If you find a company you really like, look at its website – specifically its staff, management, and board pages to see who works there.
Why? Because getting a job today is based as much on who you know, as it is on what skills and experience you have. Luckily, in a technologically networked world, getting access to people is easier than ever. Whereas in the past, knowing “in” people was confined to the privileged few who had enough influence to make connections, in today’s world, offline and online connections can be made by just about anyone, just about any time.
You need to embrace this reality to be successful at career development. With LinkedIn, Facebook, and other social networks, your circle of contacts is no longer limited to who you know; it’s now expanded to who those people know as well.
Take a look at the team pages on a company’s website. See if you can find someone in your networked-network that can make an introduction, or help you get an introduction. This is how you get “inside” an industry or a company and start building lasting relationships with people who are not only already doing the kind of work you want to be doing, but are recommending and hiring as well.
Knowing these people is the absolute best way to get a job.
Sometime you’ll face a situation where you just don’t have a way “in”. In this case, gather your strength and make a cold call. Remember that to get what you want in life, you might need to step out of your comfort zone. Try new things and be a little daring.
