Gilpin ESD

Christmas party season is upon us.

For many, a time for paper crowns, office gossip and, of course…. photocopiers.

However, the festive season presents some great opportunities for anyone looking for a new job as it is an ideal informal setting to network, meet new contacts and learn about different companies. If you are considering your career and on the look out for new opportunities, here’s some tips to make the most of Xmas events:

• Do your homework. Find out who is going to be there, as this may help you target specific people. Learn about their role in their organisation, the company itself and their interests and hobbies.
• Ask non-work related questions. Find out the other connections you have with the person you are talking to, such as mutual friends or sports. This is often the basis of solid connections and is usually an excellent icebreaker when you call them at work.
• Don’t spend too much time with one person. The key is to engage people in polite but genuine conversation, and then move on as quickly and as amicably as possible. The point of networking is that you come away with many varied contacts.
• Don’t hide the fact that you are looking for a job. Remember that you can’t get what you want unless you ask for it. There is no stigma in looking for another job and the person you are talking to may well have been in your situation anyway.
• Don’t forget it’s a party. Not everyone is there to do business so relax, have fun, and play it casual. Other people may well be winding down towards Christmas so you don’t want to come across too strong.

You never know who you will meet this festive season so don’t let opportunities pass you by. Use Christmas parties like any other social, networking event during the year to aid your job search in 2014.

For more information, please contact us on: +44 (0) 28 9076 9900

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 5th, 2013 at 10:57 am and is filed under Blog/News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.