There is a career transition myth that the size of a job applicant’s network or absent his own, the size of his outplacement consultant’s network, is critical in the process of finding a new job. It is simply not true.
This myth has been around for a long time. For years, at job networking meetings, many of which I spoke at, the whole issue of building your professional network took center stage. Over the years, the size of an executive’s professional network took on outsized level of significance.
With the arrival of LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional networking platform, this myth only grew in importance.
Job applicants win or lose job opportunities based on their ability to communicate, to sell their value to a prospective employer, not the size of their network. It is all about the interview. Unfortunately most candidates struggle mightily with this facet of the job search process because they do a lousy job selling their value.