The Art of Networking
I have been accused of building my business on networking. My responsibilities as editor of
The Siebel Observer, The PeopleSoft Observer and The SAP Observer give me many opportunities to make
professional contacts, an essential skill of any successful journalist. Everyone can build a strong network of business
contacts around them if they make the effort. Despite recent advances in technology, network building is still as much an
art as a science.
Trust
Human beings have evolved into highly social animals. Not all species share this trait. As familiar examples,
bears and tigers lead happy and satisfying lives almost entirely in their own company. As social animals, people are more
like bees or ants in creating complex social systems with specialized responsibilities. The mortar that holds any social
system together is trust - the fact that two people can have confidence in each other's character, ability and/or knowledge.
Your network is a social system. Its foundation is another's ability to trust you. You can only be trustworthy when you are
true to your nature. You have to be honest with yourself about what other people can trust you with and honest with them when
you can not deliver. By the same token you have to be able to trust the contacts in your network. That does not mean you have
to trust everyone in your network with your life, much less your wallet. Also, there are going to be people that you do not
want to have as part of your network, either because you can't trust them or they can't trust you. Technology doesn't alter
this trait of human nature,
Timing
The wrong time to build a network is when you need it most. Trust is almost never instant. It has to be built over time
through a series of small interactions that build mutual confidence. The most dangerous time to trust anyone is when they
are desperate. If you wait until you need someone to establish a relationship, it is usually too late. On the flip side,
the best time to establish a relationship with someone is when they need you. One very successful head of a system integration
firm calls up CIOs right after he hears they have been let go. He invites them to play a round of golf and introduces them to a
headhunter to help them find their next job. When they do, they almost invariably do business with his firm.
Breadth
Some of the most valuable contacts in your network will be with the very people who are most unlike you. The classic example
in the movies is the man who sweeps his date into the crowded nightclub and immediately gets a table at the front because he
knows the maitre d' personally. In sales, experienced reps know the importance of getting the support of administrative
assistants, who can often be of more help than their bosses. If you have a high level position, having a number of contacts
at other levels can be extremely useful.
Occasions
A useful way to create and expand networks is to create occasions. Every winter I sponsor a retreat called The Enterprise
Software Summit in Sundance, Utah. The event is an opportunity for people I meet throughout the year to get to know each other
in an environment that encourages business relationships. Now in its fifth year, the Summit has become an occasion akin to
St. Patrick's Day in some people's calendar. You can do the same thing by planning a dinner or a luncheon and giving your
professional contacts a chance to meet one another and expand their network.
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