“Even the strongest man needs friends…Politics is knowing when to pull the trigger.”

Don Lucchesi to Vincent, Michael Corleone’s nephew, from The Godfather Part III

As much as I’d like to deny it, who you know is almost as, if not more, important than what you know.  I don’t agree with Don Lucchesi’s remarks about manipulating people, but I do recognize the necessity of networking.  Personal contacts can make a huge difference in whether or not one gets a job.  Unfortunately, sometimes this can mean that the most qualified candidate may lose to a less qualified candidate because that lesser candidate “knows the right people.”  But I think that “knowing the right people” as a way of getting a job can be justified.

To me, this is really a question of loyalty versus objectiveness.  How would you feel if you were applying to a job that your parent was the boss of and she picked a candidate that may has a stronger resume than you, but you both meet the positon’s requirements.  (I haven’t experienced this personally, but I’ve seen a similar situation on the show “Revenge.”)  I’d hate to be that other candidate that would lose the job to a family relation, but I can’t tell if I’d hate that more than being the kid that gets rejected by his or her own parent.

From the parental end, does the parent stay loyal to his or her child by picking the son/daughter?  Or does the parent remain loyal to the company and pick the candidate that would suit the company best?  One could argue that family comes first in everything about life. At the same time, one could argue that business is business and should not be taken personally.

There is so much hypocrisy and contradiction in the rationale of the mobsters.