The professional networking process : motivations and behaviours of participants

Abstract

This research considers relationship formation in a business to business context. In contrast to the sales literature in business marketing, there has been little consideration of how to find business partners. Instead, there has been considerable work about building relationships up to the stage that the first business transaction can occur. However, such work does not consider how initial contacts are made and built in to a preliminary "acquaintance" that can be called upon for future benefits. In business, first contacts can happen accidently but are often engineered; people seek those who they think can be beneficial, and they think strategically about the value of forming contacts with the people they meet in a range of situations (Ibarra & Hunter 2007). Some business professionals are very proactive about contact formation, and attend events designed to facilitate contact-making. This thesis considers making contacts in the space of deliberate networking events; that is, where professionals gather to meet each other. This is an important area of research because in this setting the focus is given to building these contacts and this provides insight into contact-making in other contexts. To address these issues, this study seeks to answer the following research questions: Research Question 1: What patterns of behaviour do professionals display while interacting in purposeful facilitated networking activities and how does this evolve during networking events? Research Question 2: What motivates business professionals to attend networking events? Specifically: a. What benefits do business professionals seek and achieve from networking? b. What is the perceived value created from this process? This study develops an understanding of very early stage networking processes using the literatures of relationship development, social networks and networking, and in particular the literature of environmental psychology. This last literature is of particular value as it allows consideration of the rich interconnections that characterise behaviours at events and provides a framework for the analysis of this. The research is framed within the critical realist tradition because the researcher's axiology is that reality is framed as deep, interacting processes, and that it is these interactions which should be the focus of relationship study. To facilitate this approach, the methodology used is multi-method and mostly qualitative. The study consists of three parts: an observation of networking behaviour at events, in-depth interviews with those who attend networking events and a short structured survey with a wider sample of event attendees. Systematic qualitative observation data was collected at Western Sydney Business Connection (WSBC) events that focused on speakers, workshops and social gatherings located in the Greater Western Sydney region. Observation methods included using photographic survey techniques and audio recordings. These observations focused on patterns of behaviour using macro (e.g. configuration and evolution of groups), micro (e.g. how particular individuals behaved during the event) and single (e.g. experiences of the researcher after immersing herself in the networking event as a participant) level perspectives. The interviews included a discussion of the nature/role/history of the individual's social and, in particular, professional networks. A portfolio of photographs (taken during the observation phase) was presented during the interview. The survey was used primarily as a verification tool and sought to identify how participants described their networks, the value that they received from engaging in networking events and the process that they undertook prior to, during and after attending a networking event. The observations highlight that networking behaviour differs according to age and gender, that event attendees are frequently distracted during the networking components of events and that the physical space in which the event is held and the stated purpose of the event further influence behaviour. Effective networking is most likely to be exhibited by older males and within larger spaces where the event is more social in nature. The interviews highlighted the process of networking that occurred in terms of preparation, networking strategies and follow-up behaviours. In particular, the lexicographic analysis of attendee discourse shows that preparation, strategy and follow-up are conceptually linked in their minds, that there is a large range of behaviours that occur at events and that these are largely associated with building contacts. The survey confirms most of the findings from the observation study and in-depth interviews; however, it also emphasises that attendees often are not conscious of the full range of possibilities that networking can provide them and instead focus on contact-making. This thesis concludes with a discussion of the kinds of training that can facilitate the building of value for individuals' networks as well as for their organisations' network profile. This training includes building skills in interacting and should involve leveraging the value that is embedded in the more experienced members of the organisation; that is, formal and informal mentoring programs that ensure more junior staff learn how to network effectively should be offered.

Date of Award	2016
Original language	English