It’s not what you know, it’s who you know – Social Media opens doors to the “Old Boy Network”
by John H. Jones – President of LabLynx, Inc.
“It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” The adage still holds true and in a tight economy with jobs at a premium it can be a critical issue for those outside the inner circle. But just like so many other issues in various industries, it’s technology to the rescue; this is especially true in the laboratory, scientific and technical professions.
We live in a different age. We are no longer constrained by physical location or even in-person relationships. There is a thriving virtual world buzzing through the ether, telephone and cable lines, and if you don’t tune into it and leverage it you’re like a two-dimensional being in a three-dimensional world (ok, four if you count time…and let’s not even start with rolled-up dimensions – you get the point).
Linkedin.com is emerging as the single best resource for jobseekers and employers alike, as well as everyone who just wants to be plugged in to the people, news and events in their industry. The key is that it started out, and has continued, as a business/professional-focused network rather than a consumer-oriented one such as Facebook. When you post your profile it’s like an online resume that lets everyone know just what you can do and what you’ve done so far, as well as references/endorsements you add easily also using the site’s capabilities. And what makes it even more valuable is that it lets you filter by the industry you are interested in, join forums to meet and discuss with others who have the same professional interests…and it’s all free!
The movers and shakers in the industry are already well along in making use of this tool – and we’re talking about leaders in the industry. In the laboratory, scientific and technical industries, there are a tremendous number of forums that exist that are specialized in the areas that are probably of interest to you. One example forum on Linkedin for laboratory and scientific professionals that covers Information Technology topics for BioTech, Pharma, Environmental, Forensics, Manufacturing and much more is the LIMS Forum. One of the more interesting and unique features of the LIMS Forum is that it provides a real time feed of aggregated jobs from the Internet that are focused on Laboratory, Scientific and Information Technology for the lab. For the jobseeker, this feature is crazy useful…not only do you find employers contacting you rather than the other way round, but it contains industry-specific job listings. And get this: click on a job and it shows you its details plus – a little icon that, when clicked, shows details of “people you may know at…[the company where the job is]”. Move over Monster and Careerbuilder, the new old boy network is in town!
For a little video that show how it all works and how you can join LIMS Forum on Linkedin and how to use all the cool job features, go to:
http://files.limstitute.com/share/eBooks/Movies/LiMSforum/LIMSforum.html
To Join the LIMS Forum, visit: http://www.limsforum.com
