Diane Riemer ⋅ Andover, MA Brandeis International School of Business ⋅ 25 years experience

Hi Marshall,
Here are a couple of thoughts:

I think your chances of connecting with someone in this firm will be improved, if you can contact some one directly, rather than a generic email. Is there a section of the firm's web page called Team, Leadership or Management?? If so, it may have the name of someone you can contact directly. You may also want to search for the firm on Linked In to see if any employees are on Linked In. This may give you an entry point and may also offer some insight into the skill sets of the people who are working there and what their career paths have been like. Once you have an entry point, you can "script" an email or phone call to that person. requesting an informational interview. This is a very common form of networking; business people are very familiar with it and nearly always grant an informational interview. In my experience the skills that veterans such as you no doubt have, are very desirable in the business world and I am sure people will be happy to talk to you. Additionally consulting is linked closely to networking (for new clients, new hires etc.) so people in the consulting field typically appreciate some one with the confidence and interest to cold call. I would frame your approach something like this:

Introduce yourself, state that are a retired Army First Lieutenant considering a new career in consulting and that you are asking for a 20 minute informational interview at their convenience to learn more about "what ever it is you want to learn about". State you are calling them because of "what ever it is that has attracted your attention"

Be ready with some good questions as it is quite possible that the person may have 20 minutes right at that moment. Be sure you have researched consulting - the various practices within consulting, consulting by industry and consulting by firm size. I would suggest asking for advice (always ask for advice, never ask for a job!) about entering the field. Watch the time and bring the conversation to a close at 20 minutes. You may be invited to keep going or you can ask for a follow up call. Don't forget to send a Thank You note. I favor a handwritten one within 24 hours. However, email thank you notes are more and more common now - the point is send one. This is a key communication that business people ALWAYS look for.

The informational interview process is what typically achieves the goal of employment, Think of it as a research project and have some fun with it.

Hope this helps
Diane

Marshall Farmer ⋅ Haleiwa, HI U.S. Army, First Lieutenant ⋅ 7 years served

Thank you so much Diane. I drafted a letter that I was going to mail, but your comments helped me discover another approach. I went to school with a person who is the director of entrepreneurship for the state and he is directly linked to the CEO of the company I am interested in on Linked In. I thought about asking him to help facilitate an introduction and see where things go.

The company's team web page only has email addresses to contact but no phone numbers. However, they do list a main number to call on their contact section of the web page. I could call there as well if my networking through linked in does not work.