Effective Follow-Up Connecting with Professionals in Roles of Interest

After you’ve submitted job applications and/or identified target companies, an important next step is to connect with professionals at those companies. Having a conversation can give you great insight into the day-to-day responsibilities, skills required for success, company culture, and more – and may even lead to a referral!

▪ Go to Bentley’s LinkedIn page and click on “Alumni” on the list in the middle of the page. This will bring up an interactive bar chart with six categories: Where they live, Where they work, What they do, What they studied, What they are skilled at, and How you are connected (click “Next >” to display the last four categories).

▪ Search by company name. If your search returns any results, you’ll see that company name under the ‘Where they work’ column. Click on the company name. You will notice that the other categories will update accordingly.

o If there are a large number of results, further narrow your search by ‘”Where they Live” (very helpful if multiple offices) and/or “What they do” (Finance).

▪ Scroll down to review the profiles of the alumni that meet your search criteria and determine who you would like to connect with.

o Alumni who have graduated within the past few years are a great place to start, as they are close enough to the recruiting experience to remember what it’s like to be in your shoes.

o Try to find a common interest, such as being a student-athlete or participating in the same student organization.

o Look for 2nd degree connections. Ask your mutual connection for an introduction.

o What if you can only identify one alumni working in a finance-related role, and that person is very senior? That’s OK! Feel free to reach out. You have nothing to lose as long as your message is professional and polite.

o What if you can only identify one alumni working at the target company, and they’re in a very different role than what you’re interested in? You can still reach out to learn more about the company in general. If the conversation goes well, ask if they would be willing to make an introduction to a colleague on the finance team.

▪ Now that you’ve identified professionals working in roles of interest, click here for tips on how to reach out.

1. Click on Alumni to view interactive bar chart.

2. Search by company name, ex: Liberty Mutual.

5. Click ‘Next’ to display additional categories and narrow search by ‘Finance’ in ‘What they do’ column.

3. Click on company name.

4. Narrow search by your target location.

6. Scroll down to review profiles!