Picture a forest where only one kind of tree grows, and every one of the trees was planted at the same time. No moss. No underbrush. No canopy. Now imagine that a drought dries up the soil and the insects along with it. Birds go silent. Bees disappear. With no cross-pollination, the buds shrivel and the roots wither. Before long . . .
Most of us understand the idea of biodiversity, the necessary interdependence of ecosystems. And if leadership is a social activity, as we've shown, then it, too, is a kind of ecosystem that thrives on diversity. Instead of soil, roots, and several species of animal life, it's built on interlocking relationships that sustain knowledge, ability, and wisdom.
Think of your leadership network, the connections you build, as an ecosystem that affects how you share and receive new ideas. Networks also build social capital, interdisciplinary collaboration, and cross-functional integration. Formal channels are often insufficient mechanisms for coordination and cooperation. Networks are a means of cross-pollination that allow leaders to locate resources and information outside their routine interactions. Personal connections formed through networks build coalitions, influence others, and reconcile goals that would otherwise have business units working at cross purposes.
On the flip side of this, CCL research identifies patterns of leaders who:
- PLATEAU PREMATURELY AND ARE DEMOTED OR FIRED.
- SHOW DIFFICULTY BUILDING AND LEADING TEAMS.
- HAVE TROUBLED INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS.
- FAIL TO ADAPT TO AND LEAD CHANGE.
- MISS BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES.
- HAVE TOO NARROW A FUNCTIONAL ORIENTATION.
What is at the root of many of these problems? Leaders' networks—or lack thereof.
Networks are at the heart of creating social capital for your future. With an accurate network perspective and the accompanying skills, you can strategically invest in your personal networks and build the influence that is needed to pursue your vision and goals at each stage of your career. And when the unexpected occurs and you need to marshal resources and support, networks can be indispensable.
NETWORK IS A VERB
Conventional wisdom often places networking in the context of looking for a new job, chatting at parties and events, or working in sales. That's a nice capability to have in those situations, but leadership networking is not principally concerned with collecting business cards or schmoozing. Where it is an essential skill is in the day-to-day work of leading and making alliances in service of other people—customers, clients, constituents, peers, bosses, and employees—all to advance the organization.
Leaders who create strong, broad-based networks:
- INCREASE EFFECTIVENESS BY DEEPENING COMMUNICATION CHANNELS BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS.
- REMOVE POLITICAL ROADBLOCKS BY BRIDGING DISTANCES THAT SEPARATE BUSINESS UNITS.
- OPEN UP NEW OPPORTUNITIES AND UNCOVER IDEAS BY “CROSS-POLLINATING” WITH OTHERS.
- STRENGTHEN THEIR POWER BASE BY BOTH ACCEPTING AND DELIVERING SUPPORT WHEN NEEDED.
- GAIN EXPOSURE ACROSS THEIR ORGANIZATIONS BY HIGHLIGHTING INDIVIDUAL EFFORTS WITHIN THEIR GROUPS.
Some managers in leadership roles are ambivalent about or even averse to the idea of networking, regarding it as tedious or self-serving. But becoming a more effective leader requires developing relationships with others. If managers set aside conventional notions of top-down leadership, the reality is that they can take networking and other related interpersonal skills, such as political savvy and getting support for your vision, to a higher level.
“SOMETIMES, IDEALISTIC PEOPLE ARE PUT OFF THE WHOLE BUSINESS OF NETWORKING AS SOMETHING TAINTED BY FLATTERY AND THE PURSUIT OF SELFISH ADVANTAGE. BUT VIRTUE IN OBSCURITY IS REWARDED ONLY IN HEAVEN. TO SUCCEED IN THIS WORLD, YOU HAVE TO BE KNOWN TO PEOPLE.”
— SONIA SOTOMAYOR
Before we delve into the mindset, skillset, and toolset for leveraging your network, consider the ten behaviors listed below that typify a network-savvy leader; identify the three that you feel you are currently strongest in and the corresponding three that you feel are most in need of development.
| STRENGTH | NEED |
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Has a positive view of networking. |
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Actively engages in networking activities. |
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Maintains relationships within existing network. |
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Seeks out new relationships as needs and circumstances change. |
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Understands how to draw upon network relationships. |
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Approaches network relationships as a two-way street. |
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Is concerned with meeting others' needs as well as having own needs met. |
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Leverages network to both solve problems and create opportunities. |
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Regards networking activities as transcending organizational, geographic, or other barriers. |
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Is direct and transparent in approach to networking with others. |
Take a moment to reflect on how your perceived strengths and corresponding development needs in this area have played out in the past and currently. As you progress through this chapter, keep in mind how you might augment or leverage these approaches.
NETWORKING A REVERSE DISASTER: THE ICE BUCKET CHALLENGE
In the United States, during the heat of August 2014, thousands of people were dumping buckets of ice water on their heads. The reason: In one of the most successful fund-raising campaigns in history, participants raised $115 million for medical research into ALS, a fatal disease of the brain and spinal cord.
And even stranger than the phenomenon of ice-drenched people sharing videos of themselves on social media, the money was largely unsolicited, and the campaign began as a spontaneous instance of networking on a scale previously seen only in response to disasters. But this was a disaster in reverse.
Eventually known as the Ice Bucket Challenge, the idea began as a small gesture of support among friends of a person suffering from ALS. Soon it began to spread from state to state and coast to coast, with sports stars, entertainers, even former presidents challenging each other to raise money for the cause.
The phenomenon had its critics, who called it everything from “impulse charity”—in which donors lacked true commitment—to “funding cannibalism,” which risked draining potential donations to research on more widespread diseases such as cancer or Alzheimer's.
Yet the campaign illustrated the immense power of networks to get results that could otherwise have taken years to achieve. The direct outcome was that within a year after the Ice Bucket Challenge, research scientists at Johns Hopkins leveraged the resources generated to advance experiments that isolated the gene that causes ALS, with an eye toward halting the progressive disease.
How might you harness the power of your (and, by association, others') networks to create a ripple effect of positive change?
Leaders may face the temptation to build expansive networks, but a large network isn't necessarily a good network. The demands of large networks can be draining—and still not provide access to the information, resources, and relationships that matter most to be effective. To build an effective network, shift your mindset from focusing on the number of people to paying attention to quality and structure.
Have a look at the two networks depicted on the next page. Which do you think provides more opportunities for new ideas or influence?
Many people choose the image on the top, but in fact, the one on the bottom offers greater opportunities. Here are three elements that distinguish that network and should be part of your focus in network building.
GOOD NETWORKS ARE OPEN
Open networks are those where the people you know are not all connected to each other. This creates what is called structural diversity in a leader's network. Leaders with open networks are more likely to hear new information before others. They are better able to merge dissimilar ideas and capitalize on opportunities that require this integration. They tend to perform better, are promoted more rapidly, enjoy greater career mobility, and adapt to change more effectively.
GOOD NETWORKS ARE DIVERSE
Connections that cross critical boundaries in the organization provide additional diversity—and many of the same advantages of open networks. Much of the work of leadership involves working across vertical, horizontal, stakeholder, demographic, and geographic boundaries for group and organizational success. An individual leader's network connections form the bridges that span these boundaries and allow for collective action.
GOOD NETWORKS ARE DEEP
Leaders who build deep, quality relationships with others are able to exchange information, resources, and skills with people from different backgrounds. These deep relationships provide valuable perspective and resources, including social support and camaraderie in the workplace. Building high-quality relationships with others is estimated to be four times the predictor of performance compared to other network predictors.
The following statements are actually false:
1. DEVELOPING STRATEGIC RELATIONSHIPS IS INSINCERE AND MANIPULATIVE.
2. PEOPLE BUILD AND USE THEIR NETWORKS ONLY TO GET AHEAD.
3. NETWORKING IS NOT REAL WORK, SO LEADERS SHOULDN'T BUILD IN TIME FOR IT.
4. THE GOAL IS TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF BUSINESS CARDS IN YOUR POCKET, CONTACTS IN OUTLOOK, CONNECTIONS ON LINKEDIN, OR TWITTER FOLLOWERS.
5. YOU NEED A CERTAIN PERSONALITY TO SUCCEED IN NETWORKING.
How might you need to alter your beliefs and assumptions about networking?
Building a strong and vibrant leadership network requires time and effort, but it doesn't need to overwhelm you. Once you understand how your present network is structured, who is involved, and where you can evolve your network toward being more open, diverse, and deep, you can get there quicker and easier by using these eight approaches.
LEARN FROM OTHERS
Individuals who learn by accessing others seek advice, examples, support, or instruction from people who have met a challenge similar to the one they face, or they learn how to do something by watching someone else do it. Think about who networks well in your organization or in your community. What exactly do they do, and what do they say? Try similar tactics or approaches. Ask them to talk to you about their view of networking and how they build and use relationships. Keep a networking notebook for a week. Observe people around you in meetings, working together, and in casual interactions. Who seems connected? Who seems isolated? What specifically are they doing? What clues does this activity give you about how you should act and how you should treat others?
Bring others into your world. Invite them to lunch. Find time for a 15- or 30-minute conversation to find out what is happening in their world and to tell them what you and your group are doing. Invite others to your meetings and ask them to contribute their expertise and their perspectives or to explore possible connections between their work and yours. Arrange one invitation each week. One week you may ask a teammate to talk for 15 minutes after a meeting and ask for an opinion on another project. The next week, you could invite a peer to lunch. Keep up the once-a-week practice and soon it will be routine.
INVITE YOURSELF
Ask to sit in on another group's meeting or planning session. Join a committee or group outside your own area. Set a goal to join a new committee or task force in the next month. If you don't know what options you have, spend a week gathering ideas. Talk to your boss, ask a peer, or check in with human resources.
ASK FOR FEEDBACK
Seek honest answers from peers, direct reports, and superiors to gain a clear picture of how you and your group function and what impact you have on others. Seeking feedback engages others in a constructive way by adding depth to existing relationships. Ask for specific comments about how others see you in regard to your relationships with others, how you share information, how you use your influence, and other networking skills.
“NETWORKING IS MARKETING. MARKETING YOURSELF, YOUR UNIQUENESS, WHAT YOU STAND FOR.”
— CHRISTINE COMAFORD
Volunteer for assignments or projects that give you an opportunity to work across functions. One of the best ways to build connections with others is to work together on something. A fringe benefit is the visibility you will gain with people outside your department. Volunteer for the next assignment that involves people outside your work group. Whatever it is—a presentation to senior management, giving a plant tour, or working on a cross-functional team—raise your hand and take that step forward.
BE DIRECT
Let people know what you are doing, why it matters, and how it relates to their work or goals. By communicating clearly, you help others see how they can connect to you and your work to achieve their own goals. Talk to your direct reports about networking. Tell them you are making efforts to extend your network and that you want their input. Ask them about their projects and challenges. Make a list of people, departments, or functions that could be helpful in accomplishing their goals—seek and incorporate information from your direct reports in that list. With their help and input, make a plan that you and your direct reports can follow to create or improve your networks.
Develop and offer yourself as a source of information about people, processes, and facts. Increase your ability to connect with strategic information about your organization. Make a list of your information assets. What do you know? What information does your group hold? How might your information be useful to others? Make a plan to disseminate information appropriately and intentionally.
MAKE ALLIES
You may be able to develop your networking skills by working with a mentor, colleague, or coach. For a source of coaching or mentoring, look to others you see as successful leadership networkers. Interview effective networkers in your organization. Capture their specific behaviors. Ask them to observe your behaviors related to networking and to offer you feedback. You could also recruit a networking ally. The two of you could practice networking and give each other feedback, support, and encouragement.
“MY GOLDEN RULE OF NETWORKING IS SIMPLE: DON'T KEEP SCORE.”
— HARVEY MACKAY
Now it's time to map your own current leadership network. This diagram is a visual picture of the people you interact with to accomplish your work. Having a picture of your network in mind is the first step toward developing or improving your networking skills. In the space following.
- Draw the names of your key relationships (boss, direct reports, peers, customers, and so on).
- Draw double lines to those with whom you interact frequently.
- Draw single lines to people with whom you interact less frequently.
- Draw dotted lines to names of those with whom you only have rare contact.
Next, answer the following questions:
- How open, diverse, and deep is your network?
- How much do you depend upon your direct reports? People outside your scope of authority?
- What determines how much you interact with different people?
