Features

Going places while standing still

Deborah Powell suggests that the best way to expand your professional network is to sit down, sign up and join the conversation.

Arts Professional
6 min read

Photo: Elfen for nationaltheatrewales.org

Seeking how to make friends and influence people has been an aspiration of the artistic community for decades. Getting on and building a successful career has always involved a certain degree of networking – being in the right place at the right time and trying to get in front of the right people. Essentially, this made networking a closed shop – you were either in or you were out; you were invited to the right parties or couldn’t get past security. Doubtless, failed networking has accounted for many potential stars remaining undiscovered, hits not gaining sufficient backing, or world-class organisations staying hidden. Of course, networking remains integral to getting things done, but achieving those things just got a whole lot easier with the advent of online social and professional networking forums. Successful networking in the Web 2.0 age is now about sitting down, tuning in and getting properly connected – 24/7/365.
Connectivity
Social and professional networking sites have only just become the new hot topic. People are starting to value the connection they offer in an increasingly interactive world. The best networks keep you connected with the activities of peers and associates. They can boost your professional stock and might help you find new contacts as well. One of the most popular of these sites is LinkedIn. With over 40 million members across 150 industries, finding associates in their ranks should be easy. Members create a profile page, upload professional information and add work experience, educational and other relevant details. From there on, it’s all about making connections. Any of your existing contacts can introduce you to others and, before you know it, your personal network will have grown.
If LinkedIn is not for you, go ahead and Google “professional social networks” – just don’t be surprised when you get 290 million results. Dig a little deeper for those that are arts-focused and you’ll find dedicated social networks covering nearly every field of endeavour: from drama leagues to theatre design groups; youth theatres to arts alliances; playwrights and consultants to actors and directors. They’re all out there, active and online, waiting for you to sit down, sign up and join the conversation. Never has it been easier to make professional connections and, more importantly, make your networking activities ‘click’ with a raft of people you either didn’t know existed, or thought you’d never get the chance to ‘meet’.

Return on investment
Any network is only as successful as the effort its members put into it. Members need to be willing to engage, offer access to their information and be able to operate in an eco-system where everyone relies on each other to make the whole function, develop and grow in new directions. It’s about continuous engagement with only minimal control from a few at the centre. It’s about opening up to those who want to contribute meaningfully but who have been disconnected from each other until now. National Theatre Wales (NTW) has followed this path, taking the bold step of establishing a social network as the foundation of its arrival on the national scene. The online networking platform is helping NTW to build up an exciting, grass roots community where all members are actively exchanging information, making contacts and discussing new ideas.
As NTW artistic director, John McGrath, says, “NTW is built around a sense of community and our online presence is one of the key spaces for this interactive, innovative, international community to grow and engage. Our decision to set up a Ning-based social network before we developed a conventional website has allowed us to put a many-voiced conversation at the heart of our online activity. The huge success of the network in attracting sign up and participation – currently over 850 members in two months – demonstrates how readily people respond to a genuine offer to engage. But it does need to be genuine. All staff, and any artists working for us, spend some time on the network, sharing ideas and asking for feedback. That feedback helps us grow and develop the company. We really feel we have a better company already because so many people are inputting into its future. The big challenge going forward is to integrate this network with other online functions such as ticketing and programme information. Again, we are asking our online community to help us design this next stage. We hope they will feel an ownership of any new developments.”
Best practice
Good networking needs active management. That means making judgements about when and where to engage. Community membership implies an intention to participate. If people comment on your blog, or send referral requests in the professional forums, and you fail to respond for weeks, you’re a weak link in the chain. Success requires an ongoing effort on your part. Posting a profile to a site and sitting back waiting for it all to happen means you’ll be sitting there a very long time. Good networking needs genuine engagement. That means being honest and helpful in your posts. Create a user-friendly profile that becomes your virtual business card, making sure your online presence is consistent with your real life image. Also, don’t invent a history to acquire contacts. Be clear about your intentions – if you’re job-hunting or looking for investors say so. Good networking values relationships. That means treating people as you would in real life, valuing their intrinsic worth over the professional connections they enable. Networks such as LinkedIn focus unashamedly on helping people achieve their personal goals, but it’s great when reciprocity is prioritised and relationships are actively nurtured. These days then, it seems the entire world is online, making friends, collaborating and sometimes making the most surprising connections. The good news is that the networking shop is no longer closed – it’s now an open, if virtual, market-place with access to everyone by everyone. So, why not just sit down, sign up and join in?