Networking vs Using People - wk 8 by Will

Review of “Teaching Positive Networking for Life-long Impact”

Contemporary Issues in Education Research – April 2010

In this week’s readings, Krackhardt and Hanson (1993) discuss how the three types of relationship networks (advice, trust and communication) translate into better management ties.  Similarly, Ibarra and Hunter (2007) observe three interdependent forms of networking (operational, personal and strategic) as vital to good leadership. The latter note that some leaders resist networking because they find it “insincere or manipulative – at best, an elegant way of using people.”

So where does networking stop and “using people” begin?

The authors of “Teaching Positive Networking for Life-long Impact” believe that good networking skills begin early.  This article is addressed to university professors as a tutorial in helping college students develop good networking skills.  And by good, they mean sincere.

One of the problems with networking, they note, is that people tend to rely on their networks only in time of need.  We’ve all been there – an old contact comes out of the woodwork because they need a job reference, or information pertinent to a lead, and once you provide them with the information you never hear back from them.

This is the kind of non-strategic networking that the authors inveigh against. Networking should be “more about giving than expecting benefits in return.” But no, this is not mere altruism. Inculcating a spirit of unconditional giving is fundamental in winning trust and securing benefits in return.  No one likes a “user.”

They offer a training process articulated through a series of exercises involving: attention to thank-you and congratulatory letters, initiating friendly, non-motivated correspondence, joining professional networks and service organizations, and generally learning the slow, old-fashioned considerations that are perhaps more valuable than ever in our speeded-up networking environment.

Good networking, in short, means trusting in the long-term returns without letting our behavior become predicated on those returns. Acting unselfconsciously in others' interests, knowing that "what comes around goes around," will bring about a positive networking community more resilient than a briefcase full of business cards.

This all sounds like it might have been written in 1950.  But it’s good food for thought. For all the complicated advice we’ve received on managerial networking, it’s good to remember that it all comes down to fundamental human emotions such as acceptance and validation. Sure, we’re all motivated to some extent by self-interest, particularly where our careers are concerned, but we have the choice of creating networks that consciously reflect that self-interest, or networks that resemble a community of friends ready to lend a helping hand.

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References

Addams, L., Woodbury, D & Addams, L. (2010). Teaching positive networking for

        lifelong impact. Contemporary Issues in Education Research, 3, 37-42.

Ibarra, H., and Hunter, M. (2007). How leaders create and use networks. Harvard

        Business Review, 1-9 (USC CMGT500 course pack).

Krackhardt, D, and Hanson, J. (1993). Informal networks: The company behind the chart,

       Harvard Business Review, 104-111 (USC CMGT500 course pack).