Referrals

Good networking goes a long way. The roles I got a MailOnline, Babylon Health and now at Vital benefited from those network effects. At MailOnline a good friend of mine was the hiring manager. I liked working with him and vice-versa. I had a chat with the CTO and had a contract in my hands. At Babylon Health I went through the normal process, but I had a good referral from another good friend. I did well during the interview, but a referral usually doesn’t hurt either. Finally at Vital, I also went through a normal process, but the CEO had references from my time with him at Babylon Health. Although we never worked directly, he could tap into people he trusted that could vouch for me.

The opposite also happens. For the most part, I always tap into the same pool of individuals I trust. I bought a couple of guys from Babylon Health to Sphere. They didn’t have to go through the normal process. I knew they were worth their salt, why waste time? And the same has now happened at Vital. I know this person and can fully vouch for them. My gut feeling and experience working with some people is quite strong and I doubt they will fail in the new environment. I can count around 10 people in my network that I trust will do well anywhere they land. On the other hand, maybe this bias is blinding me in some way. I also know that a person that operates well in a particular place, does not automatically imply they will do so somewhere else. Still, to this date, I haven’t regretted my referrals. I will see how this progresses.