Networking: Does This Strategy Work in the United States?
According to the Wall Street Journal, approximately 80% of available jobs are never publicly advertised, which is why networking is vital in the U.S.
Americans consistently prefer candidates who come recommended, even for internal opportunities.
Making a Good First Impression: An Essential Strategy in the U.S.
Activating your network significantly improves your job prospects. Many people in our community have secured interviews and positions through their networks — including Max, who landed his first Denver job interview through a former supervisor's recommendation.
Use Your Current Contacts
Begin by identifying everyone you know: family, classmates, teachers, managers, colleagues, clients, suppliers, and acquaintances. These contacts may work in your field or be based in the United States.
Where to Find Your Current Contacts
Contacts exist in your personal and professional email accounts, phone contacts, and social media platforms, including Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.
Be careful with LinkedIn specifically: when we say "your network," we mean the people you actually know. Contacts you've never really communicated with won't be effective for this strategy.
If You Have Few Contacts
Create an Excel spreadsheet listing:
- First and last name
- Company
- Company size
- Job title
- Location
- Communication language
- Affinity level
- Contact platform
If You Have Plenty of Contacts
Use FullContact, which consolidates contacts from multiple sources (LinkedIn, Gmail, etc.) and enriches the data with job titles, locations, company sizes, and social media links. Tag contacts by communication language and affinity level.
Only include real contacts — people you've exchanged with at least once, physically, by phone, or by email.
Which Contacts Can Help You?
There are three key categories of contacts to identify.
The Human Resources and Recruiters (HR)
Identify all HR specialists or recruiters in your real contacts, whether based in the U.S. or elsewhere.
The Hiring Manager (HM)
Consider who your future manager might be — the person needing specific skills on their team. In large companies, this is typically a department director or team manager. In small companies, it's often the CEO or a C-level executive.
The Little Helper (LH)
This person works at your hierarchical level as a future colleague. The Little Helper is very important: even if they don't have a say in your recruitment, they can recommend you to their manager.
Action!
Define job titles for these categories in English and your native language. Find all contacts matching these roles, and add "HM," "LH," or "HR" labels to your tracking system.
Refine Your Search With Contact-Based and Company-Based Criteria
Among your HR, HM, and LH contacts, prioritize those based in the USA or working for companies with U.S. operations. Prioritize the contacts with whom you have the strongest relationships.
How Do I Get in Touch?
Contact each identified person using these steps:
Follow your instincts about timing: if you're reconnecting after a long silence, catch up before making requests, then move forward once they respond.
- Give them your news
- Ask what's new with them
- Introduce your U.S. work project
- Ask if they have opportunities available
- If not, ask if they know U.S.-based contacts who could help
What Do I Do With the Other Contacts?
Even indirect contacts may know someone helpful. Many of our members, including Max, secured opportunities through second-level contacts — Max's former internship supervisor recommended him to a U.S. partner, leading to his first Denver interview.
Is Your Current Company Also Based in the United States?
If you're comfortable, share your U.S. work aspirations with your current employer, particularly if your relationship with management is strong. This conversation can happen during annual reviews or dedicated meetings. Companies with U.S. operations may facilitate transfers, and employers may also connect you with partner, customer, or supplier contacts in the United States.
Connect With Your Contacts
Use the same message template as before: share your news, ask about theirs, introduce your project, and request introductions to people who could help.
On LinkedIn, you can identify a contact's connections, but verify they know the person personally before requesting an introduction.
Enable Second-Level Contacts
Request introductions rather than just contact information. If a contact provides only the person's details, ask permission to mention their name when reaching out.
The Risk of This Strategy and How to Avoid It
A critical limitation exists: obtaining U.S. employment requires company sponsorship for a work visa. Not all visa types apply to every person, and not all companies sponsor visas.
For What Visa(s) Are You Qualified?
Review the visa requirements and verify whether the company has previously sponsored applicants for your visa type.
If the Company Has Already Sponsored a Visa
This indicates familiarity with the process and existing immigration legal resources, which positions you favorably.
If the Company Has Not Already Sponsored a Visa
Companies unfamiliar with visa sponsorship often decline applications despite potential eligibility. When hiring managers research independently, they frequently encounter only the most popular visa types (H-1B or H-2B) and conclude that sponsorship is impossible.
If a hiring manager tells you sponsorship isn't possible after doing their own uninformed research, know that it's already too late — that kind of research typically leads to automatic rejection.
The solution is to educate the company about your specific visa type before initial contact: explain its strengths, how you'll obtain it, who handles the procedures, the timelines, and other details that eliminate uncertainty.
Summary
Follow these four essential steps:
Remember that reciprocity is the key to networking success — the day your helpful contact needs a favor in return, do it!
- Gather all contacts in one location and enrich the data
- Define the HR, HM, and LH contacts connected to the United States
- Contact these identified individuals
- Connect with second-level contacts to reach U.S.-based HR, HM, and LH professionals
- Research the company and your visa eligibility
About the Author
Stephanie Lydie Dubois immigrated to the United States in 2014, initially to New York, with her boyfriend joining three months later. Both were sponsored by their respective companies. Over the past decade, they've lived in New York, Los Angeles, and Texas. During their first five years navigating U.S. immigration, they submitted ten visa applications and secured six, including a green card. They now have a family and home in the United States.