Career Tools: Put the 'Social' in Networking

As Duke's semester drew to a close in December, Cate Auerbach prepared for her transition from Duke student to staff member.

After graduating this winter, Auerbach works as an admissions intern with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. But it wasn't just classwork that helped prepare her for the job. During her final semester, Auerbach worked part-time at Duke's Office of Undergraduate Education, met faculty and staff from around campus and learned more about Duke and its mission.

"I really had no idea how much went on behind the scenes at Duke, so I was exposed to many different areas I didn't know existed before," Auerbach said. "Because Admissions is a window to the university, it was valuable to see how different parts of Duke work from student, staff and faculty perspectives."

Auerbach's ability to network socially - not necessarily for the sake of finding a job - is a valuable learning opportunity for all Duke employees, said Wendy Hamilton Hoelscher, team leader with Duke's Learning and Organization Development. Because offices or departments at any workplace can become isolated, it's beneficial to branch out to meet new people and understand where job efforts fit with the larger mission of an institution like Duke.

"Whether it's patient care or research or service, employees at Duke are doing something important," Hamilton Hoelscher said. "Learning more about the people and places outside your specific work adds a sense of purpose to why we're here."

To get started being social, Hamilton Hoelscher suggested starting online by visiting Duke's homepage or daily news site, Duke Today, both of which offer information from across the university. Duke also has organizations and informal meeting groups at lists.duke.edu where faculty and staff may find like-minded employees with similar interests.

Hamilton Hoelscher also said a group like Toastmasters, which brings together Duke employees and local residents, has multiple meeting groups on campus. At meetings, participants meet new people, while honing public speaking and leadership skills.

"It's important to simply go out, talk to people and be willing to see what you can learn," Hamilton Hoelscher said. "You're not only improving your social skills but getting educated about the institution."

Of course, plenty of "social networking" takes place on Duke's online channels, where employees share ideas and meet other faculty and staff through platforms like the Working@Duke LinkedIn group. Cara Rousseau, Duke's social media manager, said faculty and staff can also be found on Twitter, which offers a casual way to make connections across the university.

"It's good to identify different people around campus to see what they're reading or sharing on Twitter," Rousseau said. "That way, you can feel more connected to who they are and what they do at Duke."