Networking Advice for Technology Leaders
There is a lot of standard advice about networking, mostly boring anecdotes intended to inspire you. They fall somewhere between business and self-help advice, full of survivorship bias and otherwise generic: Be curious! Be proactive! Be systematic! There are some good ideas, but I find the stories more annoying than inspirational. I’ll try to be more practical.
I spent much of my 20s in graduate school among the Math nerds, mostly a socially awkward, clever, arrogant, and insecure bunch. Truth be told, I fit in pretty well. Networking does not come naturally to me.
Why Networking for Technology Leaders? #
Who here is an extrovert? The real question is who is an introvert, but of course you can’t ask that!
Technologists tend toward introversion. They tend to orient more toward systems than people. And leadership isolates you. Yet we all need help! We all know that:
- The best hires come from network.
- The best opportunities come from network.
- Intel comes from network.
- Networks give you leverage.
Even as an introvert, networking is your best chance to fake it ’til you make it.
Finding Networks #
Where do you find networks? Pretty much anywhere you look. There’s a full spectrum. Here are a few examples.
Natural Networks: family, your kid’s friend’s parents, or your long-time close friends. These are already in place for you.
Contrived Networks: your business, this Club, or a Meetup group. These need to be created and organized.
Paid Networks: Professional associations, educational programs, sponsorship programs, and other pay-to-play networks are commonplace.
Impromptu Networks: Living in a big city you meet people and never see them again, a great opportunity to practice your networking skills! The same thing happens in the airport lounge. But random encounters may lead somewhere. I know one member of this group whose life completely changed due to a random airport encounter.
Networks come in all shapes and sizes. These are just a few examples. The point is that if you don’t see networks around you, you aren’t looking.
How Do You Engage? #
The pattern I recommend is: listen, offer, connect, ask.
Listen: Listening is the single most important networking skill. Seek first to understand, as Stephen Covey said. You can always learn from a conversation, even if it just amounts to “avoid this person”.
Most people love listening to themselves, so let them. You’ll be surprised what comes out. They will think the conversation went better if they talk more! Don’t rush in impulsively with your opinions.
Offer: If you always ask for help, people will associate a cost with your outreach. Offer instead. What do they need? What blocks their progress? How can you add value? The general advice is to offer help assuming it comes back around to you. I do agree with that.
Connect: More than anything else, connecting people will trick others into thinking you are a good networker! So make the intros. And on the flip side, take the intros and take the meetings!
Ask: I learned this from my Vertalo CEO, who networks like the rest of us breathe. He’s advanced, so any time someone asks “How can I help you?”, he has fully calibrated response ready. But even a stock answer will do. Just don’t be caught flat footed when the offer comes your way. Have the ask ready and make it easy for them to help you!
Taking Action #
Commit to some regular networks. Take advantage of organizers. They are force multipliers. And show up! Don’t be the guy who drinks too much one evening and arrives late the next day. Be his buddy who gets there as usual, even in a degraded state. Be a reliable participant, and post!
These days my regular networks are:
- Austin CTO Club.
- Lean Coffee Austin.
- Code talk, a group of techy friends who jump online weekly and talk about whatever.
- Weekly karate practice.
Each of these is different and complements the others. Find yours and become a reliable regular!
Mine your contacts! A few months ago I began reaching out to old and often stale contacts. Some of them I had not spoken to in literal decades. I was pleasantly shocked at the high response rate! I bet you’ll be surprised as well.
Get in and get out! In this country you can always open with that very American question: “What do you do?” Ask yourself “Who is this person?” Learn what you can and then exit the conversation gracefully. It really is that simple.
Start today! Practice listening genuinely and letting them talk. Figure out what they need. Connect them with others. And have your asks ready! If my experience shows anything, it shows that anyone can do it!
William Baxter is the founder and CTO Whisperer at the Austin CTO Club.