To know what you know and what you do not know, that is true knowledge. — CONFUCIUS
There are times in your career where you really “don’t know what you don’t know,” and that is okay. But the process you take to gather the knowledge to actually find out what you don’t know, is what matters the most. Whether you are looking to switch careers or companies, or you have just been given a promotion in an area that you know little to nothing about, conducting informational interviews can add a lot of value to your objective of gaining the knowledge or “information” you need, in order to be “in the know.”
At its simplest form, informational interviews are conversations with people that you hope to learn from or gain insight from about a certain topic. They are individuals who are in a position to help you in some way, shape or form. Informational interviews play a significant role in any new job search or networking strategy. These interviews also play a huge role in “information gathering” when charged with working on a new project. For the sake of this article, I will focus on those individuals who are conducting a new job search or those who wish to make significant strides in their ability to network or change careers.
THE BENEFITS OF THE INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEW
There are multiple benefits one can receive when conducting informational interviews. From the information gathering perspective, these can include learning more about a new industry, function or company, obtaining new contacts and resources, gaining valuable market intelligence and trends, learning how others have achieved success throughout their career, and gaining ones advice on how to approach certain careers or professional development opportunities. Keep in mind, you are the person conducting the interview, as opposed to you being the one interviewed. These types of informational interviews are categorized as purely information gathering.
However, don’t underestimate the opportunity you have to self-promote yourself to the person you are speaking with. Informational interviews can also provide you with a great opportunity to demonstrate your skills, abilities, motivation and initiative. They offer a great opportunity to position yourself for a particular industry or function. You may also want to make others aware of your career and professional development goals during these meetings, as you want to gather as many advocates as you can in order for them to “champion” your cause with others within their own personal and professional network.
WHO SHOULD YOU INTERVIEW?
There are many different avenues in which to take when identifying who you should conduct informational interviews with. Depending upon what your end goal is, this will ultimately determine who you may want to target. Start with people you already know, so as to ease into this networking activity in a low-risk type of way. That way, if things don’t go as planned or if you fumble over your words, the impact will not be as great as if you were talking with a CEO or potential future boss right out of the gate. Think about conducting interviews with family members, friends, mentors, peers, co-workers, teachers/professors, and even neighbors. Take time to practice this type of activity to a point where your conversations become natural, and you feel comfortably engaged with the person you are speaking with (and alternatively, you make them feel comfortable as well). Once you feel confident in your ability to facilitate an informational interview in an effective and confident way, then start reaching out to those that you don’t know but would love to speak with. These individuals could be C-Suite executives of large companies, authors, professional speakers, politicians, and heads of major trade associations. These individuals can be researched and found through such resources as LinkedIn, trade publications, business journals, career books or the latest news article or story in the media. Don’t be afraid to take that leap of faith and reach out to someone who you think is unapproachable. You may be surprised who is willing to spend fifteen minutes of their time telling you their success story.
HOW TO STRUCTURE YOUR INTERVIEW
It is extremely important to always have a plan of action and a structured outline of what you hope to accomplish prior to going into any informational interview. You never want to wing it. The individuals have agreed to take time out of their busy day to speak with you, so you want to make the most of this experience. It is important not to waste their time or come in unprepared, unorganized, or not focused. This will give off a negative impression in the eyes of the person you are interviewing. Furthermore, it is important to conduct plenty of research about the person you are meeting with, the company they work for, or what they are known for. It is also highly recommended that you create a written outline of your informational interview that details the topics you want to cover, information you want to gather, and objectives you hope to accomplish from this interview. Your outline should also include the time, method and any location of your interview, just to further ensure you are well prepared going into this exercise. It is also important to come prepared with at least ten to fifteen great and well thought out questions to ask. This may seem like a lot, but you never want to run out of things to talk about. The final step in this process is to be thankful. Don’t underestimate the power of sending a hand-written thank you card to the person you interviewed.
The great thing about networking and conducting informational interviews is you never know who you will meet who has the ability to completely change the trajectory of your life and your career. One simple and focused conversation can turn into a lifetime of success. Take advantage of these opportunities when presented with them and be open to being inspired.
CRAIG W. PETRUS joined the Hough Graduate School of Business in June of 2009. As Director, Craig is responsible for the day-to-day operations of Graduate Business Career Services and ensuring the delivery of quality career development programming and services to students within the Hough Graduate School of Business at the University of Florida.