Ask the Expert Dr. Kathleen Wells is a professional career coach and Director of Coaches That Care. She has coached thousands of clients through the stages of successful career development. Networking Q: How beneficial to my career strategy is networking? A: Networking is the foundation of a successful career search. Over 80 percent of the jobs today are not advertised and this percentage goes up for executives. Networking is essential to finding out about these prime openings. In many cases you can network with a decision maker who has the authority to create a position for you if they like you and what you can bring to their company. Also the costs of hiring and training new employees is skyrocketing. For that reason, many hiring managers want a personal recommendation from someone they know, or who already works for the company, to refer job candidates to them. Take the time to network with everyone you know and everyone they know like the ever widening circles of a pond with a stone dropped in its center. It will pay off.