How Reconnecting With Old Colleagues Can Help Your Current Career

You’ve worked with a lot of great people in the past. Some you met at previous jobs and others have since moved on from your current employer. While you had good intentions of staying in touch, life happened, and you haven’t talked to many of them in years.

Now that you’re looking to make a career move, you’re thinking of reaching out, but not sure if you should. Stop overanalyzing and get back in touch already. If you had a good relationship with these people in the past, they’ll likely be overjoyed to hear from you. Catching up will be fun and can be beneficial in more ways than one.

4 Reasons to Reconnect With Former Colleagues

Get Help With Your Job Search

People enjoy helping others they genuinely like. If you let a former boss or co-worker know you’re looking for new opportunities, they’ll probably offer up assistance without prompting. This could include recommending you for openings at their current employer or reaching out to their network for leads.

Bulk Up Your Reference List

When potential employers narrow their list down to a few candidates, they start checking references. It might be awkward to reach out and ask someone you haven’t spoken to in years to serve as a reference, but if you’re already back in touch, this is a perfectly natural step. Pulling together a list of quality references who are truly happy to vouch for you will increase your chances of getting the job.

Gain a Mentor

Every career move you make is a very big deal. If you’re not sure where you’re headed or how to land your ideal job, a former co-worker who has been in your shoes could be incredibly valuable. This person can offer tips to help you get on the right track, allowing you to eliminate — or greatly reduce — the trial and error that comes with trying to find your way without assistance.

Lend a Helping Hand

Reconnecting with an old colleague could also give you the opportunity to help them out. If they need to hire a new employee or are looking for a job themselves, offer to put a call out to your own network. Most people are inclined to return favors done for them, so paying it forward can have seriously valuable rewards.

If you’re searching for a new job, you can’t be spending late nights at the office. ECS offers employer of record services to recruiters and employers, so you can enjoy a more reasonable workload. Get in touch today to find out how we can be of assistance!

 

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