Finding jobs through weak connections

An interesting graph via the Economist describes how, on a per job vacancy basis, the amount of formal recruiting activity is historically low. Rather than jobs getting filled through formal recruiting, they are getting filled through referrals and other informal means.

In one of our early organizational behavior classes at Kellogg, we're taught that we're most likely to find jobs through our weak connections - the people we do not speak to as much. This is because with people we speak to often, we generally will have the same information as them. Weak connections have different information.

This latest research on recruiting intensity suggests in the current climate we need to rely on our weak connections more than ever.