afford to be shy in today's crowded market," Gumbs warns. "People must do the outreach."

"Resumes are the junk mail of the '90s," laughs Matthew J. DeLuca, author of "How to Find a Job in 90 Days." "Don't do a blanket mailing. It wastes time and creates a defeatist attitude.

"Instead," DeLuca suggests, "concentrate on penetrating a specific organization and the people who can help you do that."

As an example, DeLuca cites Microsoft. He advocates going straight to the top: "Send Bill Gates a well-written marketing letter about yourself. If he doesn't answer it, he'll send it to human resources where it will have more weight because it's from Gates's office."

Microsoft holds seminars all over the country. DeLuca says to attend them and ask those working there how they got hired and if you can use them as a reference. He even suggests calling Microsoft's customer service line and doing the same thing.

"Employees hire clones," DeLuca says. "Some people think there are only three universities in this country. That's why we need to be creative when we're looking for a job." If, however, one repeatedly runs into a brick wall with a particular employer or organization, DeLuca says to cut bait and move on: "We need to be sensitive to the people who like us and want to help us, and not waste time playing missionary trying to convert those who don't think too highly of us."

Author and famed conservative strategist Marvin Liebman offers advice for those who can pass for well under 30: "Find an old boy and become his protege, which really isn't too hard." He prescribes: "Make your first contact at a social event (things like charity functions and the Capitol Hill Club are easily crashed). Approach the old boy, but go easy on flattery because he's very used to that. Tell him you're in a quandary in this town and could he spare a few moments to talk sometime. Present him with your own humble, handwritten card, and follow it up with a phone call. This should work."

Liebman, who at different times has been under the auspices of former New Jersey governor Charles Edison, William F. Buckley and Nancy Reagan, further advises, "Also approach the old boy's wife if she is at the event. Ask her to tea at the Hay-Adams. It's not too expensive and it's a good investment if she likes you."

"Physical appearance is vital," Liebman stresses. "You don't have to be pretty necessarily, but become some character -- either extreme youth and earnestness or maybe the nerdy intellectual." He coaches the would-be employed to dress as if they have just gotten out of school even if they have been working for five years. He reiterates, "This can't be done after 30."

Susan Bari knows networking, too. As associate director of presidential personnel for the Reagan White House, Bari was hit up by so many people looking for jobs that, although she is naturally a very social person, she stopped going out.

"Most jobs are filled by networking," says Bari. "And this doesn't make networking a sinister thing. Employees are simply more comfortable hiring someone they know or someone who has been recommended. So, if you're looking for a job, you must learn this first rule of the game."

Bari cautions that although it's very important to get the word out that one is looking for a job, "before approaching a contact, think about what you want to ask for and express it succinctly. People are turned off by long, drawn-out, problematic stories."

Even though the principles of networking are the same for everyone, different factors may affect networking in different ways. At Howard University, Sam Hall, director of career services, encourages students to begin networking earlier and to network harder. "There is an element that is not interested in black kids no matter how bright they are or where they went to school. I tell the kids that they have to do more than their white counterparts. If it's normal to do three things, then they have to do nine things."

In spite of extant ageism in the workplace, career counselors often find that older people are more successful in networking due to the breadth and depth of their connections. And not surprisingly, blue- and white-collar workers often network in different venues, but what might surprise some people is that many blue-collar workers rely heavily on connections to land new jobs.

Networking now takes place on the Internet too. Thousands of job databases exist on the Internet, but the techniques for doing a true electronic job search are still in their infancy. Most of the companies that are floating job openings on the Internet are looking exclusively for technology-oriented workers with several years' experience. Experts agree that this network will do nothing but grow.

Sometimes networkers will become stymied and take desperate measures to make a connection. At the White House, an overnight delivery of lobsters is accompanied by a resume sitting on top of the dry ice. In New York a young woman in a subway station is doling out resumes to anyone who passes in a business suit. She's making some big assumptions about suits. Unless the job seeker is looking for work in advertising or event planning, the experts frown on gimmicks and stunts, noting they are often a turn-off to potential employers.

Where padding the resume is concerned, the experts are in consensus: Don't ever lie. It can catch up with the padder, and no matter how much goodwill he has built up over the years, his credibility will be shot and he may even lose his job.

In practice, shading the truth results in a mixed bag. When author Tama Janowitz couldn't get her first novel, "American Dad," published, she sent out excerpts under her name and they were rejected. Then she sent the same excerpts to the same editors under the name Tom A. Janowitz. A few days later, the Paris Review called to tell "Tom" that it had accepted his piece.

And yes, men sometimes have to lie, too. About 30 years ago, entertainment mogul David Geffen, who had flunked out of two colleges, lied his way into the William Morris Agency's mail room, claiming a BA from UCLA, because a four-year degree was required for that entry position. Now, a few billion dollars later, no one is asking to check his references.