Networking the old fashioned way?

I'm making a mid-year resolution. No more Heathrow Airport, where I change from easy-going-calm-person to irritable witch as soon as I step into the terminal. From now on, it's regional airports all the way. I've just flown from Birmingham International to Gothenburg in the tinest plane I've ever been in.  Absolutely no queuing and happy smiley staff. Am v.impressed.

Anyway, I digress. I'm here representing Melcrum at a best practice sharing event organised by an impressively proactive head of comms for a global corporate. For the next couple of days we'll be hearing case study presentations and taking part in ideas-sharing sessions, and I'll be reflecting on what we've heard at the end of each day. And tomorrow there's a boat trip to dinner on a very pretty-sounding island.

Social networking. I like it. Am worryingly addicted to it, in fact. Fast, convenient, fantastic for staying in touch.  But good (old-fashioned?!!) 'in person' networking is something else.

If you've worked in a big corporate with a fair-sized comms team take a look at where your former colleagues are working now. Spread far and wide across companies of all shapes, sizes and industries, I bet. Pick a date, find yourselves a room in someone's headquarters building, choose your topic and take along examples  and you're all set for a productive session of 'I'll show you mine if you show me yours.'  As well as probably a good old sociable time. I know this idea is already working well for ex-Vodafone and ex-Barclays folk. (We ex-ntlers stay in touch but our get togethers tend to be in restaurants and focus almost exclusively on 'what's on the dessert menu?' ...)

Anyone doing any networking of the more traditional kind and prepared to share any dos & don'ts?

Sue

PS This is the first time I've been to Sweden when it's sunny in the middle of the night and warm, as opposed to dark in the middle of the day and cold - but it just doesn't seem right to sleep when it's still light! Better start counting sheep ...

Comments

[Sue]

A quick observation after the first day of the event - our host talked in the introduction about his definition of the difference between networking and best practice sharing. Networking is where people are happy to talk about their learnings and mistakes; best practice sharing is where people talk about successes.

I thought those were interesting definitions. It's unlikely you'll read about, or see people talking at a conference about, all the things they wish they'd never done. But they'll probably tell you as part of a more informal networking conversation.