There are probably many reasons why you’d want to find out someone’s place of work. You could be curious about their lifestyle, interested in expanding your professional networking, or just want to find out more about the person. Whatever that is, there’s nothing wrong with putting on your detective hat to discover someone’s occupation. The internet, through social media and professional forums, has made this effortless. However, do not limit yourself to only using the internet’s expansive resources. Some old-fashioned manual techniques work just as well. Here’s a look at how you can find someone’s workplace.
-
Start with online research
Social media isn’t the only online tool for this job. You can leverage other useful online platforms to find someone’s place of employment. For starters, if you suspect they work for a specific organization, check out the company’s website to confirm. If the website has an ‘about us’ page, you’ll most likely find their employees’ job titles. Alternatively, try carrying out a Bing or Google search. Start by typing the person’s name, followed by ideal keywords like “workplace” or “employer.” If this information is listed anywhere on the internet, you’ll instantly get results of their workplace.
-
Use phone number lookup services
Lookup services are often either misused or overlooked, but they are great tools for finding out where someone works. Since people’s personal data is spread across the internet, lookup tools make it easy for one to sniff around and get the right information at the click of a button.PhoneHistory, for instance, provides people’s professional details, such as their job title and the company they work at. However, it’s worth noting that many service providers highly discourage any misuse of their tools, like for committing cyber crimes or using the information mentioned for employment background checks.
-
Look at professional profiles
Technological advancement has made networking simple and quick. For professionals, LinkedIn is arguably the most reliable networking resource, and rightfully so. This platform allows job seekers and employers to provide information about their work and education history. Users often include their career details and specialties when creating profiles. So, by searching for someone’s name on LinkedIn, you can easily find details about where they work. If they’ve worked in a given company for a long time, for example, chances are that they’re still working there.
-
Ask their close friends
The internet is undoubtedly a treasure trove of useful information. While using the internet can yield good search results, it often takes up plenty of one’s useful time. The direct approach might be more seamless, particularly if you share friends with the person you would like to know more about. Whenever you get an opportunity, be polite and directly inquire without looking like a stalker. This approach is great because you leave no room for misinterpretation, and you’ll get a clear response.
-
Reach out to mutual online connections
You will see your mutual connections when you connect with someone online, like on LinkedIn. These are online friends you share with this person. So, they could know more about this person than you, and since the connection is a mutual friend, it wouldn’t be awkward to ask them. In fact, this could even be their former colleague, and you didn’t know. A mutual connection is better to ask this question than the person’s close friends because the mutual friend knows you mean no harm.
-
Analyze their resume
Almost every career person has a resume detailing where they’ve studied and worked. The resume may also include useful contact information, including emails and phone numbers. These are the contact details of their current and previous bosses. With such information at your disposal, you only need to contact their employer and determine whether the person in question still works there. If their resume doesn’t provide information about their employer’s contacts, try contacting their references and inquiring where the person works.
-
Check public data
When trying to find out about somebody’s place of employment, utilize tools that guarantee reliability and cost-effectiveness. Public records contain massive data on individuals of a given county or state. Government agencies usually maintain and update these records, which are, therefore, accurate. By searching through these records, you’ll uncover useful employment details that’ll aid you in pinpointing where the person in question works.
-
Consult professional organizations
If the person in question works at a certain company, they should be listed in its employment directory. Most, if not all, professional organizations require members to provide up-to-date employment information as part of their membership profiles or directory listings. When you go to the organization’s website or call them, you may be able to quickly and easily determine where the person is currently employed.
Let’s say, for example, you’re trying to locate an architect named Tom Lee. Try contacting the American Institute of Architects (AIA) to inquire if Tom Lee is a member or search their member directory for his contact information and employment details. You’ll then easily find the person’s current employer from the organization’s directory.
-
Find out from previous employers
When attempting to figure out someone’s current workplace, contacting previous employers will do no harm. Most employers are usually left with their former employees’ latest contact details. If you know where someone you’re curious about previously worked, you can contact their employer to ask if they know where the person is working now.
-
Get an investigator
Tracking down someone’s current workplace is time-consuming and quite exhaustive. If you’re really desperate to find out where someone works, a private investigator (PI) is your go-to person. Apart from the fact that these experts are quite skilled, they also know and understand the law. Hiring a PI might cost you a pretty penny, but it’ll get the job done if all other options have not brought any result. Private investigators have the experience and resources to get you the desired result quickly.
Conclusion
Finding out somebody’s place of employment can be straightforward if you know where to start. Many people have difficulty finding such information because they rarely spend enough time looking. The strategies above increase your chances of knowing where someone works and save plenty of time. Different techniques combined will significantly boost your results, so don’t hesitate to try more than one.
