Challenges

Career Services Performance Group

Public

Discussion:

Challenges

Robert Pearl Starks

Hello Stacey,

This is a big question that requires a thorough response â€“ so, here it is for you:

The challenge you present is how can one intervene with a robust plan that helps students get experience before they graduate and how does social media play a role in that overall plan?

A number of intervention strategies Iâ€™m sure youâ€™ve already identified are developing programs such as internships, externships, service learning programs, volunteering opportunities, etc. that encourage students to get experience while they are in school. The ideal situation is when you can make experience a required part of the program. Such programs require employer participation.

So, my point here is first, donâ€™t think of how social media can help get students more experience â€“ it canâ€™t. First, think of what your strategies are going to be to address the challenge faced. Once you identify the interventions you believe make the most sense for your particular situation, given your resources, your challenges, etc., then, ask â€œhow can I leverage social media to aid me in this strategy?â€ Now that weâ€™ve framed this in this manner, let me give you some things to think about regarding how social media can help us overcome such an obstacle.

1. Getting experience requires relationships with employers who will offer students the opportunity to get experience. If you are developing programs such as the ones mentioned above, how can social media help you in your employer outreach efforts to build a network of employers who are willing and able to partner with you on your plan? Consider LinkedIn as a database of employers who can be searched with very specific filters so that you can pinpoint your targets to help you build your employer partner network. Use the advanced search settings of LinkedIn and pinpoint the industry and even the distance of those you want to reach out to for your employer relations strategy. Find people you already know and tap into their network (Your 2nd and 3rd connections) so that you are not cold calling employers, you are warm calling with an introduction from a mutual connection. This doesnâ€™t mean you only communicate with potential employers via social media. You could even host a luncheon/mixer where you use LinkedIn to invite guests. The idea is you can use social media to take your online relationships offline as another strategy to continue nurturing your relationship to get buy in for your partnership ideas. This would be one practical example of how social media could help you in your efforts.

2. This is a long-term concept, but imagine that you have been using social media to build a community of alumni in a LinkedIn or Facebook group. How might the community you build over time be a source to expand your employer relations strategy? Imagine the alumni working in their field who are a part of your social media community. You could then target alumni to help other alumni by using their influence with an employer they work for to get the employer involved with the school. Leveraging mutual connections to penetrate organizations and expand your employer relationships is something social media can help with tremendously.

3. Imagine setting goals for each of your staff members to increase their LinkedIn network by targeted connections with employers in the health industry. Remember, LinkedIn allows you to be very specific in how you target the people with whom you want to connect. A Career Advisor who has strategically engineered their network with 300 connections of which 80% are in the health industry within a 25 mile radius has the ability to use his/her network as a means to market your programs. Building affinity with employers over time and having a focused network allows you to be more effective with establishing employer partnerships because you know someone at the company. Again, relationship building is a long-term strategy but the very fact social media allows us to target people we need to connect with is a fundamental shift in how we approach our employer relations strategies. Now, imagine you have several staff who all have a similar goal â€“ how large of a focused network do you think 7 people could achieve vs. 1? This cumulative effect means your department(s) can have a very targeted network of employers which can be leveraged to help you accomplish your goals.

I hope that helps frame the challenge and puts you on a path of how you would approach the problem considering how social media can help you implement your interventions and be leveraged to help you overcome your obstacles.

Take care!

Hello Stacey, This is a big question that requires a thorough response â€“ so, here it is for you: The challenge you present is how can one intervene with a robust plan that helps students get experience before they graduate and how does social media play a role in that overall plan? A number of intervention strategies Iâ€™m sure youâ€™ve already identified are developing programs such as internships, externships, service learning programs, volunteering opportunities, etc. that encourage students to get experience while they are in school. The ideal situation is when you can make experience a required part of the program. Such programs require employer participation. So, my point here is first, donâ€™t think of how social media can help get students more experience â€“ it canâ€™t. First, think of what your strategies are going to be to address the challenge faced. Once you identify the interventions you believe make the most sense for your particular situation, given your resources, your challenges, etc., then, ask â€œhow can I leverage social media to aid me in this strategy?â€ Now that weâ€™ve framed this in this manner, let me give you some things to think about regarding how social media can help us overcome such an obstacle. 1. Getting experience requires relationships with employers who will offer students the opportunity to get experience. If you are developing programs such as the ones mentioned above, how can social media help you in your employer outreach efforts to build a network of employers who are willing and able to partner with you on your plan? Consider LinkedIn as a database of employers who can be searched with very specific filters so that you can pinpoint your targets to help you build your employer partner network. Use the advanced search settings of LinkedIn and pinpoint the industry and even the distance of those you want to reach out to for your employer relations strategy. Find people you already know and tap into their network (Your 2nd and 3rd connections) so that you are not cold calling employers, you are warm calling with an introduction from a mutual connection. This doesnâ€™t mean you only communicate with potential employers via social media. You could even host a luncheon/mixer where you use LinkedIn to invite guests. The idea is you can use social media to take your online relationships offline as another strategy to continue nurturing your relationship to get buy in for your partnership ideas. This would be one practical example of how social media could help you in your efforts. 2. This is a long-term concept, but imagine that you have been using social media to build a community of alumni in a LinkedIn or Facebook group. How might the community you build over time be a source to expand your employer relations strategy? Imagine the alumni working in their field who are a part of your social media community. You could then target alumni to help other alumni by using their influence with an employer they work for to get the employer involved with the school. Leveraging mutual connections to penetrate organizations and expand your employer relationships is something social media can help with tremendously. 3. Imagine setting goals for each of your staff members to increase their LinkedIn network by targeted connections with employers in the health industry. Remember, LinkedIn allows you to be very specific in how you target the people with whom you want to connect. A Career Advisor who has strategically engineered their network with 300 connections of which 80% are in the health industry within a 25 mile radius has the ability to use his/her network as a means to market your programs. Building affinity with employers over time and having a focused network allows you to be more effective with establishing employer partnerships because you know someone at the company. Again, relationship building is a long-term strategy but the very fact social media allows us to target people we need to connect with is a fundamental shift in how we approach our employer relations strategies. Now, imagine you have several staff who all have a similar goal â€“ how large of a focused network do you think 7 people could achieve vs. 1? This cumulative effect means your department(s) can have a very targeted network of employers which can be leveraged to help you accomplish your goals. I hope that helps frame the challenge and puts you on a path of how you would approach the problem considering how social media can help you implement your interventions and be leveraged to help you overcome your obstacles. Take care!