Networking has become a necessary evil for the modern HR professional. But it doesn’t have to be so nerve-shredding
Networking is the second-most dreaded task on to-do lists after public speaking, according to Andy Lopata and Peter Roper, authors of …and Death came Third. Even the head of the UK and Ireland’s biggest networking and referring organisation, BNI, Charlie Lawson, admits he hates it: “My natural preference is not to be out there.”
And yet, we do it in ever-expanding numbers. In a globally connected world, the idea has become synonymous with career progression and development. “In personal terms, your network is your net worth,” says business psychologist Darryl Howes. These days it’s not just about who you know, it’s about how well you know them, who they know and whether you’ll make a connection.
That means every event should be seen as an opportunity to connect. The average business professional has 1,000 contacts, according to Lawson, which means if you engaged with 40 people in one room, you could be walking away with up to 40,000 possible connections. “That’s when networking gets interesting,” he says.
But being more connected doesn’t always mean better connected, and these two lines of thought have the experts divided, says Howes: “Should we build narrow but deep networks, with few names but solid relationships based on highly specific mutual interests or common experiences?” he asks, citing the example of university alumni networks. The alternative concept is based on the principle of ‘weak ties’ originally set out by Stanford University sociologist Mark Granovetter. “No relationships are excluded or dismissed… you’re going as broadly as possible,” Howes says.
It’s women who favour the smaller network, according to research from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), and while they are generally better than their male counterparts at developing and maintaining relationships, women often fail to use their carefully crafted professional networks to their full potential, turning instead to their family for advice.
“The more connected you are, the more people in your network you have, the more you can rely on someone within that band to help you out,” says Perry Timms, CIPD adviser and founder and director of People and Transformational HR, whose years of networking have earned him a diary full of contacts. But “networking can be done clumsily, over-eagerly and just downright noisily –and that isn’t effective. Considered, genuine, gentle networking is always the best way.”
No professional should embark on the process of building and maintaining connections with selfish intentions, says Devora Zack, author of Networking for People who Hate Networking. A good networking bond should have “shared positive outcomes,” in which both participants are benefitting from and contributing to a relationship equally. “Professional networking is a bit like dating; if you leave it until you are actively job-seeking then your approach can become desperate and nobody will want to connect with you,” says Elouise Leonard-Cross, head of organisational development and learning at HomeGroup. “It’s no good networking only when you need something. You have to build a network and contribute to it throughout your career.”
On paper, it sounds like a lot of time and effort. Luckily, there are some basic techniques that anyone can learn and still reap the benefits. When starting out, it’s natural to feel a pang of nerves when approaching a room full of strangers: it’s that physiological fight or flight response, says Zack. Loaded phrases like ‘natural networker’ and ‘expert connector’ are also adding unnecessary pressure, says Howes: “Leave ‘working the room’ to the Hollywood film directors,” he advises. Instead, set small, achievable targets.
These days, being considered shy, quiet, or an introvert is a poor excuse for avoiding networking events. Barack Obama, JK Rowling and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak all fall into the ‘introversion’ camp and there’s no doubt they’ve had to make a few valued connections along the way. The key is to be resilient: “Building a professional network starts with being comfortable with ‘brand you’,” says Leonard-Cross. “Being authentic helps the value people gain from networking,” and ultimately helps stop you becoming that annoying sales guy we’ve all tried to avoid at networking events, says Howes.
New technology has made networking a lot easier, allowing us to connect on a global level and creating a level playing field for employees at all levels, but the end goal should always be to connect face-to-face. “Online networking simply serves as a stepping stone to take things to the next level,” says Howes.
Consistently ranked as one of LinkedIn’s most connected women, Jenny DeVaughn, senior director of employment branding and sourcing at ADP, set herself the goal of connecting with three new people on the online platform every day. DeVaughn calls on her thousands of contacts whenever ADP is entering a new market and looking to recruit locally. “We ask very specific questions about who we should target,” she says. “You’d be amazed at the expert and valuable responses we get.”
The latest UK Staffing Trends survey says social professional networks are now an essential element of most good recruitment campaigns and are the top source for quality placements, doubling in size over the past four years. But it’s not just jobseekers that could benefit from a well-networked HR professional.
“HR is the people profession, so relationships are a key part of the success of practitioners inside and outside organisations,” Timms says.
For Leonard-Cross it comes down to curiosity: “As an HR professional I think you have to keep asking questions, going beyond your department, industry or sector and keep challenging assumptions.”
But the more reserved HR team member needn’t be put off. “Networking is a subject you can study. It is a topic you can read up on, and a skill that you can practise,” says Lawson, who questions why, if the skill is so important to business life, none of the UK’s universities offers ‘networking’ as a standalone course. “Unfortunately you can’t face-to-face network from the garden shed, so the first point is to get out there and have a go,” Howes adds.
Read People Management’s guide to being a better HR networker at bit.ly/PMnetworker
The People Management guide to networking
Julia Hobsbawn: "It's not about instant wins"