Networking in the Sunshine

Written by Mark Vickers from i4cp

Mark Vickers

Consider the word "network." It's one of those cool composite words that has evolved from humble beginnings to a place of prominence in the modern business world. It originated with things as ancient and tangible as fishing nets and knotted fabrics, but today it more commonly applies to complex, interconnected and abstract systems - including social systems.

In the 21st century, the most common usage of the word "networking" relates to working nets of people and information - weaving the web of humanity. It is, by definition, "work" and yet also as natural as breathing - an endeavor on which societies have been built since time immemorial.

Yet, only recently have we begun to truly study and leverage networks, spawning a rash of new ideas and tools. Social networking has become the adjective that modifies so many nouns these days:

* Social networking theories
* Social networking sites
* Social networking softwares
* Social networking analysis

And networking is, along with deep and thoughtful research, at the core of i4cp. This week, the institute's network was visibly flourishing in St. Pete Beach, Florida, during its 37th Annual Membership Conference. Even in today's lousy economy, a time when many conferences are suffering from low turnouts, i4cp enjoyed a doubling of its attendance from last year.

Members came to learn from their fellow practitioners from top companies about how to succeed in difficult, unusual times like these. “Our members are keenly aware that the combination of the latest workforce research and the ability to interact with senior corporate executives in a vendor-free environment is just the ticket in this economy," said Kevin Oakes, CEO of i4cp.

This combination of research and networking was on vivid display at the conference, kicked off on Day 1 by an excellent presentation on, well, networking. Hope Greenfield and Lisa Vertucci detailed their experiences in tracing organizational networks and determining which patterns and individuals are most strongly related to good performance.

The idea of networks and connections was woven into various subsequent presentations. For example, the structure of organizational connections - especially in the HR function - was the theme of Amy Kates, who gave the presentation "(Re)Designing the HR Organization: What We Are Learning About the New Models." Her underlying message is that HR has real choices about how to organize. It doesn't need to settle for a status quo in which harried, overextended and often unfocused HR professionals are asked to do the lion's share of work. Other, better options are available, and Kates outlined several models that can boost the impact and efficiency of HR.

Kates was followed by Eric Peterson, the manager of Diversity & Inclusion Initiatives for the Society for Human Resource Management, who discussed “Leveraging Diversity to Achieve Business Success.” One of the main ideas relayed in his presentation is that diversity has a key and positive impact on the business bottom line, and those who are advocates of greater diversity should not be afraid to highlight this fact. People of different backgrounds have different ideas about how to do things, from producing better cars to making tastier corn chips. By leveraging their unique insights, companies can forge much stronger connections to today's diverse, global marketplace. Diversity expands overall networking potential, linking it to new sources of talent, information and innovation.

Day 2 of the conference was headed up by Libby Sartain, former CHRO of both Yahoo! Inc. and Southwest Airlines, and co-author of the soon-to-be-released Brand for Talent: Eight Essentials to Make Your Talent as Famous as Your Brand. Again, connections were key. As i4cp research analyst Katharine Fair writes, "Libby Sartain has 750 Facebook friends. She’s LinkedIn. She Twitters. And she highly recommends that HR folks get onboard the social networking bandwagon to connect to today’s talent pool."

Sartain practices what she preaches, but, working with i4cp on a survey project, she found that many companies do not. Whereas 97% of HR leaders said their companies have developed an employer brand, less than half (43%) believe their corporate culture supports the employer brand. This is the kind of disconnect that can unhinge an organization's talent branding efforts.

Other presentations discussed the connections among and between different generations. For example, Stan Smith, national director of Next Generation Initiatives at Deloitte, discussed research into Millennials in the U.S., India and China, finding more similarities than differences. Again, networks come into play. "Smith suggested that these similarities are due to several factors, but the big one is technology. Young people in all three countries are big technology consumers, and the connectivity this technology brings makes it more likely that their wants and needs will align," notes i4cp research analyst David Wentworth.

Connections and technology are also critical to innovation in organizations. Tamar Elkeles, Ph.D. and chief learning officer at i4cp member company Qualcomm, talked about how her firm plans to continue to innovate and grow, even during tough economic times. A number of Qualcomm's measures for cultivating a more innovative culture make excellent use of human networking facilitated by technology. Take, for example, the Qualcomm Employee Tradeshow. Research analyst Mike Grohs writes, "[Qualcomm] took their trade show to a new level by creating an online version for members who were unable to attend the public show. The goal of these gatherings is to generate excitement about the company and its employees’ ideas as well as to educate them about projects and goings-on among other groups."

Day 3 was also about connections, especially the ways in which people can inspire and learn from one another. Kenny Moore, co-author of The CEO and the Monk: One Company’s Journey to Profit and Purpose, discussed how managers and HR professionals can help during difficult times. One method involves simply reaching out to people and listening. Analyst Katharine Fair sums up Moore's advice: "Start by scheduling meetings with three co-workers you admire. Ask them two questions. First, why do you stay here? Then shut up (this is important) and write down everything they say. Second, ask how we can get more people in the organization to feel like them. Again, be quiet and write it down. Then make your contribution by acting on at least two of the things they’ve told you."

In many ways, this is the ultimate in networking, with people reaching out to one another thoughtfully and respectfully, learning from those whom they most admire. The technologies are increasingly powerful, of course, as are the social networking theories and analysis that help us understand the nuances of networks. But, in the end, it's all about making real connections with good and knowledgeable people - people whose help we can use and whom we may be able to help in turn.