Creating your own career stimulus plan

With all this talk of stimulus plans in the news, it only seems natural to talk about how you can stimulate your upcoming job search. A few practical and tactical things you can do in a few months to build your network, increase your function/industry-specific knowledge, and keep up with the latest trends/challenges in the industry you plan to join post-MBA. Also, if you are a career-switcher, this will help you evaluate the industry before you jump into it, and will yield more truthful results than a presentation.

Keep in mind that these tactics should focus on the industry/function you intend to go into.

1. Scout out your undergraduate network. This is often the most overlooked network for students. Log onto your alma mater's alumni website and search for alumni in functions or industries that interest you. I recommend staying away from company specific searches just yet - remember you are looking to accumulate knowledge on the role, not necessarily the company. Company research will become more effective once you have an understanding of what that function does and how it is structured. So...back to the alumni network - don't be shy about reaching out. You have quite a bit in common with this person ALREADY. Even if your school didn't have a major in the area that you want to move into (e.g. you want to move into marketing, but your school didn't have a marketing major), you'll likely find there are alumni contacts in that area.
2. Get involved in professional networks. Now this may in fact be easier said than done. Try a google search to find the right professional organization. If that doesn't produce results, connect with your new alumni buddy and ask them to suggest potential organizations to join. Quality is better than quantity here so pick a useful organization. If the organization is located in Cincinnati and you are in San Francisco, sign up for the newsletter, listen to their webcast, take a look at their upcoming events/publications/board of directors and sponsors. All of this information will be useful to you going forward. If there happens to be an organization in your area, see if you can attend an upcoming event, or better yet, see if you can volunteer to help at an event. And in exchange, broker an introduction to the board members of the organizations. Play your cards right, and this will lead to further introductions.
3. Take a look at job descriptions for what you want to do. When in Rome...speak Roman (or fast forward to 2009, and speak Italian). So if you want a marketing job, speak marketing. Finance, speak finance. Consulting, speak consulting. Become fluent and the natives will reciprocate. Some easy ways to do this? Read industry/function specific publications. Check out the words they are using. How do they describe their work? What topics do you see over and over again? Read job descriptions for the industry/function. Take a look at how descriptions for the same function differ across industries. For example, how would a marketing role differ in a luxury-retail company versus a consumer packaged goods firm? Become familiar with these difference. Know which industries say "engagement teams", which say "working groups" and which say "cohorts".
4. Use all this information to polish your work experience. Now with all this information, go back to the drawing board and see if you can 'translate' your work experience into industry terminology or understanding. You may not have to rewrite your resume, but think about how the items on it can be tailored to work within a specific industry or function. See what strengths you can draw out that would be of interest to employers looking for a particular function. If this sounds tough to do, well, you are right. There is an entire industry devoted to consulting with applicants on this process...and yes, I happen to be a part of it. For a professional consultation regarding this process, send me an email at thembasource@gmail.com .