Networking : it’s not a dirty word!

As we prepare to draw a close to 2021, I look back and see how this newsletter has scaled month after month. This provides an ever increasing sense of satisfaction writing these monthly articles knowing their reach and seeing them regularly shared and commented by second and third connections in my Linkedin network. I’ve been contacted over the course of the year by people who have taken time to engage with me on a one to one basis and I’m pleased to have added many of these people to my first degree LinkedIn network as a result. I’m always happy to engage with you through these articles.?

Networking for me has a strategic importance as, when it comes to developing talent, getting exposure to the right people at the right time and knowing who to contact for support or guidance can be crucial. Yet, when conducting focus groups and pilot trials back 3 years ago when launching a change management support initiative to accompany employees in a new internal mobility process, I was regularly confronted by pushback and skepticism when referring to networking as an important development skill. It was almost as though networking was seen as a dirty word. There’s probably some sociodemographic influence to this: many of the attendees of these initial sessions were headquarters-based French national employees, and in France networking can be perceived negatively by some as akin to a “closed club” approach, accentuating barriers to mobility and being contrary to the objectives of a fair and equitable process enabling diverse profiles to succeed.?

My personal conviction however is that, on the contrary, networking is fundamentally important in enabling us to break down, overcome and mitigate against unconscious bias and cognitive influences that can increase the perception of risk of the unknown. As a manager, it is much less risky to?hire someone?you know than take a chance on someone you have met for just an hour or two in interviews. Internal mobility is arguably even more of a risky decision for the hiring manager as there’s no trial period, so once they make their decision to hire you, the probability is you’ll be working together for some years to come.?

After these initial focus groups and pilot trials, we validated the workshop design and started their roll out as part of an internal initiative called Job Posting Days, designed to support employees and managers alike through an internal mobility. One of the employee workshops includes a sequence on the importance of network. Now, three years later, these workshops have been deployed for tens of thousands of employees and managers the world over, this season alone for employees based in over 83 countries. This year, in addition to the workshops we have??added a speed networking initiative extending a limited pilot trial last year. Employees are encouraged, every two weeks, to indicate their matching criteria and are matched via an algorithm with a random employee from a potential pool of 16000+ others taking part that also agreed to meet up and who indicated similar preferences or criteria. So far, the feedback has been very positive, with people taking time to reach out to the project team and thank us for the opportunity to (virtually) meet and discuss their professional development with someone from outside their immediate professional circle. It is a powerful, yet simple, means of breaking through traditional organizational boundaries and promoting peer to peer development support.?

Assuming you agree with me on the virtues of networking in increasing your ability to gain professional development through career opportunities or exposure to people who can help your growth, let’s share some thoughts on how best to network.?

Who

Originally?theorized as the six degrees of separation nearly a century ago in 1929 a concept?by?Frigyes Karinthy?proposed that everyone is connected by six or less connections. Famous American Harvard psychologist Stanley Milgram worked further on the idea in the 1950s, spending time with the University of Paris, and suggested that the more realistic degree of connection is three rather than six degrees. This was of course?long before social media as we know it today which makes it so much easier to network. Perhaps that’s why Linkedin has first, second and third degree connections. With social media today of course it is now possible to map algorithmically our network statistics. For instance, Facebook data suggested in 2016 a social distance of 4.57 amongst its then 1.6billion users.?

The great thing to know therefore is that help for your professional development is never too far away in your network! The key is to intelligently identify the right people that might be useful for you to know and keep in touch with. The more people you have in your network, the greater likelihood you have of connecting with the right person for your future needs. The second great thing is that in today’s digital age, finding out about their background, interests, skills and expertise is just a quick search and a few clicks away. Don’t hesitate to use Linkedin to look people up, consult their profiles. So many of us are scared this might be perceived as stalking, or in some way intrusive. I find this fear somewhat misplaced. The worst that can happen is the person sees you in the list of people that have consulted their profile. This is usually either of no consequence whatsoever, but may in itself trigger contact between you. Not everyone is regularly active on social networks however so most might not even ever notice you’ve checked them out. Ultimately though their profile is public and open, so looking them up is fair game, so don’t hold back. Research is always a good place to start when considering who might be able to help.?

Bond

The next logical step is contact. Whether in real life or on social media, the key to successful network bonding will be finding some initial mutual interest or reason to engage. When you’re the one reaching out, don’t look too hard to find a contrived topic of conversation. Everyone’s favourite topic is themselves! Initiate the conversation by asking questions about them and?actively listening , engage with them. Don’t jump in with too much about yourself until they invite you to by reciprocal questioning.?

Use your?emotional intelligence ?to build the interpersonal relation, and remember the importance of?trust , being able to be focused on them rather than your own needs or interests. Being introduced to them by a mutual connection is also a great means to bond more quickly as well, so don’t hesitate to use your network to widen your connections.?

Value

I confess to have a much stronger chance of accepting a request to connect with or exchange with someone I don’t know if they personalize their invite and I can see an added value in connecting. A classic invite request from someone you don’t know that at a quick glance doesn’t seem to have something in common is likely to be ignored. However, if you can demonstrate you can add value by connecting this will increase your chances of a positive response.

Perhaps you can demonstrate a shared interest, offer an insight or opinion into something that will be at stake to them, or maybe you can help introduce people, share your own network and connections.?

Leverage

Once you have your network in place, leverage it wisely when needed. Generally speaking, it is more effective to have established your network well in advance of the time you actually need to leverage it. The key, in my personal view, is only making your request once you’ve established an initial bond, and not rushing into it. A personal networking turn off for me is when immediately after accepting an unsolicited connection request the person starts to sell something or ask for something.??It isn’t always possible however to establish the network proactively in advance of your need, so don’t be shy or obliged to wait before asking for support if there’s an urgent and time-sensitive need for their support. Provided you have established the bond and built the relationship the worst they can tell is now isn’t a good time, and the best outcome is that they make time for you. So, there’s little downside risk.?

Be yourself!

Don’t let emotions get in the way, just relax! When looking to change jobs, heading into an interview with someone you already know, or at least have researched, will be easier than meeting a total stranger. If you feel fear or unease at the idea of making new connections then you allow your brain to become influenced by cortisol – a hormonal stress release reaction – which will make it harder to keep an open mind and remember things, both of which will harm your ability to network effectively. On the contrary, letting go of your stress and embracing the human interaction, for instance by sharing a laugh or introducing informality into the conversation, will enable the brain to release dopamine and serotonin giving you a happy boost of motivation and confidence, and thereby improve your networking.

In the main we develop our talent through and with the people we know. Just 10% of what we learn comes from training. The remaining 90% comes from our exposure and experience, and for this we will rely on our network and connections. So, don’t deprive yourself of means to develop your talent and?reaching your potential?in future by being shy about networking today.

What about you? Do you find networking easy? How do you uses your network to support your professional development? To what extent has your network played a decisive role in your career to date? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!?

Finally, let me take this opportunity to thank my readers for all the interactions this year, and wish you all an excellent end to 2021, and all my very best wishes for a fulfilling and successful 2022 ahead. For those of you lucky enough to have some time off over the coming weeks, all my best for the festive season and enjoy some precious family time.?

Alan Lambert, Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management, is an International HR leader currently working at the Corporate HR Strategy division of a global energy major?and is a Linkedin Talent Voices Talent Advocate award winner.?