A first-year postdoc asks- 

“I don’t really like networking, but I know it’s important to get my name out there especially since I’m thinking about finding an industry position when my contract ends at the end of next year. When I asked my PI for help meeting people in industry, they introduced me to one of their former postdocs, Jin, working at Amgen, and we met for coffee. It was nice to meet them and chat, but their interests aren’t very similar to mine. They started as a scientist, but now they work on the regulatory side of things. I asked them to let me know if any scientist positions in my area open up, but they didn’t sound too confident. What else should I do from here? Should I follow-up? How? 

Start by congratulating yourself! You did a hard thing in service of your career and your future self, and you practiced a very important skill. 

It can sometimes be unclear what you “got” out of a networking interaction, and that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good use of your time. The conversation you had is what we call an “informational interview”. The purpose of an informational interview is not to find you a job or get you an offer. So if that doesn’t happen, that’s ok! Instead, informational interviews usually give you two things: information and connections. 

Information: In your conversation, you got to practice talking with someone who works in a different job function and organization than you. You learned not only the content of their work but also, importantly, how they talk about it. This communication and translation work is key for being able to describe yourself effectively to people who have different backgrounds than you, which you will need to do in your application materials. 

Now, reflect on the content of what you heard. How well did it align with what you are looking for? If it aligned well – awesome, you have a new potential career path to pursue! “Negative data” is also a good thing – if you heard something that doesn’t sound good to you, you can use that information to rule out an option you were previously considering and refine your search. 

If you’re not sure whether what you heard aligns with what you are looking for, that’s useful data too. It suggests you may want to reevaluate the questions you asked in your informational interview. Are they too broad for you to get the specifics you are looking for? Are you asking about your interviewee’s past, present, and future? Are you asking for their advice to you, given where you are? 

Connections: Following up on a networking conversation or informational interview is a great idea. It’s a relatively easy way to continue the momentum of the conversation and build a professional relationship if that’s something you’re looking to do. You can send an email in which you thank them for their time and let them know something you learned or will do as a result of the time they spent with you. This is a great way to leave the door open for them to contact you if and when they hear about a job opportunity they think would be a good fit for you. That might be in a month and it might be in a year, so it’s great that you made this connection now! 

It’s also an opportunity to keep your networking ball rolling by asking if they’d be able to put you in touch with someone they know. By meeting them in person and spending 30 minutes talking to them, you have made it possible for them to feel comfortable connecting you with other people in their network. Now you can ask to talk to someone else whose position is closer to what you’re looking for. Go ahead and ask Jin to connect you to someone they know! Then you’ve set yourself up for your next informational interview. 

-Ray Care, Program Director, Career Development Team for Researchers