Job Searching By Weak Ties
http://www.business2community.com/human-resources/surprising-reason-networking-isnt-working-0621453
In this article titled “The Surprising Reason Your Networking Isn’t Working” by Levit, she claims that people’s weak ties and dormant ties, are more likely to get them a new job versus strong ties. The reason for this is because people’s strong ties do not give them access to new information. Weak ties are a better source of new information because it’s more likely that they are not giving redundant knowledge. She also claims that dormant ties, which are ties with people with whom one has lost touch for a few years, are an even better source of job information. This is not only because dormant ties are more likely to have connected with new ties and new information, but also because they have a shared experience and history with the job seeker that makes them want to genuinely help.
These claims are in agreement with what we learned in lecture about the strength of weak ties, which link together different tightly knit communities. People that are deeply embedded within one network without a lot of bridge connections to different networks are less likely to find a new job. Even though they are well connected to one network, they don’t have access to new information from other networks. Therefore, no matter how many strong ties they have, it will be difficult to hear about new job opportunities. On the other hand, people with a lot of bridge ties, which are assumed to be weak ties due to the fact that there isn’t a lot of triadic closure with a person’s strong ties, are more likely to get fresh information from different tightly knit networks. This is why it is more likely to get a new job through one’s weak ties versus strong ties.