Benefits of Networking

What is a Network?

We can define networking as the connections between individuals with direct and indirect links, that forms a union or a group of people based on mutual interest and develop a strategic competitive advantage. The nature of networking is created from the passion of a person to obtain or fulfil their needs from another person. It’s a psychological need to connect, socialize and work with others. Networking helps to increase their own value from supporting and comforting, and it will attract others to your network (Klerk, 2010).

Networking can be defined as “behaviours that are aimed at building, maintaining, and using informal relationships that possess the (potential) benefit of facilitating work-related activities of individual by voluntarily granting access to resources and maximizing common advantages” (Wolff & Moser, 2009).

Networking is a two-way process as the way you are benefited from your network you need to provide the valuable support to those in your network as well (Albany University, 2014). According to Torres (2005), an individual’s powerful network can influence his/her career growth more than an individual’s abilities, knowledge and experience.

There many tools which can provide facilities to develop and nature a successful network. For example, LinkedIn which has 630 million registered members which include 90 million users are senior-level influencers and 63 million users are in decision making positions (Omnicore, 2019).

Benefits of Network

- Career development

Networking is a tool for career development (Forret & Dougherty, 2004). A well-developed network provide a group of individuals who can provide meaningful support for your career development by providing information regarding your career/industry exploration and learning about potential job openings (Albany University, 2014).

- Opportunities

The network helps to develop your personal and professional opportunities and contribute to organizational functioning by supporting greater organizational communication and access to resources (Gibson, et al., 2014).

 - Gain knowledge and information

The network can provide you with information regarding career-related topics which are provided from the personal experience from others can give a new way of ideas that can be used to our career. To learn about a specific industry and the business opportunities and threats within it from an individual in that industry can be more advantageous to increase our knowledge (Albany University, 2014).

 - Advice and Support

Networking will help you to get a suggestion and advice on common challenges and opportunities from experienced and expert people will be an added advantage to our career. Helping or supporting your contacts will set a strong foundation for receiving support in return (Page, 2018).

My experience in developing a network

As a banker developing a network is essential to find new business opportunities. I develop my customer network by having a good relationship with my branch existing customers and taking leads from them to find new customers and also taking leads from them too to increase my customer network like tree branches. It also gives a window to obtain information about the applicant who requests any facility from our bank.

For example, a customer came to our bank to obtain a large SME loan. When we interviewed, he seems to be a genuine person and also a well-known businessman in the area. His repayment on other bank facilities also seems to be good. However, when I inquired about him with my customers I got to know that he is in debt for a large amount from other individual loan providers and he wants this loan to settle those debts. We understood providing this facility is a huge risk for our branch and mange to avoid giving the loan. Still, he went to another bank and obtained a loan. In a few months’ time, he got bankrupt and unable to pay that loan.

To increase my network within the bank I use to participate in our banking social events, training session, working in many branches and communicating through online social networks (e.g.: Facebook and LinkedIn). This network helps to obtain advice and support in my work-related problems, and also to develop my career. For example when I got the opportunity to face the interview for the Assistant Manager Position I got plenty of advice and support from the staffs who previously attend to it, which helped me to pass the interview and become an Assistant Branch Manager.

References 

Albany University, 2014. WHAT IS NETWORKING?, Albany: University at Albany.

Forret, M. L. & Dougherty, T. W., 2004. Networking behaviours and career outcomes: differences for men and women. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(3), pp. 419-437.

Klerk, S. d., 2010. The importance we of working as a management skill. S.Afr.J.Bus.Manage, 41(1), pp. 37-49.

Omnicore, 2019. Linkedin by the Numbers: Stats, Demographics & Fun Facts. [Online] 

Available at: https://www.omnicoreagency.com/linkedin-statistics/
[Accessed 04 08 2019].

Page, M., 2018. Top 11 benefits of networking. [Online]
Available at: https://www.michaelpage.com.au/advice/career-advice/career-progression/benefits-networking
[Accessed 04 08 2019].

Torres, N. L., 2005. It’s who you know. Entrepreneur, Volume 33, pp. 128-132.

Wolff, H. G. & Moser, K., 2009. Effects of networking on career success: a longitudinal study. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(1), pp. 196-206.