Informational Interviews: A Getting to Know You Meeting

So, you’re ready to go back to work!  You know you have the skills and the motivation.  You’ve checked the job postings online, maybe even done a few applications.  Now… you wait.
Without a connection, you may be waiting longer than you think and/or longer than you want to be waiting:
according to a 2016 LinkedIn study, 85% of positions are filled through networking/a connection. In fact, many jobs are never even posted and are simply filled through warm leads/active candidates that HR or a hiring manager has.  Though this may sound daunting, or even insurmountable… it can be used in your favor.

Informational interviews are a great way of warming or re-invigorating a professional relationship.  In contrast to interviews for an open position, informational interviews are ‘getting to know you’ meetings with a contact that works in an industry or at a company that you are curious about or perhaps you know you would even like to work at… but where there is no specific live open position you are pursuing.  Informational interviews are great because they are often an easier ‘ask’ than an actual job interview; there is no pressure to fill a position or judge a job candidate’s specific skillset and if/how it may fit well for the open position. Rather, it can be a chance for the interviewer to get to know the job seeker without limiting the experience to a certain position and allow them to think wholistically where the seeker might fit best into the organization.  The job seeker can ask more candid questions without the pressure or focus of marketing themselves to a certain position.  Some job candidates may be reticent to invest the time in an informational interview where there is no specific live job opportunity.  However, the connection and the connection’s connections can broaden your network with minimal effort as well as getting you back into the feel and energy of working in an environment and an industry that you are looking at.

As your interviewer gets to know you better and you develop rapport, he or she may well be happy to connect you with others in the industry that ARE in a position to hire you.  It can be a way to exponentially expand your second order connections that are especially valuable as they are closer to where you want to be: employed in the industry of your choice.

Lastly, informational interviews can also be a great way to get professional feedback. During my own return to work journey, during an informational interview, I was told that I can seem to come across as ‘intimidating’ or ‘standoffish’. I absolutely welcomed the feedback and have proactively worked to come across as more approachable and open, which I absolutely am... once I am familiar with you.  I have also gotten some good ideas and some great connections to connections in this way.  Most people are happy to help – all you have to do is ask!