Recently Jane, who is interested in entering the Human Resources field, contacted me. She got my name from a friend who knew that was my background. She had no HR experience and was looking for advice on how to enter the field as her second career. We met for coffee, I answered her questions and gave my advice on the best approach. I also introduced her to other people she should talk with. She conducted an informational interview with me.

Informational interviews can help you learn more about a specific position, about what a job entails, about a certain company or industry, about how someone got to their position, their career path, or really anything that interests you. Often when I mention conducting informational interviews the response is a blank look. Put simply, an informational interview is a meeting you set up with a person that can provide you with more knowledge about a specific topic. This is an informal conversation that can be very effective to help you gain a better understanding of your next career steps. For example, if you think that you may be interested in a Product Manager position, you could contact someone who is currently in that role, ask to speak to them about their experience, and learn about what they actually do and how they got there.

An informational interview is not a job interview. It is your chance to pick someone’s brain to learn from their experience. Contact the person to request a time to talk about their role/career path/industry etc. Do use the meeting as an opportunity to stand out, make a good impression and build a relationship with the person, so that they will want to introduce you to other people and recommend you for open positions.

5 steps to take to gain the most from the informational interview:

1. Prepare for the meeting

• Clearly think about what you are trying to gain from the meeting to maximize your time.
• Practice your elevator pitch – a short introduction of yourself and what you are trying to gain from this meeting. Be ready to talk about yourself, your skills, and your relevant experience.
• Formulate open ended questions to guide the discussion while being ready to flow with the conversation.
• Do as much research as you can before hand. You want to be well informed.

2. Be conscious of the other person’s time.

If you asked for 30 minutes, try to keep it at that or to at least ask if they have more time if needed.

3. Tap into their network.

Ask for names of other people you could possibly contact to gain their perspective too. Remember that you are building a relationship here. Do not be too pushy!

4. Give back.

Is there something you can do for them? Introduce them to someone? Send an interesting article?

5. Follow up.

• Send a personalized thank you email.
• Address any open questions you discussed in the meeting
• If you said you would do something for them – follow it through!
• Make sure to take advantage of any referrals you received!

Miki Feldman Simon, Founder & CEO IamBackatWork