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Build Your Tech Network Johann Romefort - Tech Evangelist @Stylight

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Hi, I’m Johann! ● Today: Tech Evangelist @Stylight ● Since 3 years in Munich ● A certain passion for building communities ● Before: 7 years in San Francisco building startups

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So Johann, What’s so different with the Silicon Valley?

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Silicon Valley works because there is such a high density of people working on start-ups and they are inclined to help each other. - Sam Altman, Ycombinator

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It’s the network! ● Its density (how many nodes) ● Its connectedness ○ how connected are the nodes internally and to other networks ○ How easily nodes connect to each others ● Its ability to reconfigure (remixing of talents across companies)

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How do we do that?

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Meet Tina and Bob Embedded System Engineer Recruiting Manager

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Hi Tina, We're looking for a rockstar PHP ninja and I'm sure you'd be perfect for this role!

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Sounds Familiar? :)

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What can Tina do to advance in her career? What can Bob do to actually hire talents?

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The short answer: Building their tech network!

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Source: StackOverflow Insights Survey 2017

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Source: StackOverflow Insights Survey 2017

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Source: StackOverflow Insights Survey 2017

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● Speak at a Meetup ● Organize a meetup ● Speak at conferences ● Publish blog posts ● Contribute to open-source projects ● Participate in a Hackathon ● Answers questions on StackOverflow ● Mentor other developers ● …. How to advance your career? => connect with others!

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But I’m an introvert!

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SOCIAL SKILLS CAN BE LEARNED ● Start small (give a talk at your company) ● Build your confidence, get out of your comfort zone ● Give yourself goals: I’m going to connect with at least one person at this event ● Try the small talks: “Is this your first time at this event?” ● Embrace your vulnerability: It’s ok to be an introvert ● Remember: You’re not alone!

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What about Bob?

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● Get engineers in his company to speak at meetups ● Organise / sponsor meetups ● Help engineers to speak at conferences ● Encourage OpenSource contributions ● Create a blog for the tech team ● Organise a hackathon ● ...

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It’s all about connecting with others

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Do’s and Don’t do

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● Send an army of recruiters at events ● Boring company presentations ● We’re hiring!!!! ● Sponsor a meetup to give a sales talk ● Being active once in a while

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● Be *authentic*, show your passion ● Be relevant and on-topic - don’t force anything ● Invite people to come and talk to you ● Help people ● Introduce people to each others

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By becoming an active participant in the community, doors will open

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Let’s get back to Silicon Valley

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A typical exchange - hey I'm Bob, nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you bob! Is it your first time at this Meetup? - Yes! I'm working on a new startup - we're building the Uber for dogs powered by AI - Sounds awesome! I'm myself working on a uber for cats! - Cool, is there anything i can help you with? - Actually I would love some feedback on our UI - Sure, should we meet for a quick coffee next week? - Yes! By the way, have you met Brandon yet? He’s investing in the dog market

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PAY IT FORWARD It will eventually come back to you.

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How can I help? @romefort [email protected] http://linkedin.com/in/romefort