How to Make the Most of the Career Combine by Lee Wright

With the Career Combine on Tuesday and 16 companies confirmed to attend, it’s time for all you job seekers out there to get ready for the event.  We’ve already highlighted advice for both your resumes and interviews thanks to Tim Yandel. Now, we’re here to share some advice on how to make the most of the Combine courtesy local entrepreneurial veteran Lee Wright. Read on.

Have you done your job seeker homework yet?  Here are a few ways you can make the most of the event.

Before the Combine:

- Don't think of the event as a "job fair" or "career fair."
* Think of it as a sales opportunity with intense competition.  Your goal is stand out and help the company you're interested in reach the conclusion that you are uniquely suited to solving a problem that they have.  This may be a problem that they don't even know they have, which makes it even more challenging.

- Research all of the companies in advance.
* This includes reading about recent news and open jobs.  Work your network.  Read the various sites that describe what it's like to work at these companies.
* Follow the companies and company execs on Twitter.  Read their blogs.  See if you can find a connection through LinkedIn.
* Read up on the industry and set up alerts to flag industry news.

- Identify the person you would like to work for. 
* There's a chance that they won't be in attendance, but that shouldn't trip you up.  Because corporate e-mail addresses are so easy to guess, you can probably figure out how to contact the individual you'd like to meet. 
* Drop them a note with a few bullets that link your skills with their needs, ask if they're going to attend, and if so, could you meet with them there.  If they're not going to attend, ask for the name of the person you should talk with at the event.  Follow up with them either way.

- Prepare how you’re going to present yourself.
* Create and distribute a resume targeted to each of the companies of greatest interest.
* Have a very brief (~ 30 sec.) pitch that explains why you are the solution to a need the company has.
* Have one or two questions prepared in advance.  See if you can answer the questions through online research.  If you can, then you need new questions.  (What message does it send when you ask someone a question that you could have easily answered yourself?  It says loud and clear that you weren't interested enough to come prepared--and you chose to waste their time instead.)

At the Combine:

 
- Walk in with an objective
* Have a game plan. This may be, "During the Career Combine I want to meet [this person] and [this person] and secure a commitment from each to a 15 minute follow-up informational interview."
* Set your priorities and approach the companies you're most interested in first.  If they're swamped, get a good look at the company representatives and keep an eye out for them throughout the event.  Perhaps you can catch them when they're away from their table, but be mindful that they may need a break, too.

- Bring the tools of the trade
* Come early and plan to stay the duration.  Bring pens and paper, and business cards, if you have them.

- Get the business cards of the people you speak with
* When you step away from your conversation, jot notes down on the back of each so you can provide context for any follow-up that goes beyond simply, "We met at  . . ."

After the Combine:

- Follow up with those you got cards from
* Follow up with those you get cards from that you found interesting. It’s a great way to show interest and build on the brief discussion you had as well as to start to build a network.

- Comment on the event
- If you learn something interesting, assuming it's not private information, send a tweet (with the right hashtags) or write about it on your blog.
 
- Keep it in perspective
* View the event as part of a process, not as a discrete event.  Look for other ways to connect with executives at the company in the weeks ahead.
 


Finally, a reminder: Be pleasant.  Be the kind of person you'd like to work with, and that's surely not someone who is boastful, loud, or pushy.  Don't let the environment of the event, with people crowding around a table overwhelming one or two company representatives cause you to be anything other than your own sweet self.
 

Lee Wright (@leewright and www.PeopleDesignTechnology.com) has founded, co-founded, or consulted with the management teams of venture-backed firms in Dallas, Boulder, Boston, and Miami.  He's built teams for early-stage start-ups and for new groups within Fortune 100 organizations, and he's always looking for folks who are interested in creating something meaningful and new.