Getting An Informational Interview

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You’ve just started at a new company. You’ve been in your role for a while and you want a change. You want to change your job and company all together. You want to know what someone else does in their day to day. You need a mentor. All of these situations and many more can benefit from an informational interview.

What is an informational interview? I define an informational interview as a one on one informal conversation that YOU initiate to seek more information from a person about themself, their job or the industry. Informational interviews are also key to building your network. Typically, you won’t know this person in an in depth way, that’s why it’s informational to you.

So how do you get one? Seek common ties. Look for the same alma mater, same industry, same previous job, same city. Really, anything that is similar. Use similarity bias to your advantage!

I did this as an intern and people will attest to you that they thought I was crazy. I was an HR intern debating business school, law school or just going straight into the workplace. I did not know what I wanted to do but I figured I should learn a little bit more about the company I was interning in case going straight to work was my path.

My first step - I went onto the company’s executive biography page one day and literally read every executive bio to see if anyone went to Michigan State. I went to MSU so of course, another MSU person would be more likely to talk to me. I got really lucky! The SVP of HR (my department) went to MSU and she also had a law degree. She was perfect for me to talk to!

Next step, I had to ask. Your ask should contain the following:

  • Who you are (include some of your personal brand)

  • A specific ask for an informal conversation

  • Why you want to talk to them - what you hope to learn, what you want to discuss

  • An ask of no more than 30 minutes!

  • The option for them to recommend someone else if they decline

(You can do these cold asks in your workplace and/or via LinkedIn. Perfect if you don’t have a shared connection that can do an intro). Also, just ask. The worst they could say is no and/or ignore you.

Third step - Have a trusted friend review your email ask. If you don’t have a trusted friend right now, you can send it to me (tipsfromthetrain@gmail.com) and I’d be happy to review it. Then send it!

I sent my email the summer of 2008 and yes, I got the meeting with the SVP of HR. As an intern this is a BIG deal. Next, I had to actually have the meeting. You cannot go into these meetings cold so on the next post, we’ll dive into how to structure and manage the meeting on the next post!

In the meantime take some time today to think of someone you may want to meet with and start drafting that email.