Going online pays

Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace are widely touted as excellent means for building an online presence, and have assisted many during their job search in this tight employment market. Opalesque has a Twitter feed which is updated with breaking hedge fund news and links to articles of particular interest (we can be followed at: www.twitter.com/Opalesque). However, while one manager told Opalesque that he keeps an alert for “hedge funds” on when logged into Twitter for possible breaking industry news, it is difficult to imagine that in their current forms of use these informal sites will help anyone establish real business relationships within the financial industry. Instead, business oriented sites such as LinkedIn and Plaxo are focusing on providing the opportunity to more easily keep tabs on past and present colleagues as well as expand the potential for business and employment opportunities.

Six degrees of separation
One of these benefits is the ability to update profiles and reach out to colleagues at your (and their) convenience, across time zones and during lulls in busy days. Some offer the ability to see who you and your business contacts share common relationships with, a very good reminder of how small and tight knit the financial community can be.

Most recently Opalesque announced that it had over 500 members in the LinkedIn networking group the firm hosts “Alternative Alternatives//Uncorrelated Returns” at: www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1642997&trk=hb_side_g. A complement to the Opalesque A Square publication, the group looks to engage in discussions about “alternative alternative” investing. Additionally, industry groups such as the Connecticut Hedge Fund Association are making use of these forums to reach out to their members and to allow members an easier way to contact each other, as the host of each group has the power to approve or disapprove anyone hoping to join. As Matthias Knab told AMB readers recently “industry practitioners, investors and managers (no recruiters) can join here”.

Networking for employment
Time Magazine recently reported that 27% of jobs come from referrals and 12% of jobs are filled through job sites. LinkedIn allows search firms to reach out to a base of interested employees and keep them up to date on potential positions as well as industry news.

Future of business networking online
Regulatory bodies have not directly addressed the issues which may arise as online networking and socializing takes a greater hold in the industry. However, as with the advent of email and instant messaging, sooner or later firms will more than likely need to determine what their social networking policies are.