How to develop a professional network in Amsterdam
If you're one of the lucky expats, you may have been offered a job before you moved over to Amsterdam. If not, then you may be wondering how to develop a professional network in Amsterdam. Either way, it's always a good idea to continually expand your professional network since you may want to reach out for better opportunities in the future. Keep reading to see the best ways to get new contacts.
Facebook groups in Amsterdam
If you already have a Facebook account, this is one of the easiest ways to develop your professional network. Just put your profession in the search bar, then click on “groups”. The results will show you approximately how many posts are made in the groups each day so you can gauge how active they are.
The great thing about Facebook groups is you can join as many as you want. So if you see a few that you're interested in, feel free to become a member of all of them.
Many of these Facebook groups will arrange for in-person events, so keep your eye out for them. The best thing about using Facebook to network is that everything is built into one place; once you join some groups, they'll directly link their events to the group pages and you can click “attending” or “interested”.
Nowadays, a LinkedIn account is a must-have if you want to grow your career or business in Amsterdam. Not only does this powerful social media platform allow you to look for jobs, but it also lets you join groups like on Facebook, except they're business-focused. You can be in as many of them as you want to. You can even become a member of your alma mater's group and connect with alumni who have moved out here to Amsterdam as you have. That way, you can make some fellow expat friends, as well as grow your business connections.
Another benefit of having a LinkedIn account is you'll get approached by recruiters a lot. So if you're looking for a job in Amsterdam or considering quitting your current one, opportunities may present themselves to you without you having to lift a finger.
Meetup
While Meetup is mainly used for leisure meetings, you can also use it for business meetups. The groups are pretty specific; for example, there's been a “Gay Asian Professionals Meetup”, as well as a “Coffee with other Female Freelancers Or Women Who Work Alone” meetup.
It should be fairly easy to find a niche group that's right for you in Amsterdam. But if you don't mind traveling, you can expand the parameters and find meetups that you're even better suited for.
Business groups and clubs in Amsterdam
Just like with sports and leisure groups, there are groups and clubs for business purposes in Amsterdam. For example, there are the American Chamber of Commerce in the Netherlands, The Netherlands British Chamber of Commerce, and The Women's Business Initiative International.
By joining these business groups and clubs, you're basically guaranteed to expand your professional network in Amsterdam. Also, they'll likely put on their own networking events, which means you won't have to seek them out yourself.
