Send note to hiring manager over linked-in after applying?

[SketchMaster]

So when I say I found my dream job, I'm not hyping it up. Not only am I a great fit for the role, it's in an industry (cycling) that I've been trying to break into for the better part of two years.

I submitted a cover letter and resume through their recruiting site, but I'm unable to find any good way to network with someone at the company. I know who'd I'd report to, and I'm debating if I should send a brief introduction to them to help my odds of being noticed. There wasn't anything saying not to reach out.

What do Y'all think?

 

[JM Aggie08]

May come off as desperate. Would not advise reaching out prior to being brought in.

 

[Ns1]

I rec'ed follow-up emails from 2/3 recent interviewees. I would consider linkedin a valid substitute if you could not find/did not get the email.

I still gave an offer to the 3rd person who did not send me said email, but mainly because she was an exceptional fit.

//edit

oh, this is BEFORE the interview. I'm torn. Depends on how awesome you think you are I guess. Above poster calls it desperate, I call it driven.

Personally if someone did that to me, if they were a good fit then that would probably boost their odds, if they were terrible I'd laugh internally and then throw their resume into the round file.

 

[SketchMaster]

Personally if someone did that to me, if they were a good fit then that would probably boost their odds[...].

This is part of why I'm tempted. The req reads like someone wrote it for me. I check the box on every bullet point and would fit into the company culture very well. The cherry on top is it's in a state that my GF and I plan to move back to this year, so relocation would be very painless.

 

[Ns1]

what do you propose to say in your linkedin message that is not conveyed by your cover letter?

 

[cbrunny]

Personally I would not do that.

Once the thing is wrapped I'd be curious to know what the job is and who it is for.

 

[Ajay]

If I had a way to contact the hiring manager, and felt confident in my ability to excel at the job, I'd respond directly.
The results depend on the hiring manager, I like people with ambition so long as they have the skills to back that up - some managers are intimidated by it. This is a pretty classic risk/reward problem and a decision that only you can make depending on your risk tolerance.

 

[CountZero]

As with most job related things you are entirely at the mercy of the hiring manager's whims. Some would view it as proactive and some would view at invasive. You have no way of knowing which way it could go.

To me the line would be if it is a small company with employees that are likely to be passionate about the work I would do it. If it is a large company I wouldn't bother, the bigger the company the more invasive you finding the hiring manager appears.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

So when I say I found my dream job, I'm not hyping it up. Not only am I a great fit for the role, it's in an industry (cycling) that I've been trying to break into for the better part of two years.

I submitted a cover letter and resume through their recruiting site, but I'm unable to find any good way to network with someone at the company. I know who'd I'd report to, and I'm debating if I should send a brief introduction to them to help my odds of being noticed. There wasn't anything saying not to reach out.

What do Y'all think?

Umm, cycling company like manufacturer or store front? I don't know how to say this, but if you join some cycling groups in the area (through local bike shops and/or meetup), you'd probably meet people from that company and be able to get a job. I could get a job at fromyouflowers.com in a heartbeat since I play basketball with the CEO. OK, I'd get an interview anyway without issue.

Point is, if you like cycling, I'd be shocked that you don't know people in the company already especially if it is an area company.

Did you consider sending a resume directly to the company followed up a week later with a call to the HR department (assuming that they have a public number)? That's the traditional way to show that it is more than just a job opportunity to you and that you have a sincere interest.

FWIW: I've met software engieners via meetup and at this point if I ever wanted a new job getting interviews would be easy. NYC even has a coding meetup group.

 

[Ns1]

To me the line would be if it is a small company with employees that are likely to be passionate about the work I would do it. If it is a large company I wouldn't bother, the bigger the company the more invasive you finding the hiring manager appears.

Meh. I look at every applicant on LinkedIn. Turnabout is fair play.

 

[SketchMaster]

what do you propose to say in your linkedin message that is not conveyed by your cover letter?

A darn good question. Been thinking about that all morning.

I would let him know I applied for the job but wanted to reach out directly because of how excited I am for the role and how my background makes me very well suited for it. Then try to concisely paraphrase no more than two of my points in the cover letter while adding one or two extra points on how my background addresses the job requirements. I would also like to address that even though I'm out of state, my SO and I have been planning to move to that area by the end of the year because we miss how beautiful it is out there. Then note my email and phone number, thank him for taking the time to consider me for the position.

It's a small company, < 500 people. Very laid back environment but a very competitive industry also, so they may admire some gumption.

 

[cbrunny]

Umm, cycling company like manufacturer or store front? I don't know how to say this, but if you join some cycling groups in the area (through local bike shops and/or meetup), you'd probably meet people from that company and be able to get a job. I could get a job at fromyouflowers.com in a heartbeat since I play basketball with the CEO. OK, I'd get an interview anyway without issue.

Point is, if you like cycling, I'd be shocked that you don't know people in the company already especially if it is an area company.

Did you consider sending a resume directly to the company followed up a week later with a call to the HR department (assuming that they have a public number)? That's the traditional way to show that it is more than just a job opportunity to you and that you have a sincere interest.

FWIW: I've met software engieners via meetup and at this point if I ever wanted a new job getting interviews would be easy. NYC even has a coding meetup group.

cycling shops don't have hr departments or corporate structures.

99.9% chance he is talking about a bike/component manufacturer.

 

[MrDudeMan]

I would send a message if the company isn't large. It won't do any good if they see a ton of applicants imo.

I've hired people who I would have overlooked had they not messaged me directly and I've also passed on people specifically because of it. I agree with a previous point; if you're a great fit, it may help. Don't be overly verbose and don't waste any of your words on pointless platitudes. Get to the point that you're awesome and you want the job without saying either of those things directly.

 

[cbrunny]

A darn good question. Been thinking about that all morning.

I would let him know I applied for the job but wanted to reach out directly because of how excited I am for the role and how my background makes me very well suited for it. Then try to concisely paraphrase no more than two of my points in the cover letter while adding one or two extra points on how my background addresses the job requirements. I would also like to address that even though I'm out of state, my SO and I have been planning to move to that area by the end of the year because we miss how beautiful it is out there. Then note my email and phone number, thank him for taking the time to consider me for the position.

It's a small company, < 500 people. Very laid back environment but a very competitive industry also, so they may admire some gumption.

rather than that, I'd consider asking a very specific, pointed, well thought out question. That would show that you're carefully considering things rather than regurgitating what you've already sent.

 

[Pulsar]

I auto-delete every email I get from the cesspool of data-collection that is linked-in.

 

[SketchMaster]

Umm, cycling company like manufacturer or store front? I don't know how to say this, but if you join some cycling groups in the area (through local bike shops and/or meetup), you'd probably meet people from that company and be able to get a job. I could get a job at fromyouflowers.com in a heartbeat since I play basketball with the CEO. OK, I'd get an interview anyway without issue.

Point is, if you like cycling, I'd be shocked that you don't know people in the company already especially if it is an area company.

Did you consider sending a resume directly to the company followed up a week later with a call to the HR department (assuming that they have a public number)? That's the traditional way to show that it is more than just a job opportunity to you and that you have a sincere interest.

FWIW: I've met software engieners via meetup and at this point if I ever wanted a new job getting interviews would be easy. NYC even has a coding meetup group.

All excellent advice. The one issue is that I moved away from that state a while back so it's a bit hard to paly a game of horse with them. I did reach out to all my contacts in that state but none of them know anyone at this particular company, which is odd and frustrating. I never thought to just submit my resume to the company, I always assume they would just toss it to the side and forget about it.

 

[Ajay]

I auto-delete every email I get from the cesspool of data-collection that is linked-in.

LOL!

 

[Ns1]

rather than that, I'd consider asking a very specific, pointed, well thought out question. That would show that you're carefully considering things rather than regurgitating what you've already sent.

I'm certainly not in the business of replying to emails from prospective applications, but YMMV.

 

[lxskllr]

I'm certainly not in the business of replying to emails from prospective applications, but YMMV.

Yea. This whole thing is out of my area of expertise, but I would think "WTF is this?! Like I don't have enough shit to do without jumping through hoops for strangers"

 

[Red Squirrel]

I personally would not. Remember when you're applying for a job you're just a number. Everybody else thinks they're the perfect candidate too. No matter how great you think you fit in, from their point of view you're just "candidate #419" Anything you do outside of the normal process to try to stand out is just going to seem desperate and might even get you filtered out faster.

What I do hate though is the fact that when you apply for a job and don't make the interview list or don't get the job after the interview, you don't even get a call. To me that should be part of the process, when someone does not get the job they should get a call telling them so. At least it would not leave you hanging. It should be a standard thing, just like how employees have to leave 2 week notice if they quit. These rules should be set both ways.

 

[Ns1]

It should be a standard thing, just like how employees have to leave 2 week notice if they quit.

this is only true if you don't want to burn bridges. If you don't care then fuck it.

 

[SketchMaster]

Well, I ended up sending a quick note. I kept it down to something that could be read in 10 sec or less, basically an elevator pitch. I told them I'm very excited for the job, and that my cover letter and resume will speak for my experience. After that, I mentioned that my GF and I are planning to move back to that area this year anyway, and we were planning to do it on our own dime. Getting a job with them would just be an awesome coincidence.

Pretty much just wanted to get my face and linked-in profile in front of them and let them know I'll be happy to relocate myself. I've seen plenty of strong candidates get filtered out because they were out of state. The job posting has already been taken down after only three days, which isn't a surprise. Last I saw they had ~55 people apply.

Here's hoping I didn't ruin my shot... It may be years before they open another req.