So, you fancy yourself a savvy job hunter? Maybe you stay on top of research and trends in the profession, have 500+ LinkedIn connections, and pore over websites to learn more about the companies you’re interested in. What if I told you there was something you could be incorporating into your career search that offers both networking and occupational information?

This top-secret weapon is the informational interview, and your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to impress your connection at the company and gain valuable intel that could help you land a job there. Here are just a few of the benefits of informational interviews:

• You’ll build a professional network and support team/mentors.
• You’ll get a real introduction to the culture of a firm or company of interest.
• You may hear about career information and job opportunities before they’re public—according to The Wall Street Journal up to 80% of jobs are never advertised.
• You’ll gain valuable interview experience and visibility.
• You’ll obtain feedback on your resume and job search goals.

Steve Davis is a networking and LinkedIn coach who shares an anecdote he heard early in his career: According to the story, a wise mentor made a practice of offering his recent college graduates $100. The mentor instructed them to take the money, find someone who was doing the job they hoped to do someday, and simply treat them to dinner. While at dinner, the graduates were to learn as much as they could about this person’s career, passions, and interests. They were not to ask for a job, but instead just listen and learn. They were to continue to do this until they’d used the $100 dollars. The mentor then said, “If you do not get a job offer before using the $100, come back and I’ll give you another $100.” He was that confident in the power of the informational interviews to secure future job prospects.

Now, a hundred dollars may not get you as far as it used to, and the cold-calling aspect of informational interviews can be scary and off-putting to many. Meanwhile COVID-19 has rendered in-person meetings impossible. Rather than suggest you throw in the towel on networking this year, we came up with another idea.

The WSCPA is excited to announce a new benefit to students and new professionals: Coffee & Conversations. This new virtual group will take the cold calling out of informational interviews and fast track your networking, despite the challenges of COVID-19. By visiting us at Coffee & Conversations via our private online member community, WSCPA Connect, you can peruse a list of professional members from all over the state with various firm affiliations and industry backgrounds. These professionals are ready to connect so you can ask your most pressing questions, gain intel, and grow your professional network.

Interested in getting started? Watch our orientation video here, then head over to the Coffee & Conversations Resource Group. We recommend visiting the Resources tab where we have uploaded how-to guides for the group, best practices, sample email templates, and even interview questions. From there, head over to the Leaders tab to find the professionals you want to connect with and start reaching out. We hope you have great conversations!

Monette Anderson is the WSCPA Director of Membership and liaison to the Washington CPA Foundation. You can contact her at manderson@wscpa.org.