Internal Networking: How and Why Bring It Into Your Organization

Internal networking is extremely important for employee productivity and engagement. So how do you get started with internal networks?

What is Internal Network?

Internal networking is a process of reaching out to and connecting with colleagues within your organization, even if your job doesn’t require you to do so.

Many organization today strive to optimize internal networking among employee with the main goal to improve employee relations, increase employee motivation, engagement and productivity.

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Experts on Internal Networking

“Look around you and look everywhere. Make sure to build your internal network and use it to develop your ideas or to source ideas from.” Most business professionals echo this sentiment from global entrepreneur Ted Rollins. As such, we put an emphasis on networking, but mostly outside of the office, when looking for a job or trying to meet industry experts.

Networking inside the office is less talked about, but just as important for sourcing great ideas and finding inspiration. So often teams get siloed and forget that they have a network within the company that can help them complete their tasks more effectively.

“Being an internal networker means you’re looking outside your immediate, day-to-day activities and thinking about how you can connect with and create value for others in your company,” says Jennifer Miller, the founder of SkillSource.

For example, the marketing team may be struggling to get customer data for running tests, when the head of sales may already have it at-the-ready. The key to bringing this into your organization is making it easy for employees to talk with one another. Setting up and supporting an “internal networking initiative” is a great place to start.

How to Create an Internal Networking Initiative

An internal networking initiative will look different from one organization to another, depending on your goals, budget, tools, and needs. Regardless, the most important piece is making resources available to help employees connect. Here are a few ways to do exactly that.

1. Host Office Mixers

Put internal networking events on the calendar once a month. Instead of having them after work hours, plan to end the day an hour or two early, so employees don’t see this as another task on their never-ending to-do list. This can be as simple as an office happy hour, or more specific to a large company project.

You can even host department specific mixers, where you bring two departments together who haven’t been connecting as much as they should or can.

2. Create Online Chat Groups

If you use an office messaging system, like Slack that allows for groups, create networking channels or groups. Employees can use them to ask fellow co-workers a question, request resources, or share information about their role within the company.

Having a chat program like this in place is valuable, whether or not these internal networking groups are consistently used. Employees can exchange insights on posted content while investing in open communication.

3. Attend events as a team

Set the tone for internal networking by attending industry events as a team. If you can’t afford a big conference, look for local get-togethers. Many larger organizations have small chapters in various cities that hold educational or networking nights.