It’s all about relationships today. How many times have you applied to positions at companies unknown to you and never heard back? On the flip side, how many times have you applied to a job because you knew of an opening due to a connection you had there and then were at least interviewed, if not hired?

Networks work. Knowing people puts you in the know regarding openings. In fact, HR professionals will tell you that many of a company’s best hires come via current employees because “good people know other good people.”

The online networking site LinkedIn can help you get known by those “good people.”

Below are some tips on how to build a professional network on LinkedIn.

When you first create an account with LinkedIn, you’ll be asked if you want to upload your e-mail system’s address book into your account. You’ll want to reply yes because it can automatically send these folks an e-mail requesting that they “connect” with you. People in your address book who already are LinkedIn members almost always will accept this request, thus growing your network right there.

As you create your profile, be absolutely honest about your accomplishments and work history. Anyone with a LinkedIn profile can read yours, even if she or he is not one of your “connections.” You’ll never know who in the world may be reading your profile and if he or she sees an exaggeration or outright falsehood could “out” you — possibly even on LinkedIn! — for the world to see. A very bad career move.

You’ll want to expand the number of connections you have by reaching out to those in your network for introductions to people in their network. Do so professionally and be sure you have a legitimate business reason to ask for this “introduction.”

Make recommendations for people within your network. Doing so creates incredible goodwill. Many people for whom you make recommendations will make a recommendation for you right away, but don’t be afraid to ask the “power” people in your network to make a recommendation for you (and offer to do the same, if you haven’t made a recommendation already).

How LinkedIn Can Work Magic for Your Career

It’s all about the connections. The more you have, the more likely you’ll be found in LinkedIn searches. Many of these people are looking to hire or form a business relationship with you. As mentioned above, people like to hire people they know. They more connections you have, the more people you “know.”

Businesses today often use LinkedIn to conduct preliminary reference/background checks. This works both ways and you can use LinkedIn to check out companies and hiring managers within those companies before you ever apply for a job or go to an interview.

Consider joining the hundreds of professional groups on LinkedIn that interest  you. Or go to LinkedIn Answers and ask questions there or of your professional groups and, when you receive answers from others within your industry, you may later create new connections for yourself.

Build a great LinkedIn profile, keep it current, keep asking for connections and recommendations (and offer to do the same) and you’ll soon find that hiring managers, headhunters and even business owners may be approaching you about jobs or business partnerships.

Use Bayside Solutions — as well as LinkedIn –  to help lead you to your next great position in the Bay Area. Contact us today so that we can help you get linked to many of  San Francisco’s finest companies.

LinkedIn and other social professional/career networks can be powerful tools to use during a job search.

Of course, there are certain unwritten rules regarding how to comport yourself on these networks. Here is a short primer of do’s and don’ts to help you navigate them successfully.

First, remember — and remember it well! — that these are professional networks. You must always act in a mature manner. Never post messages with profanity, never call anyone an idiot, never lie. If you wouldn’t want your current — or future — boss to read what you say on a professional network, don’t put it there.

Echoing the don’t lie tip, don’t fudge your work experience or education. LinkedIn, for example, allows you to list your jobs and accomplishments as well as your educational background. It’s very easy today for a potential employer to find the truth about prospective workers. If you brag in your description about how you literally saved a company from going under and someone in your network sees that lie, he or she could out you in a very public and extremely humiliating way online, for everyone to see. Very bad for your career. Very bad.

LinkedIn allows you to “connect” to many former colleagues in your profile. If you’d like to approach someone in their networks, be sure to ask permission first. Explain why you’d like to contact the person (and be sure there’s a legitimate, professional reason to do so). If you do so, your connection very well may give his or her connections a “head’s up” — with praise about your background — that you’ll be e-mailing them shortly. Be sure to thank your connection for the introduction and be sure to let him or her know the results of the connection.

Don’t get huffy and send whiny e-mails if your connection either doesn’t respond to your request to an introduction or tells you he or she won’t introduce you to the connection. If you don’t hear anything back from either your connection or the person to whom you wished to be introduced, don’t hound anyone with e-mails or calls — there could be very valid reasons for a non-response. Constant e-mails and/or calls does nothing  but show that you’re a) desperate and/or b) immature.

In essence, look at LinkedIn and other online networking sites as virtual professional business meetings, the type where one exchanges business cards with other professionals. You’d conduct yourself in an extremely professional manner at these functions, wouldn’t you? You always should do the same online.

Network your way to a terrific Bay Area position with some of San Francisco’s best companies by connecting with BaySide Solutions. We can help place you in temporary, temp-to-hire and direct placement positions with some of San Francisco’s finest companies. We look forward to hearing from you.

If you’ve been working at one employer for a few months and think it’s time for a promotion, here are some ideas to help you do so.

First of all, promotions go to those who deserve them. Who do extra. Just because you’ve worked at a business for two years doing the same thing doesn’t mean a promotion comes automatically. Those who get promoted have earned it.

So, do the work. Be a positive force. Have enthusiasm. Aim to do your best every day.

Do you have the skills and education to do the position you seek? Do you walk your talk and do as you say you will. Do you have the necessary degrees, if a certain degree is necessary? Are you continually upgrading your skills? Do you do more than “just enough”?

When you’re given a challenging assignment, do you embrace it, or do you whine (and if you do whine, we hope you don’t do so at work!)?

Don’t rest on your laurels. That is, if you finished a terrific project last month, don’t sit back and do nothing. Instead, focus on giving it your all on the tasks and projects before you now. Only you care about how well you did yesterday; your boss is going to care big time about how well you do tomorrow.

Volunteer for projects. Take initiative. Solve your boss’ problems.

If you’re an assistant manager and are gunning for the manager position, do your work as a manager would. Demonstrate that you already have what it takes to be a manager now.

Document your successes. Write them down. Do them today because six or nine months from now, when it’s review time, you — and your boss — will have forgotten. You can this success document to put together a case for a promotion because you’ll probably have to….

Ask for a promotion. If you want to be promoted, you’ll more than likely have to ask for it. Be prepared to present your case to your boss in a professional manner, reminding her of your accomplishments, how you’ve helped your employer grow, save money, get new clients, run more efficiently, etc. State your case clearly and use any documentation you may have on hand (your success log, an “atta girl” letter from you boss, etc.) to prove your case.

If you’re ready to promote yourself into a new position, give Bayside Staffing a call. We have some terrific temporary, temp-to-hire and direct-hire assignments at some of San Francisco’s best companies. Contact us today.

The advent of social media truly has turned what can be a tedious process — the job hunt — into something…less tedious.

But seriously, used correctly social media can help you connect with potential hiring managers more quickly and more easily. It also allows you to market your skills in a very targeted manner, helping you show those hiring managers how well you fit a position. Social media also can help you network so that you can learn of positions before they even become posted on a job board or company’s website, helping you get a leg up on any competition.

Yet, while social media is an incredible job search tool, don’t hide behind your computer screen just sending Tweets, Facebook and LinkedIn updates. You’ll need to make some actual phone calls and meet with actual people to really see your search shift into high gear.

So look at social media as just one of several tools in your job search toolkit. You also should contact Bay Area staffing agencies about positions, approach directly those companies in which you’re interested, and work to get in-person meetings with people in your field for leads.

Here are some tips on how to use social media in your San Francisco job search:

• Google yourself. What comes up? Is it pretty much positive, or is that pic of you chugalugging on spring break in Cancun still up there? Be sure to clean up your own pages. If you find negative or “touchy” information/pictures when you search your name, ask friends to remove that information from their Facebook, MySpace sites, etc.  If that’s not possible, you may be able to mitigate the damage by asking your friends and former colleagues to post positive comments on their pages (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.)
• Speaking of LinkedIn, if you don’t have a profile there yet, spend some time today crafting your professional summary. Place as professional a photo on your profile as possible. Check with former colleagues, teachers and supervisors to write recommendations. Check out their LinkedIn profiles to see to whom they are linked, and ask for what the site calls an “introduction” with people (hiring managers in your field, potential future colleagues) you feel may be helpful to your search.
• Approach companies in your field directly. LinkedIn is a great tool for this. Search for companies and then try to connect with people at those companies with a targeted message that explains a bit about you, your interests and background. Ask for advice — information about the future of the industry, etc. — do not ask for a job
• Start Tweeting. Join Twitter and start searching for people in your industry. Tweet helpful posts about your industry. Comment on others’ helpful posts. Remember, everything you tweet stays online forever; be careful what you post.

While you look for a job on your own, be sure to contact Bayside Solutions, one of the Bay Area’s premier staffing firms. We can help you land the perfect job. We also can keep you working on assignments while you job search. In fact, long-term assignments often turn into regular, full-time employment!

And last but not least, follow Bayside Solutions on both Twitter and Facebook to be the first to hear about new job opportunities available.