In processing the incredible thought-provoking information from the speakers at the Career Thought Leaders Conference (#CTLconf2014) last week, I could not wait to share this insight with you. I know it. I evangelize it. But oftentimes, the information is received intellectually but without action. Now, it’s time to act on what we know.
While I hope that Chief Financial Officers do NOT play the “posted position game,” at least not as anything remotely resembling a primary search strategy, the reality of these statistics points to the necessity of understanding the role networking plays in managing your career -or- conducting a job search.
For every posted position, 75-150 (and that top number could actually top 250) will apply. For purposes of this exercise, we’ll use an average of 100 applicants per position.
Of that 100 average, four will come in through an employee referral. Of the four, two will not be qualified. Now, just think about that a moment before reading further.
It gets worse for the non-networked candidate.
Of the 100 who apply, half will not be qualified. No employer will ever see 100 candidates. They won’t even see 50. Nor 25. In fact, they will search the system for five candidates. FIVE.
Going back to the employee referral statistic, that means two referrals are now part of the five finalists and will often be the first three on the short list. Hiring managers will look at the referrals before they look at anyone else.
That means, if you are a referral you have a 1-in-5 chance of getting an interview that leads to a job. If you are not referred, your chances drop to 1.2%. An employee referral gives you a 14X better chance of securing a job-procuring interview than without a referral.
That is exactly why you should not play the posted position game, but rather, continue to ramp up your networking efforts! Do you really have time not to?