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A professional network creates career opportunities

Frederik Lundberg works as a project leader in the company Agilent. Several of his new hires have come via references and information from the network. He has worked for Novo Nordisk and Novozymes, and more. Education: Master of Science in Chemistry from DTU 2005, and HD in Economy Management and Process Management from CBS, 2012.
Photo: Kasper Løjtved.

Marianne Bom & Rie Jerichow, Publicér

Having a professional network is an advantage on the labour market, says Frederik Lundberg, who is a mentor and has 14 years of experience as an engineer. But how do you get a network?

When private companies have a job opening, they often look into their network. It happens with six out of ten new hires in large private companies, and in 70 percent of the instances in smaller companies, shows 2019 recruitment analysis from the consulting company Ballisager.
The companies also use other channels to find new employees. Job listings are most common, followed by networks, and searches on the networking portal LinkedIn. The frequent usage of networks confirms that it can be an advantage to know ”someone who knows someone” when you’re looking for a job. “It can be hard, as a recent graduate, to get started on creating a professional network. But it is important to get started. It takes a long time to work up and maintain a network, and you cannot wait until you need it,” says Frederik Lundberg.
He is an experienced engineer and has been a mentor for more than 40 people in collaboration with DTU, IDA, Copenhagen Career Programme, and others. “The conversations with younger people are often about how to get started. The start can be hard, but the more people are in the network, the bigger you can make it,” says Frederik Lundberg.

Frederik’s tips for creating a network
Meet people face-to-face. “The more you can meet people face to face, the better. I am personally not very outgoing, but when I am in the situation, I still like to participate in the conversation. It is about imagining what the other person would like to talk about, and starting from there. The better you are at fairs and conferences, the more you should do it. But give the direct dialogue a chance, even if you think it is hard. That also goes for phone conversations — they can be better than mails at leading to a dialogue. Avoid email canvases where you send the same email to everyone.”

Be ready for hit and miss
“As a young engineer, you might feel that you do not have a lot of input to give. You have to prepare for the dialogue you would like to have, and then get the courage to talk to people. At first, it might seem a bit hit and miss. Sometimes it works out, other times it doesn’t.”

Tips for an elevator pitch
To be able to present yourself with relevant information is a good thing when you network. This is called an elevator pitch. It lasts half a minute to two minutes. You tweak it every time for the person you are talking to. It’s a good idea to practice. This is how to do it:

    • Make a catchy start, where you start in the receiver’s world. They have to experience
      your contact as relevant: “You are in the middle of an interesting situation…”
      or “I share your interest in xxx”.
    • State your name clearly and your title if you have one.
    • Give a concrete example of the needs you can cover, or the problem you are
      interested in solving.
    • Make an open ending that can create a dialogue, if relevant: “Can we speak later..?”.

Source: Teknisk Landforbunds guide for students https://tl.dk/karriere/studerende/guides/.

Call for every job you apply for
“You have to get hold of the person who is going to hire you. It’s not all that common for applicants to call, but you can call for five minutes and hear what they are interested in. That way, you get knowledge about the company and if you have a good dialogue, you might get your name on the board. Maybe you do not get the job, but maybe the person remembers you two years later when they have an opening again.”

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Build a network on LinkedIn
“When you think that there has been meaningful contact, invite people to your network on LinkedIn—for instance, if you have had a correspondence or talked at a meeting. LinkedIn is effective, because people can find you again and you get access to your network’s network.”

Give sustenance to your network
“Eventually, a network is formed. If you are active in the network and keep the contact, it can grow quickly. Then it is important to be generous and help others maintain the relation. You start by giving — not taking. It can be by helping with references or sharing knowledge, for instance. Then you get a reputation as someone you can ask for help. Be generous, but be careful not to be so generous that it takes up too much of your time.”

Find a sparring partner
“In all universities and in a lot of organisations, it’s possible to get a mentor or a sparring partner, if you need it. I think you should find someone who is just a bit further along in their work life than where you are. Then the person has fresh memories about the point you’re at. It’s important that you are serious and that you want to evolve. You have to be ready to move on the places you were looking for help on. Otherwise you are wasting your own and the other person’s time.”

Frederik Lundberg arbejder som projektleder i virksomheden Agilent. Flere af hans ansættelser er kommet via referencer og informationer fra netværket. Han har bl.a. arbejdet for Novo Nordisk og Novozymes. Uddannelse: civilingeniør i kemi fra DTU, 2005, og HD i ­Økonomistyring og Procesledelse fra CBS, 2012. Foto: Kasper Løjtved.

Marianne Bom & Rie Jerichow, Publicér

At have et professionelt netværk er en fordel på jobmarkedet, siger Frederik Lundberg, der er mentor og har 14 års erfaring som ingeniør. Men hvordan får man et netværk?

Når private virksomheder har et ledigt job, ser de sig ofte omkring i deres netværk. Det sker ved seks ud af ti ansættelser i store, private virksomheder og i 70 procent af tilfældene i mindre firmaer, viser konsulenthuset Ballisagers rekrutteringsanalyse fra 2019. Virksomhederne bruger samtidig andre kanaler for at finde en medarbejder. Mest udbredt er stillingsopslag, dernæst netværk og søgninger på netværksportalen LinkedIn. Det udbredte træk på netværk bekræfter, at det kan være en fordel at kende nogen, der kender nogen, når man søger job. ”Det kan være svært som nyuddannet at få hul på opgaven med at skabe et professionelt netværk. Men det er vigtigt at komme i gang. Det tager lang tid at oparbejde og vedligeholde netværket, og man kan ikke vente med at lave det, til man har brug for det,” siger Frederik Lundberg. Frederik er en erfaren ingeniør og har været mentor for mere end 40 personer i samarbejde med blandt andet DTU, IDA og Copenhagen Career Programme. ”Samtalerne med yngre mennesker handler ofte om, hvordan de kommer ud af busken. Starten kan være svær, men jo flere der er i netværket, desto større kan man lave det,” siger han.

Frederiks gode råd til at opbygge netværk
Mød folk ”face to face”.
”Jo mere du kan møde folk »face to face«, desto bedre. Jeg er selv ikke super udadvendt, men når jeg står i situationen, så kan jeg alligevel godt lide at fordybe mig i samtalen. Det handler om at forestille sig, hvad den anden kunne være interesseret i at tale om og tage afsæt i det. Jo bedre man er til messer og konferencer, desto mere skal man gøre det. Men giv den direkte dialog en chance, selvom du synes, at det er svært. Det gælder også telefonsamtaler, som kan være bedre end mails til at føre en dialog. Den er også god til dialog i stedet for kun at e-maile. Man skal slet ikke ud i e-mail kanvas, hvor man sender samme besked til mange.”

Vær parat til “hit and miss”
”Som ung ingeniør kan man føle, at man ikke har meget input at give. Man er nødt til at forberede sig lidt på den dialog, man gerne vil have, og så tage mod til sig for at tale med folk. I starten kan det opleves som »hit and miss«. Nogle gange lykkes det, andre gange gør det ikke.”

Tips til ­elevatortale
At kunne præsentere sig selv med relevant information er en god ting, når du netværker.
Det kaldes at holde en elevatortale. Den varer fra et halvt minut til to minutter. Du tilpasser den hver gang til den person, du står overfor. Det er en god idé at øve sig. Sådan gør du:

    • Lav en fængende start, hvor du tager afsæt i din modtagers ­verden. Vedkommende skal opleve din henvendelse som ­relevant: ”I er jo netop nu midt i en interessant ­udvikling…” eller ”jeg deler jeres interesse i xxx”.
    • Sig dit navn tydeligt og evt. din titel.
    • Giv et konkret eksempel på det behov, du kan dække, eller det problem, du er interesseret i at løse.
    • Lav en dialogskabende afslutning, hvis det er relevant: ”Kan vi tales ved senere..?”

Kilde: Teknisk Landsforbunds guide til studerende https://tl.dk/karriere/studerende/guides/.

Ring på hver eneste job, du søger
”Du skal have fat i den person, der skal ansætte dig. Det er ikke så normalt, at ansøgere ringer, men fem minutter kan man godt ringe og høre, hvad de er interesseret i. På den måde får du viden om virksomheden, og hvis I har en god dialog, har du måske fået dit navn ind på lystavlen. Det kan være, at du ikke får jobbet, men det kan være, at personen kan huske dig to år senere, når de igen har et ledigt job.”

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Byg dit netværk op på LinkedIn
”Når du synes, at der har været en meningsfuld kontakt, så invitér folk til dit netværk på LinkedIn. For eksempel hvis I har haft en korrespondance eller har talt sammen til et møde. LinkedIn er effektivt, fordi folk kan finde dig igen, og du får adgang til dit netværks netværk.”

Giv næring til dit netværk
”Efterhånden opstår et netværk. Hvis man er aktiv i netværket og holder kontakten, kan det hurtigt vokse. Nu handler det om at være gavmild og hjælpe andre for at vedligeholde relationen. Man starter med at give – ikke med at tage. Det kan for eksempel være at hjælpe med referencer eller at dele viden. Så får man et rygte som én, man kan spørge om hjælp. Vær gavmild, men pas på med ikke at være så gavmild, at det tager for meget af din tid.”

Find en sparringspartner
”På alle universiteter og i mange organisationer er der hjælp at hente til at få en mentor eller en sparringspartner, hvis man har brug for det. Jeg synes, at man skal finde en, som er bare lidt længere i arbejdslivet, end dér hvor man selv er.
Så har personen en frisk erindring om det sted i karrieren, hvor man selv er. Det er vigtigt, at du mener det alvorligt, at du ønsker udvikling. Du skal være klar til at rykke på de punkter, som du har søgt sparring på. Ellers spilder du jo både din egen og den andens tid.”