HBR Guide to Smarter Networking

by Harvard Business Review

Connect with the right people to do your job better—and advance faster.

We know that the key to getting ahead and launching our ideas is building and sustaining a high-quality and diverse network. But the days of handing out hundreds of business cards at conferences and hoping for the best are over. Our networks need to be both strategic and authentic, made up of real relationships that bring real value. The HBR Guide to Smarter Networking will give you the tools and the confidence you need to make valuable connections, get your ideas off the ground, draw on others' expertise, scope out business opportunities, and land coveted roles.

This guide will help you:

Connect with connectors
Nourish relationships through give and take
Get the most out of conferences—in-person or virtual
Use your limited networking time wisely
Maintain loose ties over long periods
Emphasize quality of contacts over quantity

Arm yourself with the advice you need to succeed on the job, with the most trusted brand in business. Packed with how-to essentials from leading experts, the HBR Guides provide smart answers to your most pressing work challenges.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Leadership, Communication, Audiobook

236 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 16, 2022

Reviews

[Elisana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es una compilación con una buena cantidad de tips y anécdotas sobre como relacionarse y no morir en el intento. Lo mejorable sería hacerlo multicultural, aunque eso también es cuestión personal.

[Frieda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book breaks down networking in a series of smaller topics - reasons for networking, how to best approach it, figuring out what you have to offer when transitioning roles or careers. It's a compilation of HBR articles which is similar to all the books in this series.

The best piece of advice given was to view yourself as a product and determine what sort of value this product can provide for the industry / company / audience that you seek to appeal to. The book doesn't suggest shamelessly promoting yourself that will leave you looking and sounding like the used car salesman stereotype. However, when you remove yourself from thinking that networking is all about you and more about how you can help the organization and/or people, you will have a better chance of landing opportunities that you desire. At the end of the day, networking is about creating lasting relationships and levels of support where you and your network of people rely on each other in work and sometimes in life.

[Payal Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book because I wanted to get better at networking. This is what I Learned at my organization and I had to be good at it! One thing I have learned is that when we really want something we let nothing stop us. This book reminded me of the simple pleasures of life, but also made me rethink alot of things I had never thought about.

One thing for sure I learned reading this I learned that if you wanna ask for recommendations you gotta be the first to give and I love that! When I made my list I realised actually I wanted to recommend only a few so that was great advice

[charlo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great takeaways, such as how to perfect your elevator pitch and maximise your gains from informative interviews.

Insightful templates for cold-mailing LinkedIn connections to network with potential mentors or recruiters.

Some pointers are slightly machiavellian in nature but nonetheless noteworthy still.

[Cairo Cananea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dicas sobre Networking para diversos perfis e momentos da carreira.
São artigos reunidos de algumas publicações da revista direcionadas para o Networking.

Obtive muitos insights através da leitura.
Muito material para ser empregado na jornada de todo empreendedor 😉

[Arun Narayanaswamy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book with examples. Less of theory and more of situational analysis.
But eventually gets to why networking is important for finding job, I didn’t buy the book for that. So a little disappointment

[Edzel Tabing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starts a little slow at first with some pretty common advice but builds steam towards the latter half with more actionable and practical tips for specific situations. However, some of the content seem to be a little outdated and may not entirely work in 2025.

[Angela Ruach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful for understanding the correct way of networking in different situations!

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5