Latest From HON
STAY IN TOUCH
Sign up to receive inspirational updates related to product enhancements and the latest workplace trends.
No matter your line of work, building and maintaining a network is a crucial component of a fruitful career.
According to research from Owl Labs, nearly 90% of professionals say that networking is one of the most important aspects to development. And in 2020, with 75 million employees holding a job that offers remote work, networking can be a challenge.
That’s before we consider a pandemic that has altered just about everything we associate with normal life.
Another survey, conducted by Buffer, found that 21% of remote workers cited loneliness and disconnectedness as a drawback of their working arrangement. With that in mind, how can workers in today’s environment reach out, build networks and foster the type of relationships that have proven to be beneficial?
We recently sat down with HON Sales Development Group members Erin Poell, Chad Kraklio and Aaron Timm. We discussed creative ways in which they’ve networked over the last several months and what lessons they want to pass on to those who may be struggling to make professional connections.
Aaron Timm: The most apparent one for us is that it’s easy to network when you’re in the office. You can see people face to face and the connection is natural. You can have coffee or introduce yourself, or you’re just bumping into people. You can’t build your network by circumstance—you have to be proactive. At an overall level, that’s the biggest hurdle or struggle. (In this environment), you don’t have some of the natural circumstances that you would have when you’re in a normal setting.
Erin Poell: Oh, absolutely. People who might not be as comfortable with traditional networking can prepare differently than maybe you would have in a face-to-face meeting. There’s more time, for one. You can have notes on the screen, which serve as an easier prompt than if you were in person and weren’t as prepared. It can remove some of the barriers we typically see in an in-person meeting.
Chad Kraklio: I agree with what Erin said. Because we’re now in this mostly virtual environment, (not having as many face-to-face meetings) takes some of the pressure off to reach out and connect, because you don’t have to meet in person. My networking has actually broadened lately; everyone I’m speaking to shares some commonality because virtual is normal now. The big takeaway is that it’s okay to do it this way.
Aaron Timm: You create your own element, in a way. There are so many opportunities that we’re now freed up to pursue, like seeking out professional groups, attending virtual meetings, and then following up on those contacts after you meet them on Zoom. With the prevalence of social media, it’s really easy to connect. While you have to have a different thinking style about how you extend your network, once you do decide to step forward, it’s much easier than it used to be.
Chad Kraklio: Well, we’re so used to meetings, right? We’re so used to asking for time on people’s calendars. You have to find ways to make it comfortable, and for some people, networking over lunch is very uncomfortable. For someone who might be reading about scheduling virtual meetings, it does take action just like it takes action to schedule an in-person meeting. But without taking action, it makes no difference whether it’s a coffee meet-and-greet or if it’s a 1-on-1 virtual call.
Aaron Timm: You have to try and bring some normalcy into the situation by bringing in something normal during an abnormal time. Think about what a normal interaction would be...you can just have a virtual lunch meeting. There’s no real right or wrong way, and we’ve seen a lot of creative stuff happening.
Erin Poell: Without a doubt. This is the best way for people to connect right now. In our office, we have 50% of people in the building and the other 50% at home. Those at home are eager to get back. Our team has been setting up virtual meetings but still doing their own work, just so the people at home can see faces and hear voices. That’s one of the biggest pieces that people had to adapt to when we started working remote. We had to find new ways to interact. We made it a point with our internal team to do a morning standup meeting—it could be five or 15 minutes—but it was a time to make sure everyone was set for the day, and beyond that, it’s just a chance for us to catch up and connect with each other.
Chad Kraklio: COVID has taught us a lot about culture and our own personal needs, and how we interact with the world and each other. One of the big foundation learnings I’ve had is that everyone is wired for relationships in some capacity. Finding new ways to engage with other people—even though it’s abnormal right now—is so important.
The big takeaway? Creativity is key, even if it makes us slightly uncomfortable at the start. Building relationships and cultivating a network is more challenging now than it’s been in the past, but connection is the foundation. And right now, we could all use a little more of that.
To learn more about networking and fostering strong relationships during this unique time, reach out to us at hon.com.
Sign up to receive inspirational updates related to product enhancements and the latest workplace trends.