How to Use Informational Interviews to Find Unlisted Jobs
A practical guide to reaching out to employees at companies you want to work for, so you can learn about openings before they're ever posted.
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Most job openings get filled through word of mouth before they’re ever posted publicly. By the time a listing goes live, a hiring manager may already have a candidate in mind from an internal referral or a conversation they had weeks earlier. Informational interviews give you a way into that process — not by asking for a job, but by building a real connection with someone already inside the company.
Done right, this approach puts you on a hiring manager’s radar before the competition even knows a role exists. Done wrong, it comes across as a thinly veiled job pitch that people learn to dodge. Here’s how to do it well.
Start With a Clear, Narrow Goal
Before you reach out to anyone, decide what you actually want to learn. “I want to work at this company” is too vague to build a conversation around. Instead, aim for something specific: understanding what a particular team does day to day, learning how someone made a career switch into an industry you’re targeting, or getting a read on what a department’s current priorities are.
A narrow goal makes it easier to write a focused outreach message and easier for the other person to say yes, because you’re not asking them to solve your whole career for you in one sitting.
Find the Right People to Contact
You don’t need to reach the hiring manager directly, especially on a first attempt. Often the best contacts are:
- People in the role you want, one or two levels below where you’re aiming
- Recent hires, who remember the application process clearly and are usually happy to talk about it
- People who changed careers or industries the way you’re trying to
- Former coworkers or classmates who now work at the company
Use your professional network first. A mutual connection, even a weak one, makes your message far more likely to get a response. If you have no connection at all, a thoughtful cold message can still work, but expect a lower response rate and plan to contact more people.
Write an Outreach Message That Respects Their Time
Keep your first message short — three to five sentences is plenty. It should cover:
- Who you are and a one-line reason you’re reaching out to them specifically
- What you’d like to learn (tied to the narrow goal you set earlier)
- A low-pressure ask for 15–20 minutes, with flexibility on timing
Avoid attaching your resume or mentioning that you’re job hunting in this first message. The goal is a conversation, not a pitch. If a role comes up naturally later in the conversation, that’s fine — but let it happen organically rather than leading with it.
Prepare Questions That Go Beyond the Job Posting
The value of an informational interview comes from information you can’t get anywhere else. Skip questions you could answer by reading the company’s website. Instead, ask about things like:
- What a typical week actually looks like in their role
- What skills or experience made the biggest difference when they were hired
- What the team is currently struggling with or trying to improve
- Whether the team has grown recently, and what’s driving that growth
- What they’d tell someone applying to a similar role today
That last question often surfaces useful details about what the hiring manager actually cares about — details that rarely make it into a job description.
Listen for Signals of Unlisted Openings
You’re not going to ask directly, “Are there any secret openings?” But certain comments are worth paying attention to:
- Mentions that the team is stretched thin or short-staffed
- References to a project launching soon that will need more people
- Comments about a coworker who recently left or is leaving
- Vague mentions of “we’re always looking for good people”
If you hear any of these, you can follow up naturally: “That’s really helpful context — if it’s okay, I’d love to stay in touch in case something opens up down the line.” This keeps the door open without putting the person on the spot.
Follow Up the Right Way
Send a short thank-you message within a day or two, referencing something specific from the conversation. This shows you were listening and keeps you memorable.
If weeks later you see a relevant opening at that company, it’s reasonable to reach back out: let them know you applied, and ask if they’d be willing to flag your application internally. Most people are glad to do this for someone who was respectful of their time and didn’t ask for anything beyond a conversation.
Keep a System So Nothing Falls Through
If you’re doing this consistently, track who you’ve contacted, when, what you discussed, and any follow-up you owe them. A simple spreadsheet works fine. Informational interviews are a long game — the contact you make today might not pay off for months, but only if you remember to follow up when the timing is right.
This approach won’t replace applying to posted jobs, and it won’t guarantee an offer. But it consistently puts you ahead of candidates who only see a role after it’s already public, and that head start is often the difference between getting an interview and getting lost in a stack of applications.
Remember: this guide is general information, not professional advice for your specific situation. For decisions with real stakes, check with a qualified professional.
