PHILADELPHIA, January 22, 2013 – Most people think they will get their next job thanks to networking, according to a new poll of nearly 600 U.S. and Canadian workers by Right Management, the talent and career management expert within ManpowerGroup.
Whether currently employed or unemployed, half of those surveyed expect that person-to-person networking is how they will find their next position, while one in five think it will come from a posting on an Internet job board.

According to the survey, 19% believe their next job will come about because of an employment agency or recruiter. And 8% imagine it will result from cold calling, or contacting a prospective employer directly. Only 1% expect a newspaper ad to play a role.

How do you think you will find your next position?

Networking       50%
Job board       22%
Agency/recruiter       19%
Direct approach        8%
Newspaper/periodical        1%

“These findings track well with actual outcomes,” said Monika Morrow, Senior Vice President of Career Management at Right Management, which provides talent, career and outplacement services to Fortune 500 companies. “It turns out that face-to-face contact is how more than half of our candidates find new employment based on firm data for the past five years, although nowadays job searches may begin through social networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook. By itself, however, job boards are about half as effective in actual circumstances, just as the individuals surveyed anticipate.”

“There’s constantly something new in the job search world, particularly as it relates to social media,” observed Morrow, “whereas for years recruiters have been losing ground to the Internet and social media. Likewise, classified print ads hardly play a role any longer. But all tools and approaches should be used along with traditional networking given that one frequently leads to the other.”

“What’s also striking about the findings,” Morrow said, “is that both the employed and unemployed have become increasingly savvy about the job search process. For years they’ve been bombarded with job search advice, and ‘networking’ is invariably the core of the message. And it’s also true that many people have been through job searches in the past, and they’ve learned how it works.”

Right Management surveyed 557 employees in the U.S. and Canada via an online poll that ran from December 16 through January 15, 2013.

About Right Management
Right Management is the global leader in talent and career management workforce solutions. As the workforce consulting experts within ManpowerGroup, the firm designs and delivers solutions to align talent strategy with business strategy. Expertise spans Talent Assessment, Leader Development, Organizational Effectiveness, Employee Engagement, and Workforce Transition and Outplacement. With offices in over 50 countries, Right Management partners with companies of all sizes – including more than 80% of the Fortune 500 – to help grow and engage their talent, increase productivity and optimize business performance.