An influential American Sociologist, Mark Granovetter, created one of the most influential social network theories and one that is extremely helpful to all those in search for full time or internship positions.—THE STRENGTH OF WEAK TIES.

Let me explain…

Many assume that the best people to ask about networking contacts are their parents, close friends, and other family members.  While these people could lead to some wonderful contacts in the professional world, they are not always the best network to go through.

Imagine for a second you found this fantastic company, ABC, Inc. and you were interested in finding a contact at this organization that you could contact to speak to regarding employment opportunities.  According to Mark Granovetter the best people to ask in this situation are those outside your normal circle which are considered your “strong ties.”  Those people that you have repeated and frequent interactions are great for trust and friendship exchanges, however when it comes to finding out about unique opportunities, they are less useful.  Why is this?  Because this network of strong ties, normally your parents, friends, and family, are very similar in background, experiences, and many times these contacts will all have redundant information.  They generally move in the same social circles.   What you need for finding unique job opportunities is connections to a diverse network.  This means weaker connections to a broad range of unconnected people.  How do you create this network of weak ties? Simple…many of you already have.  Linked-in, Facebook, myspace, are exactly the kind of networks that people should use to find new approaches to normal questions.  Many of your connections on facebook, myspace, etc, have very broad experiences, backgrounds and many do not know eachother.  These are exactly the type of people you want to reach out to.

Networking is extremely important in any job search, but even more so with our current economic situation.  Many companies are scalling back on hiring, job posting, and career fairs, and will tend to find qualified candidates more from employee recommendation, networks, and other cheaper means.  It is important for you to find a way through your various networks to find a way to reach a hiring manager that you need to talk to.  Remember, only about 40% of positions are posted.  It is up to you to find the other 60-80% and the best way to do that is through your STRENGTH OF WEAK TIES.

***COMPANY SPOTLIGHT***

Click the enterprise logo above to listen to hear about what Management Trainees will learn at Enterprise. Enterprise will be on campus recruiting on Friday, October 10th and they are strong supporters of the Fox School. They are heavily involved in SPO meetings, supporting the CSPD in their endeavors (Including donating the money for the Career Makeover Suit) and many other things on campus. Please make sure to keep an eye out for all of their full time positions and internship opportunities on FoxNet.
FOXNET PROFILE
Although Enterprise was founded as a leasing company, over the years we’ve added many more services.

Our customers led us into the neighborhood rental car business because they needed replacement vehicles while their leased vehicles were being repaired.

We’ve added airport locations at the urging of customers and employees who wanted Enterprise’s great service while away from home.

And it was our pioneering employees who led us to expand nationally and internationally. Today, because we’ve listened to our customers and employees, Enterprise has grown from a regional rental car company to a multinational corporation serving many different customer needs in many different cities.

The CSPD has done it again!!.  We have come up with a cool opportunity for 2 students to obtain a Professional Development Makeover, perfect for the interviewing season!  Continue reading to see what the day entails… Read the rest of this entry »

Hey CSPD readers,

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How To Give A Great Handshake (Video)

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Hello Fellow Students,

I am proud to introduce myself as the latest blogger to the CSPD site. I am currently a Business Law Major, and this is my third year attending Temple. I have prior work experience as a Manager for a local pharmacy, and also as an Aide in a Nursing Home. I decided that I wanted to get into Business because I wanted to help people, but through the business aspect of things. Furthermore, Law will strengthen my ability to help people. Read the rest of this entry »

PodCast Episode 5 – Email Etiquette for the Job Search and Beyond

Click above to listen!

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Careertv.net has a lot of wonderful interviews with corporate recruiters on what they look for in potential candidates. Since E&Y will be on campus this week I thought this video was especially pertinent! I will be posting other interviews with employers here when I know they will be on campus, so keep an eye out. Read the rest of this entry »

Click on the image above to read an article from “One Day One Job” about how 5 job seeking students utilized Facebook advertisements to get thousands of employees from their Target company to contact them.  This is a really interesting approach to turning the tables on employers and instead of companies posting ads and students click on them, students post the ads and hopefully the employers click on them.  Interesting concept! Check it out!

How To Negotiate Your Salary (Video)

Salary is one of the key elements to factor into a job offer. Remember, it is not the only thing to consider and should be taken into consideration with the whole offer, including benefits, responsibilities, etc. Please watch the movie above which offers some great, simple tips on how to negotiate that starting salary with a prospective employer. Read the rest of this entry »