Old networking days are over

The old way of networking is dead, according to Robyn Henderson, author of five books on the subject and director of her own company “Networking to Win”.

The old way of networking is dead, according to Robyn Henderson, author of five books on the subject and director of her own company “Networking to Win”.

Speaking at Sydney’s Women in Finance (WIF) breakfast this month, Henderson told an audience of 90 female financial professionals that networking is about developing relationships with people, it is not about finding leads.

“People who work the room have D for desperate written on their foreheads,” she said. “Networking is not something you do when you want something, it is a life skill.”

Networking goes on 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to Henderson.

“If you’ve met someone and you’ve left a positive memory with that person, or they simply know what you do, that person may be passing your information along without your knowledge. That’s the power of networking.”

Henderson said that developing business from networking means being professional about service delivery.

“The important thing is, when you do get a referral, to do what you say you will do in the time you said you would do it. It’s very important to follow through.”

Henderson urged her audience to set aside 15 minutes per day to network — by phone, fax, email, mail, or in person.

“No-one have 15 minutes to spare,” said Henderson, “But you can steal minutes. The other day I arrived ten minutes early to an appointment, so I spent the time writing thank-you cards. They went into the post that night and hopefully, they will be received today.”