I’m a selfish networker. But hear me out; I don’t mean it the way you probably think I do.
When you read that first sentence, you probably conjured in your mind a picture of that guy who shows up to the networking events with a bunch of his business cards, introducing himself around telling people what he does and asking, “Do you know anybody who needs that?” Or even, “Do you need that?” This guy’s out there, basically soliciting. And there’s not necessarily anything wrong with that.
That said, a professional networker (or one of those consultants to consultants) would likely say, along the lines of good vibes and karma, that it’s better to go into situations like that more with a sense of giving than receiving.
Well okay, but I’m still selfish. And here’s how I mean that:
When I meet a new person I’d like to add to my network, I want to know everything I can about what sort of work he or she does; what does this person bring to the table for clients? What’s the ideal client profile for this person; what problems does his or her potential client need to solve?
I’m not in the recruiting business or looking to place this person. But I am looking for opportunities to make myself a hero to my current clients. Sure, they’re hiring me because they’re looking to limit churn in their own Customer base…they’re engaging with my approach to CX because they’ve identified (or maybe they haven’t yet, and we can work on that) ways in which they’re falling short on delivering their Brand Promise.
But when I engage them, I want them to know how much I’m invested in their success as a business. Naturally, CX reaches throughout the entire company…everybody’s potentially involved in the effort. That makes it easy for me to take stock of the entire enterprise; to really get to know the company I’m serving in my capacity of a Fractional or even when I’m simply doing some project work. Either way, it’s important to me that my clients know I’m more engaged than just clocking-in/clocking-out or ticking boxes based on the SOW we’ve agreed to.
That’s where my network comes in…and that’s where I get greedy with my network!
If I can identify something that’s out of the scope of the work I’m signed up for—or more to the point and more commonly, if it’s something that’s out of my wheelhouse altogether—I can easily rely on my network. I’ve spent a long time building up a mental Rolodex of lots of great talent. I know great folks who know tons (and tons more than I do) about topics from GTM to Supply Chain to Finance to HR. Their experience also spans myriad industries, many of which are even somewhat obscure to me. This well of expertise and knowledge is right at my fingertips whenever I need it…all thanks to my ceaseless networking.
What’s more, I get to be the hero if, in the course of an engagement with a client, I can say something like: “Hey, it looks like here’s an issue that you’re having. Now, I’m not the guy who can help out with that, but I know someone who can definitely fit the bill. Let me get her on the phone.”
Herein, I’m leveraging the connections I have within my network to save the day for my client. It may not be something I do myself directly, but I’m still bringing it to the table. And that makes me look good to them.
So by all means, get out there and share your information (tell your new network members what you do as well so you can help them be heroes for their clients too!). But make sure you know that you can use your connections to your own advantage (and those of your clients, of course) as well.
