The Secrets of Successful Networking

Neil Munz-Jones, a retail management consultant, wrote his book "The Reluctant Networker" as a guide for those who find networking a daunting prospect.

Here we speak to Neil about the key ideas he presents in the book and what advice he has for reluctant networkers. I began by asking Neil to outline what kind of objectives networking can help us achieve.

Neil Munz-Jones: If you ask people why do you network, most people come up with ‘Well, it is a good way of finding a job’, and that’s certainly the case. Something like about 70% of jobs where the person who gets the job is recruited from outside the organisation are brought in via networking or direct approaches to the company.

It is a good sales tool. I have my own consulting business and I network extensively and off the back of that win a lot of business. If you have to do a sales pitch and you are up against other companies, if you have networked well you will tend to understand more about the company and what their issues and opportunities are and you will also know the people as well.

So those are the two obvious ones but there are a couple of other ones that I think are, if anything, are more important. And the first one is, it is a great tool for just doing your job well and I think particularly in today’s world where the pace of change is very fast, there are huge amounts of information available and so we are all expected to have the answer to everything but it is pretty difficult to do that and one solution is to think, ‘Well, who do I know in my network who could answer those questions?’

And the final one, having an active network opens up longer term opportunities for you in your career that you probably, if you don’t have an active network, you just never hear about.

Female interviewer: Why do you think people tend to find networking so difficult?

Neil Munz-Jones: The first thing to say is not everybody finds it difficult. There are some very natural networkers but I would say, I think the majority do find it difficult. I don’t think people really realise the benefits of networking. I think if you can see how it can help you, that will make it a lot easier, but I think the real reasons are, there are a couple of very negative thoughts that people have. They go, ‘Oh that’s about going to networking events isn’t it?’ and it is about working a room full of strangers and a lot of people find that very difficult. What you need to do is realise that there are so many other different ways to network, some of which they might find a lot more fun than going to networking events and also a lot of ways to do it that are a lot less time consuming, so using the internet, using email, using the telephone. I certainly have spent a lot of my time just in one-to-one meetings in coffee shops and I find that very enjoyable.

So the first point is you need to broaden your outlook on what networking is.

And then I think the second thing, which is probably at the crux of people’s difficulties with networking, is that people only ever do it when they want something and that really is the wrong mindset about networking and if you look at, talk to effective networkers, what you will see if that they spend as much time helping other people as they do getting help. And if you adopt that more, kind of open minded approach to networking, think of this as a two way thing, you will find it a much easier thing to do.

Female interviewer: When we are part of a network, what kind of things should be expected to contribute ourselves to it?

Neil Munz-Jones: One of the things that I do quite a lot of is what I would call connecting people. People come to me all the time and one of the things that I will do is think so who do I know in my network who I could introduce them to? That’s definitely something where you can invest and help other people.

Other things could be quite easy to do like, ‘Oh I read this article, thought you might be interested in it’, just something that’s particularly relevant and, you know, certainly if it is something that you have read on the internet there is usually an email this to a friend icon so it is a very simple easy thing to do.

Female interviewer: What do you think are the most common misconceptions about networking?

Neil Munz-Jones: The first is, I would say, people think networking is the end in itself whereas, you know, you should view it as no, it is a means to an end and there are lots of different ways to achieve it.

Second one is it is something you do when you need something. That’s not an ideal way to network. You need to view it as a much sort of longer term thing where the returns can be great but they are quite hard to measure and you can’t control when they are going to come.

The third thing that people view is this where it is about using people to get what you want and I would say, you know, no you have to view is as it is a two way activity that is based on mutual support.

And I think the last one is, some people have a view, well, it is just something that the bosses or sales people have to do and I would say, you know, it really is applicable to all working professionals, not just the people in sales or the bosses or the people who are looking for a job.

Female interviewer: How has the rise of social media affected the networking landscape?

Neil Munz-Jones: I think places like LinkedIn have transformed the, people’s ability to network and do it in a way that is very effective and very timely as well. So some of the things that I have used with LinkedIn, I have used it to track down and keep in touch with what I call the ‘outer echelons’ of my network. I have been working for 25 years and over those years I have met and worked with a lot of people as colleagues, as customers, as suppliers, consultants, you know, whatever they may be, and it is very hard to keep in touch with all of them. So it has been a fantastic way for me to just expand my network. I think it is also a fantastic tool for allowing you to find people that you would like to talk to and I think the other thing is, it makes it a very easy way for other people to find you. There are a number of other ones. There is Ecademy, there is Naymz, there is Plaxo. I don’t think you need to be on all of them and they can actually be quite time consuming, so I would suggest go on one but then do it really well, so spend time making sure that you have made the most of being in that network.

Female interviewer: In the book you point out that online networking isn’t appropriate for every networking situation. What kind of situations best suit face-to-face networking?

Neil Munz-Jones: Online is great for high quantity of networking but low quality. It is great for reconnecting with people, staying in touch with these outer echelons, finding people you might want to talk to, establishing contacts, giving people a quick update. It is a great tool for reaching huge quantities of people in your network with no cost and not a lot of investment in time. But if you then think about the face-to-face stuff, it is high quality networking but low quantity because it takes a lot of time but you are really building rapport, developing relationships, you know, it is not just about having thousands of contacts. You need to kind of narrow down who you are going to invest that time in to build relationships with but once you know who those are, relying on certainly just on email and the internet is really not good enough, the telephone is not bad but you really should be going to see them to really build that rapport.

So one of the things that I do is have a very clear focus for my networking and they are focused in two dimensions. One is what I want to do, so I am clear on the kind of sectors that I work in, the kind of projects that I do. So that helps me narrow down people in my network.

And then the second thing I do is I focus on who I network with and I have four criteria. One is, are they good networkers? Because if people are good networkers, they tend to be in this mindset of yes, happy to help introduce you to other people, they will tend to have a big network. I also think about, you know, are they decision- makers? Obviously, if they are senior people they tend to have budgets, be able to make decisions, so that is quite useful. I also focus on what I call business friends, people who, if a head hunter contacted them and said ‘Neil has applied for this job, would you give him a positive recommendation?’ they are the people that would say ‘Yes, I know him, I rate him.’ And those are the people who I think can be very powerful in terms of helping you in whatever your career objectives are. And the fourth group is former colleagues, so people that you have worked with in the past who know you, trust you, have seen you warts and all, will be good people to network with.

So I think the people that fit within my kind of sector role focus and the people that hit those criteria are the ones who I say, they are the ones I should be investing time in, building relationships and therefore they are the people that I will go and have face-to-face meetings with.

Female interviewer: What are the best ways for people to keep their nerves at bay during face-to-face networking activities?

Neil Munz-Jones: Don’t jump straight into talking about business. So if you are meeting somebody, whether it is a one-to-one or at a networking event, think about what are some icebreakers, something light hearted that you could do to just put you and them at ease, then I would think about what are some questions you could ask to sort of build rapport with them and once you have established that, then it is a lot easier to get into the more business aspects of the relationship in terms of going to events, you should be quite selective and target the ones that you go to. But once you start going, go to them regularly because then you start to see the same people again and again and you start to build relationships and they become a lot easier to go to because you know a whole load of people rather than every time you walk in it is a whole brand new room full of strangers that you have got to start from day one. The most important thing, one of the principles that I have put in the book, is what I call develop a style that works for you, so I think being genuine and true to yourself is very important.

Female interviewer: What are the most common mistakes people make when they are networking?

Neil Munz-Jones: The number one mistake, I would say, is only doing it when you need something. A few others that spring to mind. One is never asking people how you can help them. Another one is thinking that somebody that you used to work with a long time ago won’t remember you or want to hear from you. Another obvious one would be kind of not following up on actions. And then I think the last one I would say is, if you used LinkedIn to connect with somebody or to reconnect with them, don’t just stop there, keep in touch once you have re-established that. So one of the things that I do when I reconnect with people on LinkedIn in I don’t just accept the invitation, but I will send them an email and sometimes that leads to meeting up and having a cup of coffee, so you are actually investing a bit in the relationship.

Female interviewer: And finally, what are the top five things we can all do to become more effective networkers?

Neil Munz-Jones: Make sure you have a good database. I use Microsoft Outlook but it doesn’t really matter what you use, but something which allows you to capture the key contact details of the people in your network and as your network gets bigger and bigger, it obviously gets harder to maintain it and remember who everybody was, so one of the things that I do is in the notes section, put where did I meet them, he/she used to work at this company and we talked about this.

The second thing I would say is join LinkedIn or if you are already on it, make sure that your profile is fully up-to-date.

The third one is be very clear on what you are about, whether it is looking for a job or you are trying to sell your services, and then this thing about who you want to network with using those criteria that I talked about like the business friends.

The fourth one would be plan time for it, but I think you need to be realistic so don’t set yourself overly ambitious goals but just get in the habit of every couple of weeks, you know, spend half an hour, an hour, making some calls, emailing, looking on LinkedIn and then thinking about how you can help other people connecting them, start to go to maybe one event a month.

The last one is find a reason to get in touch with people. And I think there are just all sorts of really simple easy ways to get in touch with people. One would be introducing somebody in your network to somebody else. If you are already going to an event, why not invite someone else that you want to spend some time with? I am up in London quite a lot so quite often I will arrange a meeting with a person and off the back of that I will then email other people going, ‘Look, I am up in London any way, can we get together?’ So there are lots of little tips and tools and ways to keep in touch.

To wrap it up, get your database in shape, get on LinkedIn or some other business networking site and then use it properly, be very focused on what you are trying to get out of your networking and who you want to do it with, plan some time for it and then get into this habit of just simple ways to get in touch with people.