What are the most effective ways to network while working on a product innovation team?

Internal networking (within the company) is highly useful for members of a product innovation team - but you have to go across functions and levels for maximum benefit. So growing your internal network should be part of your overall goal. 1.Ideas on improvements, potential issues, industry opportunities can often be identified or vetted informally. 2. Its also a great way to get suggestions on who to listen to or network with at customers or within the industry. 3. You develop relationships that give you crucial feedback when you are going wrong - as people are more open to be frank with you if you know them better. The more cross functional you can go, the better it is.

The market is not static and our goals shouldn't be either. Innovation teams should regularly reassess and adapt their goals. This allows for flexibility in response to changing market trends, emerging technologies, and feedback from initial networking efforts. A static goal-setting approach may lead to missed opportunities or misalignment with the current market needs. Innovation teams will benefit by adopting an agile goal-setting strategy, periodically reviewing and updating their objectives to stay relevant and effective.

Defining your goals is crucial to focus your networking efforts and ensure they align with your professional objectives. Are you looking to meet potential clients, collaborators, or mentors? Or would you like to learn more about the latest trends in your industry? Once you have set your goals, it will be much easier to identify the individuals or groups you want to connect with. They could be industry leaders, potential clients, or colleagues working on similar projects. Research their interests and work will help you build meaningful connections. Remember, before you jump into networking, define your goals first!

If you are in innovation, you should be attending a lot of events, congresses and fairs. You are the one that should bring new things to your organization so you should all the time connecting in those events to learn and discover new trends. Start to know some people, go on LinkedIn and look for people that organize those events! Also start to build your personal branding so people notice you and invite to those!

Stop caring about rejection, just be curious. You won't hit it off with everyone, that's ok. Asking for feedback is underrated. Nice people enjoy helping out, particularly if it's a genuinely interesting topic. (Though the best ones are incredibly busy, that's ok.) Asking to help out, to understand another person's situation is even more underrated.

Social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, as well as online forums related to your industry, can be incredibly useful for networking. They allow you to interact with a broad audience, share updates about your product, and gain valuable insights from user comments and discussions. It's essential to be active on these platforms, engage in conversations, and use the feedback you receive to improve your product.

#Sharingiscaring is my personal motto and you should use it! When you share your insights and learnings, people are more likely to want to connect with you and share theirs! It seems pretty obvious but it truly works! Remember we can all grow together. So, if you have some insights of your category, if you know new trends you consider relevant, share some of what you've and you'll see a lot of people wishing to exchange with you!

Remember to follow up! After the networking event, follow up with your new connections. Send a personalized message or email thanking them for their time and expressing your interest in staying connected. This could lead to future collaborations, partnerships, or learning opportunities. Remember, networking is not just about what you can get from others but also about what you can offer. I would encourage you always to approach networking with an attitude of mutual benefit and respect.

You have to be innovative also in the way you network. Send DM in LinkedIn to people you believe are interesting, go to events you were used to go, talk people even in the streets! ?? Innovation (and possibilities of network) are everywhere!

Before attending your next big networking event, it’s important to create a powerful elevator pitch. Prepare a brief, persuasive speech that you can use to spark interest in what you’re doing. Your pitch should effectively communicate your value proposition and what you’d like to introduce in a networking situation. It’s important to keep it concise yet compelling and practice it until it comes naturally.

Seek like - minded people including specialists who can Collaborate with you across all of your Mission activities as you drive your Vision forward.