Professional Social Networking – Boon or Bust?

Social Networking such as LinkedIn, Facebook and the like are having a dramatic impact on the way business people communicate and do business.  Here Philip Norris, Principal Consultant and MD of Norris Management Ltd takes a very personal view on this new phenomenon.

Many less Internet-savvy business owners, senior managers, engineers, lawyers and other professionals are now bombarded with messages from friends, ex-colleagues and persons who looks familiar (but can’t be sure as the picture with the message is so indistinct) or whose name rings a bell.  These people are inviting them to connect with them on LinkedIn, Facebook or other social networking sites.  The natural inclination for such busy executives is to put them to either to hit the delete button or to put them to one side for later scrutiny (if the sender is lucky).    

So why is this social networking phenomenon rated as being a sea change on how we in business communicate?   The principle of LinkedIn of only connecting with people one knows is certainly a laudable one and it is amazing how useful it has become for me in building my professional network with a matrix of recommendations for all those connected in the various groups to see with the aim of increasing the level of business.   

Work seeking is beginning to really take off linking with recruiters who you have got to know.  By posting blogs, comments, tweets, and entering group discussions,  one can keep one’s name in the frame in readiness for the time when the right opportunity comes along.  One great feature (and doubtless there are more) is the facility to post links to an article or feature on one’s own web site or say an item of news along with your own comment to start a discussion.  This is great viral marketing that is non-threatening.  

Another good feature is that one can restrict one’s visibility of profile and connections to suit one’s own circumstances.  This is a boon for MDs, FDs and the like who can control the access to themselves.  But some of us remember the first flush of enthusiasm with the advent of emails and how the spammers, hackers and virus senders soon subverted that medium to the point where most decision makers hid themselves as a natural defence mechanism in the face of a rising deluge of spam.  This phenomenon was also one of the factors leading to a change in the law concerning email marketing and the data protection. 

One frequently hears the question: will professional social networking go the same way?   Certainly there is evidence that it could based on, for example, the LinkedIn “open” networking groups now springing up.  Once signed up for one of these groups, one finds all sorts invitations to link up come flooding in from people you have never heard of from around the globe along with a coincidental(?) rise in email spam. 

Some sales consultants are exploiting this as the “guaranteed” way of reaching far more decision makers in a cold sell campaign.  Others offer to post learned consultancy type articles on your website in exchange for a free download of say a business analysis software tool.  It transpires that these are a thinly veiled sales message – and the software isn’t much use either!  The best advice, even for desperate professional contract or job seekers, must be to disconnect from the open networking groups without delay. 

So is professional social networking a “good thing?”   My view is it is great for keeping in touch with colleagues and ex-colleagues, finding a new job or contract and generally increasing the number of people you keep in contact.   Go for it is my view as it will never be as free and open as it is now.  But beware, it takes time – at least an hour a day to do it properly – time you may not have.  It is no substitute for face to face meetings but with the pace of life as it is, it’s Hobson’s choice if you want to be connected.

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The author, Philip Norris is Principal Consultant and Managing Director of Norris Management Ltd.  In a long and varied career, Phil has been a Programme and Project Manager for high profile projects in the Construction and Transportation fields.  In recent years, he has provided much needed support as a management consultant to corporate and SME clients on the development of, the management of, team building and the employment of people in the workplace.