Making your connections matter

How often do you use your social capital to help someone else?

Just this week I helped a friend and former colleague with warm introductions to connections in my network, asking for their support as she explores her next career move. As I sent off the email introductions, I was hopeful that maybe one of the connections may open doors or provide additional ideas for her.

It was not the first time doing this, as I have asked others before to share their knowledge, experience, and information to assist women and men that I have coached. What has been amazing each time is the positive impact that our collective actions can have for the person we are rallying around to support.

I have been fortunate to be on the receiving end to benefit from new conversations made possible from introductions by others who knew that I had curiosity about a topic, wanted to meet other like-minded people, or was in search for my next career challenge. I am incredibly grateful for the gift of support that I received. It taught me early in my career about how using your social capital can have powerful network effects for others. What made some of my experiences even more special is when the idea for action was offered proactively, even before I had a chance to ask.

In recent discussions with executive women in my network about the topic of networking, we arrived at a consensus that having a diverse informal network both within and outside of their organization can be career enhancing for women; and on the flipside, not having one creates barriers for career growth. We discussed how women could do even more to support other women by activating their networks, yet they may not be comfortable making the ask for themselves or for others or are just not as willing to extend this support.

So, why might women may be hesitant to leverage their network?

I can think of several potential reasons:

They may not feel compelled to help the person beyond perhaps listening;
They may wish to save their ask for a favor for someone else including for themselves;
They fear being intrusive of the person’s time;
They do not wish to invest more of their own time;
They think that others are helping the person, so defer the action to them;
They feel a sense of rivalry for what may be limited opportunities for advancement resulting in women perceiving other women as competition rather than collaborators.
They are unsure how they can help; and
They may simply not know who or how to ask.

It is understandable to be selective in when to act but imagine if we can increase the surface area of support for women through our networks, what effect this may have. I liken it to a startup community that I am involved with which uses Slack as a collaboration tool and set a channel to make “Asks” of the community. It’s like crowdsourcing for support. The immediate response from the network is positive to see – and these are often from second degree connections in the community.

There are 5 ways that women can support other women. Women can:

Help each other to expand their professional networks by making warm introductions to connections in their network who might support their goals or a shared goal to grow their respective networks.
Advocate for other women by mentioning them to others in their networks internally and externally, especially when new opportunities for a project or role emerges.
Serve as an advisor or coach to other women in the workplace, providing guidance, advice, and support as they navigate their careers. This can involve sharing their own experiences, offering perspective on different situations, and providing feedback on performance.
Lead the way to help other women feel included and engaged in the workplace. For example, collaborate on projects and initiatives, joining forces and inviting diverse women into the project to share their perspectives, skills, and expertise.
Foster inclusion and engagement by inviting other women to get involved in employee resource groups and communities.

Employers can also be more supportive to:

Treat networking as a capability: Companies need to emphasize the importance of networking as a leadership skill and encourage development time for this. By prioritizing time for networking, the connections made can also advance the objectives of the business and raise brand awareness. However, networking is like anything else, it takes practice and capability development. Women tend to avoid networking as there is a perception that it can be transactional, or they say that they simply have no time for it, or say they are not good at it. When companies elevate the importance of networking as a skill, women will invest more time towards developing their capabilities in this area.
Help women build their networks: A lack of network and access to advisors can be a significant career barrier for women. This was especially the case for Generation X and Millennial women.[i] Companies can open more opportunities for women to grow their networks including better access to advisors within and outside their organization. Beyond formal mentorship and sponsorship programs and professional networking events, informal networks and informal coaching conversations can be of added value to women’s learning and development.

Making your connections matter is the second part in a networking article series by Meiava’s Founder, Mimi Lee. Read: Unlock the power of your networks and share your comments on networking on Meiava’s LinkedIn page.

[i] Egon Zehnder. 2019 Leaders and Daughters Global Survey. Meiava survey of women in 2021.