3

Envision Your Ideal Network

BUILDING NETWORKING relationships across internal boundaries and even outside the perimeters creates the strong ties the Network-Oriented Workplace needs. Competency 3 is all about how to increase the scope and balance of your network.

The Four Nets

Everyone has Four Nets: a WorkNet, an OrgNet, a ProNet, and a LifeNet. Together these terms describe your ideal network. Take a look at Figure 3–1, The Four Nets Matrix.

To be a success and achieve your greatest potential, you’ll make and maintain relationships in all Four Nets and leverage contacts, resources, and information from one Net to another.

What’s the purpose of thinking in terms of “Nets”? You may be like Nick, who said, “I know a lot of people. I just don’t know what to do with them.” Nets help you to see clearly what kinds of contacts you have and where the holes are. Nets help you take a strategic look at your contacts—their commonalities, their professional expertise, their diversity, and their range. As you think about who you know in each of your Four Nets, you’ll probably notice that you have some underdeveloped areas. As you add contacts, you will expand and strengthen your networks.

Nets help you take a strategic look at your contacts.

YOUR WORKNET

Your WorkNet includes everyone you work with day-by-day or periodically to get your job done. It includes current coworkers, team members, clients/customers, partners, vendors/suppliers, consultants, contractors, and people you work with remotely. WorkNet contacts are, for the most part, assigned, not chosen by you. They’re a given. But establishing productive and collaborative relationships with these people doesn’t happen automatically.

Nancy’s WorkNet includes the six people she supervises, two contractors, and her boss. One supervisee is in Rome. Her boss is 200 miles away in New York City. Another very important person in her WorkNet is the budget officer, Sam, with whom she works closely for several days each quarter. Notice that people in your WorkNet don’t necessarily work in your department and may not even be employees at all.

Alejandro, in finance, works with Tim, Maria, and Swansetta almost every day. He only works with Patty when they are preparing numbers for the annual report, but they stay in touch all year long. When annual report time comes along, they’re ready to collaborate.

WorkNet contacts help you:

1. Get the job done.

2. Be more productive.

3. Unsnarl bureaucratic tie-ups.

4. Round up or draw on talent.

5. Access inside information.

6. Find resources.

7. Solve problems.

8. Make better decisions and “field-test” ideas.

WorkNet challenges include:

   Balancing relationship-building activities with your task responsibilities.

   Knowing how to start and cultivate relationships.

   Getting relationships back on track if friction occurs.

   Systematically learning about the skills, expertise, capabilities, and interests of the people you work with, so you can get the job done and draw on the talents of others in your work group to the maximum.

One pitfall in WorkNet relationships is that it’s easy to get so busy that you forget to appreciate the people on your team. Sumit said, “I don’t have time to constantly say thanks for this and thanks for that. It’s their job, for heaven’s sake!” Sumit would probably get more done in the long run if he found easy, informal ways to say “Job well-done!” or “Thanks for your help.” Write a note, find a relevant cartoon, bring in a snack, think of another way to let someone know that you don’t take his or her contributions for granted.

YOUR ORGNET

Unlike your WorkNet, your OrgNet is entirely created by you. It’s made up of people in other divisions, departments, and business units of the organization. Jim in HR met Chris in IT when they both took a three-day training program at the company’s headquarters. They found they had much in common and much to learn from each other. They make it a point to have lunch every month or so to compare notes on company strategy and look for areas where their initiatives or expertise could help each other. Your OrgNet gives you a way to stay in touch with enterprise-wide contacts up and down the hierarchy. Because your OrgNet spans internal barriers and reaches out to include people at various levels, it exemplifies the Network-Oriented Workplace. The OrgNet you create is far more complex, diverse, and useful than any organization chart.

Your OrgNet leaps boundaries and ignores ranks.

When Nancy started her job as purchasing manager she made it a point to eat lunch in the cafeteria with someone from a different department at least two or three times a week. She asked each of them lots of questions to get to know them and to gain an understanding of their emerging issues and upcoming challenges. Her relationships helped her anticipate needs and know who to call when questions came up.

Your OrgNet contacts may be people you’ve met as you work on special task forces, go to training programs, or participate in events hosted by communities of practice and employee resource groups. They may be mentors and other key contacts, but are not in your immediate work group.

OrgNet contacts help you:

1. See ways to contribute on a large scale, have an impact, create change.

2. Bolster the bottom line.

3. Support organizational initiatives.

4. Act like a leader, not just an employee.

5. Create a safety net in case there are layoffs.

6. Stay tuned into the big picture.

7. Find new career opportunities.

8. Make your skills visible to a wider group of people.

OrgNet challenges include:

   Being strategic, efficient, and skillful in reaching out and staying in touch.

   Assessing the cultural ground rules. As your networker identity develops, you will find reaching out beyond your job responsibilities easier. Your new skills will help you feel more comfortable as you risk reaching out. If you feel your organization hasn’t yet overtly acknowledged the value of your networking activities and encouraged them, ask people in your OrgNet if they feel they not only have permission to network, but are being asked to do so. You probably will find that any concerns you’ve had will disappear.

   Noticing and creating opportunities to connect with people outside your WorkNet.

   Finding appropriate ways to initiate contact with people above you in the hierarchy.

One pitfall in creating your OrgNet is that you may feel too busy to relate to any more people. At the beginning of one of our training programs Sam said loud and clear, “I really don’t have time to develop an OrgNet. Besides, everybody else is as busy as I am—they don’t want to hear from me!” By the end of the two-day workshop, he’d found so much value in connecting with people in the class—all of whom were outside of his department—that he was singing a different tune. He eagerly made plans to get together with André, Maria, and Randy in the coming weeks and volunteered to spearhead a cross-functional group to look at ways to consolidate the number of vendor relationships the company had.

YOUR PRONET

Your ProNet consists of professional contacts outside the organization. It includes people you know through your membership in professional associations or service clubs, people you used to work with in previous jobs, former clients/customers, partners, vendors/suppliers, consultants, contractors, and virtual workers, along with other contacts you’ve chosen to build relationships with for professional reasons.

Some of them may be professional connections you’ve made on LinkedIn or similar sites. Omar worked with Jared at a previous job, and now they enjoy sharing best practices and noticing trends in their profession—mostly through Internet conversations. Lee also learns from peers in other organizations, people he sees regularly at his local professional association meetings. He’s on the program committee because taking an active role lets him showcase his skills and become known to others. Omar and Lee both look for opportunities to take good ideas from their ProNets back into their own organizations.

Seth, a technical editor, is a member of the International Association of Business Communicators. When he was looking for a job in corporate communications, it didn’t take him long to find someone in IABC who was leaving her job to go back to graduate school and who knew his talents because of their work together on a committee. She was eager to refer him for the job.

ProNet contacts help you:

1. Develop professionally and increase your mastery and expertise, so you can get your job done and contribute ideas to your larger organization.

2. Benchmark your skills and stay market-ready.

3. Provide valuable BringBack—tips, trends, business intelligence, best practices to share with your colleagues.

4. Find career advancement opportunities.

5. Give back to your profession as you teach and mentor others.

ProNet challenges include:

   Making strategic decisions about what groups to join.

   Spending your time and money wisely.

   Becoming visible and showing who you are and what you’re good at in everything you do and say.

   Making the effort to start and maintain relationships.

   Introducing new ideas and ways of doing things into your organization.

   Finding the time and money to participate.

One pitfall in developing and using your ProNet is the time it takes. Daichi explained why he was reluctant to reach out when he had a question or a challenge, even when he thought others in his professional circle might have answers. “It’s probably not worth the time to ask people for help. It’s usually just easier to figure it out by myself rather than get other people involved. And besides, I don’t want to owe too many favors.”

As Daichi develops his networker identity, he’ll realize that two heads really are better than one. Giving James or Nancy a quick call will get him information faster and perhaps a new perspective or insight. Asking for help also builds relationships by solidifying trust. After all, would you ask someone you didn’t trust?

YOUR LIFENET

Your LifeNet is made up of family, friends, and leisure-time contacts. It includes people who share your interests, people in non–work-oriented organizations, such as your alumni association or your place of worship. It includes neighbors, people you meet socially or when you exercise, and fellow volunteers.

You may stay up to date with many of them on Facebook, as well as getting together face to face. They bring you a wealth of information, support, and resources. Even though you meet these people in the personal realm of your life, they can have a tremendous impact on your career.

John’s LifeNet has enriched his work life. John finds Frank, his next-door neighbor, a great sounding board for workplace concerns. When Frank’s college-age daughter was looking for a summer internship, John introduced her to the right people in his company. John also learns a lot from his sister-in-law. She’s an experienced manager in a different company and industry, so having been in a similar role for just six months, he asks for confidential advice on tricky situations.

Your LifeNet brings you a wealth of information, support, and resources.

Bob and Juan met each other at an alumni association golf tournament. Both engineers, their friendship flourished. Several years later they decided to start their own engineering consulting firm.

LifeNet contacts help you:

1. Feel the joy and camaraderie of going through life in community.

2. Gain access to diverse kinds of information and resources.

3. Celebrate when times are good and commiserate when times are bad.

4. Develop new skills in a nonthreatening environment.

5. Meet new contacts whose skills or resources may be useful at work.

LifeNet challenges include:

   Reinventing your LifeNet as you go through the stages of life, for instance, when you move, or work abroad, or face an empty nest, or experience changes in your marital status, or develop new interests, or retire.

   Staying in touch with people when work demands are high.

   Realizing that many things you share with friends and family (especially electronically!) might not be appropriate for people in your other three Nets to know—unfortunately, everything that happens on Facebook stays on Facebook.

One common pitfall you might face in developing a strong LifeNet is the temptation to “quarantine” your personal relationships. Bob, a financial planner, said, “I like to keep business and personal separate. And besides, my mother-in-law would never understand what I do.” Lloyd, a CPA, said, “Sure I get together with the guys to play basketball every week, but we don’t talk about work.” Too bad! Learning how to bring resources, ideas, and people from one Net to another is one thing that truly savvy networkers do with ease—to the great advantage of everyone involved. Your networks thrive when you bring in out-of-the ordinary information and out-of-the box solutions.

To sum up:

   Your WorkNet helps you get the job done.

   Your OrgNet helps you stay in touch with the big picture and contribute to the overall success of your organization.

   Your ProNet helps you gain expertise and mastery in your chosen profession, keeps you in touch with larger business trends, and provides opportunities to give back to your profession.

   Your LifeNet helps you create community, get the most out of life, and connect to—and contribute to—abundance for yourself and others.

Looking back at Figure 3–1, The Four Nets Matrix, notice that your WorkNet and OrgNet contacts are all inside your organization. Your ProNet and LifeNet contacts are all outside your organization. If you take a new job in a new company or change professions, you’ll need to develop new contacts in your ProNet to support your new job and function. If you change jobs within your organization, you’ll still have access to the same OrgNet, but who you need to know might shift a bit. And since the people in your LifeNet are literally going through life with you, they are considered more long term than short term. But even LifeNet cohorts can and do change over time. When Mary broke her leg skiing she lost touch with some of the folks she met on the slopes, but developed a new set of friends in her rehab at the swimming pool.

The value is in the way your Nets work together. It’s about balance and synergy. You’ll find that as you leverage contacts and opportunities from one Net to another, you’ll have more resources and support at your fingertips and multiply your impact in every area of your life.

Developing Your Nets

To assess the state of your Nets, list five or more prime contacts in each Net. As you come up with names, you may notice that you’ve neglected to cultivate contacts in one or two of your Nets. Ask yourself, “Where are the holes? What kinds of contacts am I missing?” Sometimes life gets in the way of network building. For instance, Jake was the single father of two children under five and also cared for his elderly father who lived nearby. Understandably, he had neglected his ProNet. As soon as his LifeNet stopped needing so much of his attention, he rejoined his professional association and revved up his ProNet. On the other hand, Helen realized she’d neglected her LifeNet because her job was so demanding. She started scheduling more time with friends and immediately felt less stressed.

Do you have contacts in all Four Nets?

Take a look at four people with four very different Net-balance challenges.

George’s WorkNet was ailing. George was a results-oriented, hard-driving taskmaster. When several people he managed got burnt out and left his team, he decided that one way to boost morale would be to make it a point to celebrate and appreciate more of the milestones and achievements of people in his WorkNet. Every Friday afternoon, he asked himself, “Who do I appreciate this week?” He found unique and fun ways to acknowledge individuals, as well as the group. He gave baseball tickets to Ken. He sent a funny “Congrats on a job well done” card to Jo’s home, so her whole family would see it. After a big project was finished, he invited a professional masseuse from his LifeNet to give 10-minute neck massages to anyone who wanted one during the lunch hour. George’s WorkNet relationships improved. His team felt more satisfied with the fun and recognition George had introduced.

Marylou’s OrgNet needed some nourishment. Marylou noticed that her OrgNet included only people on the second and third floors of the company’s headquarters. She wondered, “How can I get to know people on the fourth and fifth floors?” They had a separate cafeteria, so she decided to occasionally eat lunch on the fifth floor. She turned proximity and casual conversations into dynamic and useful relationships. Expanding her OrgNet made all the difference in her understanding of the big picture, her ability to work cross-functionally, and her skill in anticipating needs and solving intergenerational misunderstandings—all assets as she operates in the Network-Oriented Workplace.

Your ProNet is your lifeline to new ideas, best practices, and hot trends.

Perry’s ProNet was desperate for fresh air. When Perry realized that he could think of only a few people in his ProNet, he understood why he felt “stale” and unengaged. He ramped up his participation in his professional association to reestablish his lifeline to new ideas, best practices, and hot trends. As he began to bring back some of the innovative ideas he was learning from his association peers and mentors, he got his spark back, and his supervisees appreciated what they called “the new Perry.”

Annette’s LifeNet needed a lift. As Annette listed the people in her Four Nets, she began to wonder why she almost never talked about work with her family and friends. Why had she never thought to explore with her exercise buddies or her choir mates what expertise or connections they might have to help her solve work-related problems and professional challenges? Once she decided to occasionally steer the conversation toward work, she got quite a surprise. She discovered that getting to know the young alto sitting next to her in choir practice was a great way to understand more about how to relate to her two new employees who were fresh out of college.

When you have a mental model of your Four Nets, you can develop and draw upon diverse contacts to get the job done. Your connections and collaborations make the Network-Oriented Workplace work and give you the kind of visibility that leads to career success.

Your KeyNets

A KeyNet is a small group of strategically chosen people who can help you achieve one specific goal. When you set a new goal or begin to work on a new project, that’s the perfect time to draw together a new KeyNet to help you accomplish it. Include people from at least three and maybe all four of your Four Nets. Assuming you have a project or goal that’s bigger than you alone can accomplish—and most are, you will select people for your various KeyNets because of what they can bring to the effort.

Consulting with a few well-chosen key players can assure the success of any special project, and your KeyNets are the way you collaborate to make things happen. In their Harvard Business Review article, “Managing Yourself: A Smarter Way to Network,” University of Virginia’s Rob Cross and Accenture’s Robert Thomas say “effective core networks typically range in size from 12 to 18 people.” Suppose you want to transfer to your company’s office in Tokyo, or revamp your firm’s orientation program, or start a new professional association that will serve your specialized niche, or launch a new webcast series to stay in touch with people at remote worksites. Create a KeyNet!

SELECTING YOUR KEYNET

How do you choose the right people?

1. Start with a goal. Write your goal or project at the top of a blank sheet of paper. For instance, “Start a summer internship program for my company.”

2. List people. Choose people from any of your Four Nets to help you get it done. Ask yourself these questions: Who else has a stake in accomplishing this? Who would benefit? Who has influence or information or resources? Who will I have to “get on board” to make this succeed? Who would I enjoy working with? Who can act as a champion?

3. Look for “connection gaps.” Is it important to have someone from each of your Nets? Ask yourself these questions: Who else will I need to start working with or build a relationship with to achieve my goal? Is this KeyNet diverse with regard to geography, gender, professional role, experience, and age? Who could stop me or significantly slow me down if I don’t engage with them? Are there people in my OrgNet I should align with? Have I forgotten any valuable players in my ProNet and LifeNet? Who can my friends and mentors connect me with?

4. Prioritize the people. Look at the list of people you just made. You should have between 12 and 15 people on it. Ask yourself: How important is each of these people in helping me achieve my goal? Use Low, Moderate, or High to rank the people on your list and help you see who to start networking first with about your goal.

5. Assess the quality of these relationships. Start with relationships that you’ve decided are of High and Moderate importance. Remember to risk reaching out. There are three things you can do with your relationships: 1) enrich one that works well; 2) repair one that has gotten off track; 3) start or rev up one that is nonexistent or shaky.

Let’s take a closer look at the three ways you can deal with your relationships:

Enrich a relationship. When you enrich a relationship, you deepen or reinforce it. When the relationship is already great, cultivate it further by showing appreciation and looking for new opportunities to help the other person. Recap what’s gone well and appreciate that person’s contribution. Acknowledge the level of trust. For example, you might say, “I know I can always count on you.” Confirm that you’re eager to help in any way you can.

Repair a relationship. Some relationships need fixing. Maybe you got off to a rocky start. Maybe the two of you had a misunderstanding. Maybe she stepped on your toes. Maybe you forgot to do what you promised. The relationship can get back on track if you acknowledge the situation, especially the part you played in the problem. Be prepared to appreciate the other person’s qualities and skills and ask good questions to help you understand her point of view. Listen generously as you seek out positives and take ownership for repairing the relationship. You might say, “I know we’ve had some rocky times, but I’d like to turn over a new leaf and bring my best to working with you. I apologize for any part I had in creating the difficulties. I’d like to explore how we can start fresh and head off any misunderstandings in the future.”

Start or rev up a relationship. Is there someone you’d like to enlist for your KeyNet, but have a minimal relationship with? Or maybe you and he have never even met? Maybe you need to get your boss’s boss on board, but she works in Sydney, and you’re based in Paris. Maybe the VP of Information Technology is new to the company—but crucial to your project. If that’s the case, is there someone who can give you an introduction? Have you checked out the person’s LinkedIn profile or company intranet profile to look for commonalities? Maybe you and she both went to the same university, or both have twins, or were both recently certified as coaches. It’s up to you to risk reaching out. When you meet, ask good questions, listen for ways you can help, look for “the Give,” and learn about the person’s expertise, background, and talents. Listen to that person’s challenges and find a resource, some information, or an introduction you can give to help with what he or she is up against.

Sometimes a relationship needs revving up. You may have lost touch with the person, and all it will take is having coffee together to renew the relationship. Maybe the relationship has plateaued: You’ve known each other—sort of —for years, but never have taken the next step. Schedule a meeting or arrange to sit with your contact at a professional association meeting or staff meeting. Once you’re face-to-face, follow the suggestions for starting a relationship. The quality and usefulness of your relationships is up to you.

TIPS FOR CHOOSING YOUR KEYNET COLLABORATORS

Another way to think about who you’d like on your team for those big projects at work—or in life—is to think about the supporting roles people can play. You won’t need someone in all of these roles, but enlisting people with at least some of these attributes will make your work a whole lot easier. Look for people with these kinds of talents and expertise:

   The Brain: Someone with hot-off-the-press information, best practices, know-how, experience, and enough knowledge about new technologies to see how they might help or hinder your project. Your subject-matter expert.

   The Promoter: Someone with market savvy who is in tune with the customer or end-user perspective.

   The Creative: Someone who knows about design, presentation, and color. This person can help you envision and build your brand, and maybe even create any online or print material you need to sell the idea.

   The Global Citizen: Someone who can cross cultures easily and understands the nuances of international communication.

   The Influencer: Someone who knows everybody; for example, a long-time employee. This person might accompany you to meet the board, or be part of the presentation team, if a “pitch” is required.

   The Sponsor: Someone who can authorize money and resources, marshal support, and pave the way.

   The Wizard: Someone who can make magic, is wildly creative, and who can come up with a stream of “out-of-the box” ideas. The innovator.

   The Critic: Someone who will “tell it like it is,” ask the hard questions, give candid feedback, play devil’s advocate, challenge your thinking.

   The Cheerleader: Someone whose energy is infectious, who’s always upbeat, who will encourage you when you have a setback. Someone who can always find the pros when the cons build up.

   The Guru: Someone whose opinion you respect, who has a worldview and special wisdom that others respect.

   The Sarge: Someone who will hold you accountable, remind you of deadlines, set the pace, push you to excel.

   The Wise Elder: Someone who has experience working strategically and has pulled off many important projects. Invite this person to a private meeting to troubleshoot your plan.

   The Novice: Someone who is new to the organization or to this type of work, brings a fresh or young perspective, and will ask both naïve and cutting-edge questions.

   The Heart: Someone who is sensitive to the feelings and reactions of others, who knows how to appreciate and acknowledge others, and who is an excellent listener. Someone who strengthens the social cohesion of your KeyNet.

HOW THEY DID IT

Your roster will depend on what you want to accomplish. You won’t need all of these types all of the time. Or you might decide you want two Cheerleaders, or three Sponsors. Deliberately seek out people unlike yourself—at different levels, in different functions, in different locations, in different organizations. Include people who do not have your biases, people you can learn from, and people who expand your capabilities. As you choose people, think roles, like Guru or Creative, or think Nets, so you don’t miss anyone from your Four Nets that you want to include. The two examples below will give you ideas on how to put your KeyNet together.

Maria’s KeyNet. Maria’s goal was to start an affinity group for Hispanics. She set up a meeting with LaToya, the Chief Diversity Officer (a Sponsor, OrgNet), someone she’d already cultivated a relationship with. LaToya gave the go-ahead. Then, she invited several of her contacts to lunch in the private dining room. She asked her coworker Jose (an Influencer, WorkNet). She added Gabriela from another department (a Cheerleader, OrgNet), and Nancy, who worked for another company and was very involved with its Asian affinity group (a Wise Elder, ProNet), and new grad, new hire Camila (a Novice, OrgNet). At lunch, she introduced the idea and got their feedback. Based on their good ideas, she prepared a budget and timetable. LaToya approved them and shared another group’s by-laws that made structuring the group easy. Maria brought the KeyNet back together to plan the first meeting and the publicity, and the affinity group was launched just four months later.

Looking back at the effort, Maria said, “It was so important to have Nancy’s input. Her experience with a similar group was invaluable. And Camila gave us good advice about attracting the youngest employees and making sure they felt welcome.”

KeyNet members can play many roles to help your project succeed.

Dan’s KeyNet. As Dan, a director in charge of branch managers at a large bank, rose in seniority, he missed the direct contact he used to have with employees. Then, Molly, his favorite sister-in-law (a Brain, LifeNet), told him about her coaching certification program. Dan decided to investigate certification for himself. He remembered that two of his fellow members in the Chamber of Commerce were coaches. He interviewed Evan (a Guru, ProNet) and Harold (a Critic, ProNet) as well as his sister-in-law to decide which program to enroll in.

During the training program, he realized something: Coaching skills were exactly what he wanted his branch managers to use with the mortgage loan officers they supervised. He was convinced that creating a structure and a culture based on this very different kind of relationship would help his loan officers become even more successful.

Once he received his certification, Dan got busy on his plan to bring coaching to his bank. He located through his ProNet two coaches, Conrad and Jennifer, who worked at financial institutions similar to his and interviewed them. Then he put together his KeyNet to help him lay the groundwork for getting buy-in from his branch managers. His KeyNet included Martin (a Wise Elder, OrgNet), Anna (an Influencer, OrgNet), and Conner (a Sarge, OrgNet). He strategized with these people about how to present the idea to Yvonne, his boss (a Sponsor, OrgNet). His KeyNet suggested he set up a conference call with Conrad and Jennifer, so they could tell Yvonne how coaching was working at their companies. He also invited Yvonne to a professional meeting for coaches, so she could learn more about how coaching works in other organizations. Just 11 months after he became a certified coach, Dan launched the bank’s pilot program.

Looking back at the contributions of his KeyNet members, Dan said, “We had four meetings. After each one, I felt energized and clear about what I had to do. Martin was such a good sounding board, and Conner was always urging me on. I couldn’t have done it without my KeyNet.”

The Four Nets is a concept that promotes diversity and balance in your networks. Now that you can see where your contacts come from, you’re ready to learn specific skills for developing those relationships you have with people from all of your Nets.