You don't need a network. You can just cold-call. If you find a company that you think you will fit it, you can just contact them and ask if they have positions. That's what recruiters do, except they don't know what kind of company you would fit in, so they call everyone.
You will face the exact same issues recruiters do. Gatekeepers telling you the person you are looking for is 'in a meeting' or to email them your CV and they will get back to you etc.
It takes me a minimum of 20 calls to actually speak to a person in a position to hire people and my hit rate is better than most.
You do face a two less barriers - employers don't hate talking to engineers, and you know you are a good fit for the org. Employers don't want to talk to requiters, because they are afraid they will just get a stack of un-targeted resumes, probably from job seekers who have never even heard of them.
Yes, and applying for multiple jobs is also a PITA. There's no ideal way. Targeting employers has the advantage that the manager isn't looking at a pile of 500 mostly unqualified resumes, just yours.
It's not easy. But it's obviously a reasonable way to do it, as that's what professional requiters do.
Not quite but generally with start-ups the person you need to speak to is ridiculously busy so you will simply struggle to get 5 minutes of their time.
Depends on the size, but I've found startups pretty responsive via email. I haven't asked for a job, but I'd imagine there's a good chance a real human will read it, and might remember you if your skills are relevant and they later need someone in that area.
I don't think you need to actually get a hold of the person you want to talk to on the phone. Simply initiating contact like this outside of a job posting will show that you are extremely interested.
A good start. The thing to remember is that there is absolutely no difference between looking for a job and looking for customers while running a business. You have to market your product – which, in this case, is yourself.
This kind of thing is pretty culture-specific. Here in Argentina, it matters a lot if someone can introduce you — even if it's your accountant's uncle. Also, for some reason, people don't answer email. You have to call them on the phone or talk to them in person.
