Skip to Main Content
HBS Online
  • Courses
    Open Courses Mega Menu
    • Business Essentials
      • Credential of Readiness (CORe)
      • Business Analytics
      • Economics for Managers
      • Financial Accounting
    • Leadership & Management
      • Leadership Principles
      • Management Essentials
      • Negotiation Mastery
      • Organizational Leadership
      • Strategy Execution
      • Power and Influence for Positive Impact
    • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
      • Entrepreneurship Essentials
      • Disruptive Strategy
      • Negotiation Mastery
      • Design Thinking and Innovation
    • Strategy
      • Strategy Execution
      • Business Strategy
      • Economics for Managers
      • Disruptive Strategy
      • Global Business
      • Sustainable Business Strategy
    • Finance & Accounting
      • Financial Accounting
      • Leading with Finance
      • Alternative Investments
      • Sustainable Investing
    • Business in Society
      • Sustainable Business Strategy
      • Global Business
      • Sustainable Investing
      • Power and Influence for Positive Impact
    • All Courses
  • For Organizations
    Open For Organizations Mega Menu
    • Corporate Learning
      Help your employees master essential business concepts, improve effectiveness, and expand leadership capabilities.
    • Academic Solutions
      Integrate HBS Online courses into your curriculum to support programs and create unique educational opportunities.
    • Need Help?
      • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Contact Us
    • Black, Latinx, and underrepresented minority professionals
      Pathways to Business

      Stories designed to inspire future business leaders.

  • Insights
    Open Insights Mega Menu
    • Business Insights Blog
      • Career Development
      • Communication
      • Decision-Making
      • Earning Your MBA
      • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
      • Finance
      • Leadership
      • Management
      • Negotiation
      • Strategy
    • All Topics
    • Sample Business Lessons and E-Books

      Gain new insights and knowledge from leading faculty and industry experts.

    • Free Guide

      Learn how to formulate a successful business strategy.

  • More Info
    Open More Info Mega Menu
    • Learning Experience
      Master real-world business skills with our immersive platform and engaged community.
    • Certificates, Credentials, & Credits
      Learn how completing courses can boost your resume and move your career forward.
    • Learning Tracks
      Take your career to the next level with this specialization.
    • Financing & Policies
      • Employer Reimbursement
      • Payment & Financial Aid
      • Policies
    • Connect
      • Student Stories
      • Community
    • Need Help?
      • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Request Information
    • Apply Now
Login
My Courses
Access your courses and engage with your peers
My Account
Manage your account, applications, and payments.
HBS Home
  • About HBS
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
HBS Online
  • Courses
  • Business Essentials
  • Leadership & Management
  • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
  • Strategy
  • Finance & Accounting
  • Business in Society
  • For Organizations
  • Insights
  • More Info
  • About
  • Media Coverage
  • Founding Donors
  • Leadership Team
  • Careers
  • My Courses
  • My Account
  • Apply Now
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • HBS Online→
  • Business Insights→

Business Insights

Harvard Business School Online's Business Insights Blog provides the career insights you need to achieve your goals and gain confidence in your business skills.

 
Filter Results Arrow Down Arrow Up

Topics

Topics

  • Accounting
  • Analytics
  • Business Essentials
  • Business in Society
  • Career Development
  • Communication
  • Community
  • ConneXt
  • Decision-Making
  • Earning Your MBA
  • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Negotiation
  • News & Events
  • Productivity
  • Staff Spotlight
  • Strategy
  • Student Profiles
  • Technology
  • Work-Life Balance

Courses

Courses

  • Alternative Investments
  • Business Analytics
  • Business Strategy
  • CORe
  • Design Thinking and Innovation
  • Disruptive Strategy
  • Economics for Managers
  • Entrepreneurship Essentials
  • Financial Accounting
  • Global Business
  • Leadership Principles
  • Leading with Finance
  • Management Essentials
  • Negotiation Mastery
  • Organizational Leadership
  • Power and Influence for Positive Impact
  • Strategy Execution
  • Sustainable Business Strategy
  • Sustainable Investing
Subscribe to the Blog
RSS feed

Filters

Topics

Topics

  • Accounting
  • Analytics
  • Business Essentials
  • Business in Society
  • Career Development
  • Communication
  • Community
  • ConneXt
  • Decision-Making
  • Earning Your MBA
  • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Negotiation
  • News & Events
  • Productivity
  • Staff Spotlight
  • Strategy
  • Student Profiles
  • Technology
  • Work-Life Balance

Courses

Courses

  • Alternative Investments
  • Business Analytics
  • Business Strategy
  • CORe
  • Design Thinking and Innovation
  • Disruptive Strategy
  • Economics for Managers
  • Entrepreneurship Essentials
  • Financial Accounting
  • Global Business
  • Leadership Principles
  • Leading with Finance
  • Management Essentials
  • Negotiation Mastery
  • Organizational Leadership
  • Power and Influence for Positive Impact
  • Strategy Execution
  • Sustainable Business Strategy
  • Sustainable Investing
Subscribe to the Blog
RSS feed

How Leaders Develop and Use Their Network

Business professionals talking during meeting
  • 04 Dec 2019
Tim Stobierski Author Contributors
tag
  • Career Development
  • Leadership
  • Leadership Principles

Professional networking doesn’t always get the attention it deserves.

While networking is often enthusiastically embraced by individuals just entering the workforce or seeking to make a career change, it can be neglected by mid-career and senior professionals who believe their network is adequate and no longer needs to expand.

Networking is important for everybody—particularly those who are interested in becoming a leader in their organization or industry. A well-built and maintained professional network could be one of the most powerful tools for career advancement.

If you want to develop your professional network, here are several strategies that can help, as well as a look at some of the ways you can use your network to become more effective and achieve your career goals.

How Leaders Use Their Networks

1. To Identify Career Opportunities

Many business leaders leverage their professional networks and relationships to identify career opportunities. If your goal is to advance within your organization or transition into a new industry, you need to know who is hiring—preferably before everyone else is aware of the opportunity.

By building professional relationships with individuals who work in a range of organizations and industries, it's possible to gain a competitive edge through advance notice of openings, as well as from personal connections that can help you get your foot in the door. This holds true whether you're just starting in your career or have been a leader in your field for decades. If you don’t know about an opportunity, you can’t act on it.

2. To Build Their Teams

Business leaders don’t simply use their networks to pivot from one career or job to the next; they leverage their networks to realize benefits in their existing roles. One of the key ways they do this is by turning to their contacts to source talent for important jobs within their organization and team.

A well-developed professional network filled with individuals who are highly skilled in their areas of expertise is a pool of talent that business leaders can use when hiring season comes around. This can be particularly helpful during times when an organization doesn't have the luxury of working through its regular recruitment process—for example, after the sudden departure of a key player, or during the rapid development of a new project or initiative. When time is of the essence, having a network to rely on can mean the difference between making a good hire and making a great one.

Related: 4 Tips for Growing Your Professional Network

3. To Anticipate Strategic Change Within Their Organization

Strategic networking should not consist solely of building new connections outside of your organization. While external connections are important, it is just as critical for professionals to develop strong relationships within their organizations.

“Your internal and external networks are important leadership assets,” says HBS Professor Anthony Mayo in the online course Leadership Principles. “They're how you gain access to resources like information, know-how, and funding that are crucial in enabling you to help those you’re leading. Networks also foster your learning by connecting you to people in organizations with different skills, perspectives, and contexts than your own.”

By establishing a robust internal network, leaders can achieve several goals. Strong relationships with key stakeholders can make it easier to get a project approved, or increase one’s standing if an opportunity for a promotion presents itself. Similarly, by building relationships with decision-makers in the organization, it's possible to establish open lines of communication and stay abreast of strategic changes that may impact your role.

New call-to-action

4. To Keep a Finger on the Pulse of Their Industry

A professional network can be a powerful source of new ideas and information that leaders can leverage to keep their finger on the pulse of their industry and the world at large.

For this reason, leaders typically don’t just connect with individuals they expect to work with one day. They instead connect with thought leaders from within their industries to bring together as many diverse voices as possible and facilitate the free exchange of ideas.

“Effective networks are based on the closeness and diversity of the relationships within them,” Mayo says in Leadership Principles. “If you have a very large network in which everyone knows each other, you essentially have access to the same, recycled information. It’s more important for your network to provide new resources and have strong relationships that rest on a willingness to help each other.”

How to Develop Your Professional Network

1. Start Within Your Organization

Whether you're a current or aspiring leader, taking the time to build connections within your company can open the door to many opportunities.

Devoting time to sit in on meetings, whether or not they directly impact your department or initiatives, can be a powerful way of demonstrating your interest in the work of others. Other potential strategies include finding a mentor within your organization who's been in your position in the past, offering your expertise to a member of a different team who seems to be struggling, or simply going out to lunch with colleagues instead of eating at your desk.

Having a firm understanding of emotional intelligence, as well as your own strengths and weaknesses, can help.

2. Leverage Professional Associations, Conferences, and Events

When it comes to building a robust network of external connections, professionals have many opportunities to connect with others in their industry. Professional associations, for example, regularly host luncheons and other events where members are encouraged to mingle. Similarly, industry conferences or trade shows can be an effective means of meeting new people.

Consider speaking at an event or participating in a roundtable. In addition to giving you the opportunity to meet others, doing so will allow you to position yourself as a resource—an expert in the field—others will be inclined to turn to.

Related: 5 Steps to Creating a Successful Leadership Development Plan

3. Become a Mentor

Many people understand the value that mentorship can provide. In a mentorship, the mentee can learn from past mistakes, successes, and experiences of their mentor, and apply those lessons to their own career.

Mentors can also benefit from their relationship with mentees. First, mentorship requires the mentor to reflect upon their career in order to guide the mentee—a useful exercise, especially for those not accustomed to doing so. Second, when the mentee is sourced from within the organization, the mentor stands to benefit directly from the mentee’s improved performance.

The mentor-mentee relationship is a powerful one which, when maintained appropriately, can last for decades. These days, individuals do not typically stay at the same organization for their entire careers. This means that a mentor might train and build relationships with many individuals who eventually go on to work in a range of positions at a variety of organizations—creating a robust network of ambassadors who represent the mentor’s brand.

Leadership Principles: Unlock your leadership potential. Learn more.

Networking is Critical to Leadership

An effective leader understands that networking is important. As such, building, maintaining, and interacting with your professional network should be a key component of any leadership development plan. By helping you identify career opportunities, build a successful team, anticipate organizational changes, and stay on top of industry trends, your professional network is one of the most powerful tools at your disposal as a leader.

Want to learn more about how effective leaders develop and nurture their professional networks to advance their career goals? Explore our online course Leadership Principles.

About the Author

Tim Stobierski is a marketing specialist and contributing writer for Harvard Business School Online.
 
All FAQs

Top FAQs

How are HBS Online courses delivered?

+–

We offer self-paced programs (with weekly deadlines) on the HBS Online course platform.

Our platform features short, highly produced videos of HBS faculty and guest business experts, interactive graphs and exercises, cold calls to keep you engaged, and opportunities to contribute to a vibrant online community.

Do I need to come to campus to participate in HBS Online programs?

+–

No, all of our programs are 100 percent online, and available to participants regardless of their location.

How do I enroll in a course?

+–

All programs require the completion of a brief application. The applications vary slightly from program to program, but all ask for some personal background information. You can apply for and enroll in programs here. If you are new to HBS Online, you will be required to set up an account before starting an application for the program of your choice.

Our easy online application is free, and no special documentation is required. All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the program.

After submitting your application, you should receive an email confirmation from HBS Online. If you do not receive this email, please check your junk email folders and double-check your account to make sure the application was successfully submitted.

Updates to your application and enrollment status will be shown on your Dashboard. We confirm enrollment eligibility within one week of your application.

Does Harvard Business School Online offer an online MBA?

+–

No, Harvard Business School Online offers business certificate programs.

What are my payment options?

+–

We accept payments via credit card, wire transfer, Western Union, and (when available) bank loan. Some candidates may qualify for scholarships or financial aid, which will be credited against the Program Fee once eligibility is determined. Please refer to the Payment & Financial Aid page for further information.

We also allow you to split your payment across 2 separate credit card transactions or send a payment link email to another person on your behalf. If splitting your payment into 2 transactions, a minimum payment of $350 is required for the first transaction.

In all cases, net Program Fees must be paid in full (in US Dollars) to complete registration.

What are the policies for refunds and deferrals?

+–

After enrolling in a program, you may request a withdrawal with refund (minus a $100 nonrefundable enrollment fee) up until 24 hours after the start of your program. Please review the Program Policies page for more details on refunds and deferrals. If your employer has contracted with HBS Online for participation in a program, or if you elect to enroll in the undergraduate credit option of the Credential of Readiness (CORe) program, note that policies for these options may differ.

 

Sign up for News & Announcements

Subject Areas

  • Business Essentials
  • Leadership & Management
  • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
  • Strategy
  • Finance & Accounting
  • Business & Society

Quick Links

  • FAQs
  • Contact Us
  • Request Info
  • Apply Now

About

  • About Us
  • Media Coverage
  • Founding Donors
  • Leadership Team
  • Careers @ HBS Online

Legal

  • Legal
  • Policies
Harvard Business School
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College
  • Site Map
  • Trademark Notice
  • Digital Accessibility