Make your network more diverse and warm, with these new insights

The times call for diversity. To contribute to that a diverse network will help you. It is not only useful, it will broaden your horizon. So have a look at these new insights: voluntary organizations and NGOs are crucial for diversity and online networks offer opportunities to maintain contacts and make new ones based on a social topic.

Now that diversity is a goal of every modern, self-respecting organization, a relevant question is: how diverse are you? Chances are, your network feels a bit like your own little bubble. We humans like to surround ourselves with people who already look like us. That is the nature of the beast. But this way of dealing with people is not helping us anymore, if it ever did.

I have already written about the sociologist Mark Granovetter, who in 1973 already established that an effective network is diverse and open. An effective network contains contacts and relationships that link to other sectors and disciplines. You could say that with a diverse network we take the next step towards connecting to different social and cultural backgrounds.

A diverse network can have many benefits: you can for example play a role in your organisation by suggesting candidates for vacancies and assignments who used to be outside the scope of the common radar. A diverse network will also help you to find your feet in a more diverse company culture. And a more diverse network leads to a broadening of your horizon and will feed you with new insights. More about that in a moment.

Volunteer work

Jeff Weiner is someone who gave a good thought to opening up ones network. Weiner is the former CEO of LinkedIn, in 2019, he advanced to the post of Executive Chairman of LinkedIn. He sees a network gap between those with effective networks, thanks to social background and education, and those without. To close the gap he sees a big role for volunteer organisations. It is precisely in this segment that people from different social and cultural backgrounds come together. People with skills and knowledge in the field of care, education, sports, tech and culture meet people who can use help on those very fronts. By joining volunteer organisations, both parties step out of their familiar bubble. I can confirm this: helping newcomers in the Netherlands with their CV and/or LinkedIn profile makes me think about what it means to have no network at all in the Netherlands and how to grow one.

Looking at each other differently

Also working on the network gap along these lines is Henriëtte van Eeghen. She started in 2016 with ‘Impact Matters’, a start-up that brings together companies and volunteer organisations on the basis of knowledge. Her clients include for example companies that offer their employees the opportunity to spend some time on volunteer work. Impact Matters comes up with the NGOs and their questions for support for which the employees can use their knowledge. Henriëtte: ‘People start looking at each other differently. From the business world I see people looking at an NGO and thinking: What a relevant work is being done here in a field I didn’t know about! From the NGO side, I see people looking at a volunteer from the business world and thinking: how nice that this volunteer is going to think and work with us. That will really make a difference!

Broader horizons

Two examples of Impact Matters projects illustrate the results. The volunteers are working for ABN AMRO, a major Dutch bank. One is a business manager who created an Excel dashboard for the medical NGO ‘Docters of the World’. The other is an investment manager who made a risk analysis of ‘exotic’ payments for several foundations that depend on private donations. The volunteers discover that their skills and knowledge are also valuable outside the banking world. They expand their network and gain energy and self-confidence. Henriette: ‘The official mission of Impact Matters is to help non-profit organizations move forward, but for me the underlying mission is actually even more important: to give people a broader perspective and to broaden their horizons.

Have a network or belong to?

Another helpful insight on networking and diversity pops up in a Harvard Business Review article from September 2020: ‘Remote Networking as a Person of Color’. The authors quote a survey that took place before Corona among 300 professionals of colour at middle management level and higher. According to this study, these American professionals have little use for traditional networks. These networks seem primarily focused on socializing and teaching people how to communicate. The participants feel uncomfortable with that and prefer networking events that revolve around a useful topic. For them, professional events are number one and the performance of tasks for the community is number two. Here, they are more likely to meet people with whom they have something in common.

The language used here is revealing. The participants in the study prefer to see a focus that is other-oriented rather than self-oriented. They also talk about ‘belonging to a network’ rather than ‘having a network’. I have the feeling that this warm view on networking will appeal to many more people.

Use online

It goes without saying that online networking became more important during the lockdowns. Social media allow us to maintain contacts from a distance. What is essential is that online also offers opportunities to make new contacts, precisely on the basis of shared subject. American authors point out to professionals of colour, the opportunities for networking online. They recommend, for example, joining professional groups online and attending learning events. This again points to a need felt by many for networking based on a subject or a common goal.

Reach out with your #

When it comes to connecting online on the basis of a subject, there is of course one ingenuity that must be mentioned here, and that is the hashtag. The symbol # that you can attach to any word or concept. Those who are busy working on #climateagreement can use this addition to reach out to others who are also busy working on it and searching for information. I know that mentioning a positive side to social media is out of fashion these days, but the #, if used properly, can be effective. It is a great tool for reaching outside your network to those who do share your interests.