Genuine
networking is not swapping business cards; rather, it's the
active process of building and managing productive relationships.
Networking is a controversial subject. Just the term itself
elicits strong feelings, positive and negative. Some people
swear by the practice of networking, others swear at it. But
no matter how you feel about networking, a growing body of
research reveals that success in business depends on technical
competence and the ability to build strong relationships and
networks of relationships. It's not enough to excel at the
technical part of your job. You also have to excel at the
art and science of networking.
My idea of networking goes beyond the usual definitions and
preconceived notions. Genuine networking is not swapping business
cards; rather, it's the active process of building and managing
productive relationships. This process includes personal relationships
with your managers, peers, subordinates, team members, and
many others. It also includes relationships within and between
departments, teams, functions, divisions, branches, and subsidiaries.
And it includes all sorts of external ties—relationships with
clients, customers, suppliers, investors, even your competitors.
That's what I learned while researching my new book, Networking
Smart: How to Build Relationships for Personal and Organizational
Success. The book is a how-to guide to the art and science
of networking and relationship-building in the '90s. During
my research, I also discovered myths and folklore about networking
that are common barriers to learning how to network well.
The folklore arises from misperceptions and misinformations
about the role and importance of relationships in business.
Drawing on a large body of research on relationships from
sociology, psychology, organizational behavior, and even medical
research, I debunk this folklore and tell you where, why,
and how to become more successful by networking and building
relationships.
Consider some of the most common
folklore and fact:
ONE
Folklore: Tough-minded business people don't consider
networking and relationship-building to be important because
the impact of these "soft skills" can't be scientifically
proven.
Fact: The benefits of networking can be scientifically
measured. Dozens of scientific studies reveal that those who
network well are more effective, paid better, promoted faster,
healthier, happier—and even live longer.
Consider just a few of these facts:
- Managers with large, well-diversified networks get promoted
faster and at younger ages.
- People who find jobs through personal contacts find
better, more satisfying, better paying jobs.
- People with strong social support networks are less
likely to become ill.
- Leaders who take charge of new situations are much more
likely to be successful if they build solid working relationships.
- Strong customer relationships save money. It's much
cheaper to keep an old customer than to get a new one.
- Supplier partnerships yield lower costs and better quality
products and service.
TWO
Folklore: Success in business depends primarily on
technical skills, training, and abilities. If you're good
enough technically, you don't need to learn how to network
well.
Fact: Many people think technical expertise is enough,
but a vast amount of research shows that it's not. The most
successful business leaders are the best relationship builders,
but they're not necessarily the best technically. Research
shows that those who ignore or neglect their relationship-building
responsibilities "top out" early in their careers.
The main cause of failure for managers who take charge of
a new situation is neglecting to build strong personal relationships.
As you advance in your career, relationship-building becomes
a larger and more significant part of your responsibilities.
Those who benefit the most from networking build large,
well-diversified networks that include a wide range of internal
and external relationships.
THREE
Folklore: Networking is somewhat unethical, even
"sleazy".
Fact: Networking and relationships can be misused
and abused. Con artists, for example, cultivate trust (or
what might be called pseudo-trust) in order to defraud,
trick, and swindle. But those who misuse and abuse relationships
are always found out. Genuine relationships are based on
real trust, mutual understanding, and mutual benefits. Genuine
networking is the process of developing such relationships.
It's the only road to long-run success. One of my objectives
in Networking Smart is to increase the legitimacy of the
idea of building and managing networks of relationships.
Concepts like networking come with so much negative baggage
that many people simply reject the idea of managing relationships.
These negative associations are much more than unfortunate
— they threaten your ability to be successful in today's
business world. Those who succeed in the 1990s and beyond
are those who are better, faster, and smarter at building
relationships.
FOUR
Folklore: Networking and relationship-building skills
can't be learned. Some people are just naturally good at
it. They just happen to be "people oriented."
Fact: Relationship-building and networking skills
can be learned by anyone. What you need is new information
about the importance and power of relationships and concrete
advice on how to put this information into practice. For
the past 15 years, I've worked in an are of sociology called
"network analysis." Other researchers and I have
learned a great deal about relationship and network building,
but until now this research has remained a secret from the
business world.
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