Networking Networking Networking

Take a moment to think about all the business interactions you had last week…..are you thinking? OK, in how many of those interactions were you alone? Were there any?
The truth is so much of business is about relationships: Customer to supplier, manager to employee, co-worker to co-worker, job candidate to hiring manager etc. Really, how many times a day are you alone? Before you answer, keep in mind that your phone relationships count too.
So, we have all these interactions with people but how often are we thinking about our network? Every person we interact with and develop a relationship with, become part of our network. The issue becomes our lack of developing those relationships into a network that we can leverage to drive and ensure our success.
To be successful in today’s economy you have to know how to network effectively. It is not what you know; it’s who you know that will get you in the door. One of the things I love about my job is I have an opportunity to speak with so many people, and the question I seem to encounter the most is “How do I network?”
The first thing to understand is that networking is NOT selling. Many people make that first mistake. People sometimes get confused that when they are in the networking model they are selling a product. The worse thing you could do is go into a sales mode or pitch because it will turn off your audience. You need to understand who your audience is and then plant a seed, peak that person’s interest so they will want to speak with you in the future. When you are networking you are building trust; you are a person they can go to in the future when they have a need.
Secondly, you must have excellent follow through. Once you have an introduction and have made a connection with a person do not let too much time go by without following up. You want that person to remember who you are. Being responsive impresses people, shows that you care about what they told you and makes them feel important. Taking too much time will turn the person off. The goal here is to look responsive, not eager. Just ensure that if you made a commitment on some type of deliverable to another person, meet that commitment. People will remember.
Thirdly, you want to engage your network. Make sure you understand their interests and provide value where you can. Think about the aspects of your life or job where you have experience or expertise to share, and share it. Leveraging social media is a great way to pass along information to your network, through publishing a blog, commenting on a subject of value or engaging in a conversation on twitter.
Don’t forget about your existing network. So many of us are concentrating on growing our network, consumed by how many new friends we have on Facebook or how many followers on Twitter that we forget about maintaining our existing relationships. Make sure you are reaching out to them. I was recently working on a search. The skill set was very specialized; I searched and searched all the tools for “new” people to add to my network. I spent a full week doing this, and then all of a sudden I referenced my database and found 100 people with the required skill set right in my backyard.
Most importantly, you need to invest the time. It is extremely hard today with all the demands we have from work to family life to figure out how to fit networking in. If you really want to improve your networking skills or, if you are just starting out, you need to invest the time. Make a conscious effort to include time to network in your weekly activities. This can happen anywhere: kid’s soccer games with other parents, PTA meetings, softball games, etc. Remember, your relationships are the key. And the good news is that you already have those! You also have a wealth of knowledge and experience that is uniquely yours. Do not underestimate the power of what you know and that it could be valuable to someone else. The bottom line is, if you do not make the conscious effort to do this, you will not see the results you are looking for.
Remember, use whatever tools are available to you to build and enhance those relationships: Phone, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, email, whatever. Just remember to use them! Making the effort and taking that first step will go a long way towards building your Network.

JUNIOR FINANCIAL ANALYST – NYC Area

Whiting Consulting is looking for a Junior Financial Analyst for a client of ours. This is for a growing Internet Marketing organization. The person would be responsible for:

Duties:

• Assist in development and the maintenance of financial models to analyze sales and financial data
• Create and distribute various financial reports on a weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis
• Assist with the review of monthly financial statements and analyze variance to budget/forecast
• Prepare financial reports and analyses and recommendations for senior management
• Assist with preparing consolidated budgets and financial forecasts
• Summarize financial data
• Support special and ad hoc projects as needed

Qualifications and skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in finance or accounting
• 1-2 years experience in planning/financial analysis functions
• Strong knowledge of Excel and MS Office suite
• Strong analytical and problem solving skills
• Work under time constraints and meet deadlines

Plus Factors:
• Experience with Quickbooks

SR Product Marketing Manager

Whiting Consulting is looking for a product marketing manager for our client, a leading enterprise software company.

Job Requirements
Contribute and develop top-level messaging and positioning for products.
Create content for software industry events, sales collateral, and Web site.
Create and execute product go-to-market plans.
Contribute to marketing requirements documents, strategic product planning, and annual planning process.
Act as a spokesperson and present content at industry conferences.
Create and distribute product collateral and sales tools.
Primary product marketing contact for the direct and channel sales organizations for product, market, and competitive information.
Product evangelist in Webinars, trade shows, and internal briefings.
Participate in sales calls and other customer-facing activities to generate requirements for new products and feature creation.
Work with Product Management to ensure sales and channel readiness for product releases. Qualifications and Skills
5+ years product marketing or solution marketing experience in the enterprise software industry.
Bachelor’s Degree in a technical field.
Proven ability to work independently .
Experience working with inter-departmental stakeholders to create and implement a project.
Direct experience marketing or working with data center management technologies.
Strong technical background.
Exceptional communication and organization skills.
Ability to meet deadlines in fast-paced environment.
Team player.

Interaction Designer…

Whiting Consulting is looking for an interaction designer to join our customer’s organization. Our client is a leading unique word-of-mouth in-home marketing platform that organizes nation-wide events in partnership with Fortune 500 companies around TV shows, products and services.

As an Interaction Designer, you will be responsible for Web site and application designs adhering to a user-centered design approach. Our client’s interaction designers translate business, user requirements, and Web strategies into functional, engaging, and usable online experiences using techniques such as wireframing, prototyping and storyboarding. As part of creating an online experience, interaction designers collaborate with strategists, graphic designers, and copywriters.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Participate in feature ideation and selection. Participate in cross-functional brainstorming sessions to determine Web site features and functionality based on the business needs and objectives and user research findings.

Create compelling user experiences. Translate business requirements into concept scenarios, use cases, functional design concepts, workflows, storyboards, wireframes and prototypes. Understand business needs and weigh various approaches and tradeoffs in search of best-fit solutions.

Effectively communicate ideas. Present, clearly explain and defend interaction design deliverables and concepts to project sponsors and team members.

Document site functionality. Facilitate transfer of information to stakeholders and development team via written design documentation (e.g. functional specification documents).

Innovate. Consistently push the envelope of what’s been done on the Web before.

Obsess about the user. Partner with strategist and information architects to define user research parameters and assist in usability testing.

Facilitate collaboration. Participate in a highly collaborative relationship and help bridge would be gaps between design and development.

Education & Experience Requirements:

BA or BS degree or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.

1 – 2 years experience working in Web site or software information or interface design (preferrably a social application or community site).

Proven success designing sites and applications using Web 2.0 technologies such as AJAX, Flex and Flash (interaction design, not the actual coding/scripting).

Portfolio demonstrating experience in wireframing/prototyping, storyboarding or workflow design.

Familiarity with user centered design (UCD) methodologies (e.g. user research, usability testing, etc).

Required Skills:

Strong desire to work as a key contributor to a fun, cross-functional and growing team.

Passion for solving client and user problems in new and interesting ways

Eagerness to learn, share and apply new skills and trends.

Insatiable thirst for staying on top of Web trends and emerging technology.

Information design, information architecture and problem solving skills.

Thoroughness and an eye for detail.

Good written and verbal communication skills.

Ability to analyze, define and complete tasks with minimal direction/supervision.

Working knowledge of the following software tools: HTML and CSS for protoypting; Adobe Software (Photoshop, Illustrator, Fireworks, Dreamweaver) for design and illustration; Visio, OmniGraffle or alternative for interface specifications. (This is not a programming position, so basic HTML/CSS is a plus)

Desired Skills:

Ability to translate words and concepts into compelling graphics or illustrations. Experience working within an agile process.

Zest for social media marketing.

Visual creativity and expertise in Web visual design.

Sense of humor.