Go to: Perspectives ’15 honorees
Perspectives ’15 Moderator: Tiffani Tucker
For Tiffani Tucker, networking yields many benefits when you follow through
Tiffani Tucker, anchor/reporter at WOIO 19 Action News, and moderator of this year’s Perspectives’ 2015 Women Who Excel Conference, set for April 22, 2015, at LaCentre in Westlake, clearly remembers when she first learned how to build a network.
“It started really with childhood,” she says. “I was a competitive ice skater and always had to mind my P’s and Q’s — judges were always around. My parents always told me it was important to follow through.
“In networking, it’s important to follow through as well. Stay connected with people. You never know who you are going to meet up with. It’s like a tree with its branches.”
Tucker has been with WOIO since 2007 after working at television stations in Miami and South Bend, Indiana. She has found that maintaining her network meant keeping in touch with those contacts she made at each job. Tucker also had learned from some television news workshops that it was important to keep in contact with colleagues, even those from her first job.
“I continued to do that throughout my years, and I found it most definitely helped me,” she says.
Connections count
She credits networking for helping her land her current position.
“The WOIO news director called not my agent, but an anchor at the Miami station,” she says. “He spoke highly of me; I came in for the interview and got the job. That’s what I mean by networking and connecting. You never know where the next person is going to be. Keep in touch.”
If you are building a network, look around you for direction, she says.
“Find something that you’re interested in, or passionate about, such as an organization or a book club. Start from there and branch out.”
Covering the news reinforces the fact that networking never ends, Tucker says.
“I go out and interview people every day, I meet somebody different and you get to connect that way,” she says. “Usually I meet somebody on what is their worst day while covering the news. But there are ways to treat people kindly. It takes more energy to act ugly than to be nice. I think it is important to be kind and to try to stay connected.”
Don’t prejudge
Another networking skill she finds important is to not to judge people by appearances.
“I don’t think you can necessarily judge a book by its cover,” she says. “Everybody has a place, everybody has a different career. I was always taught you never know who you’re looking at when you’re talking to that person; it could be a billionaire or it could be somebody who is homeless.
“You should be able to walk into a room and talk to anybody on any level. I think that is important.
“That person may know more than you anticipated, but until you start asking questions, you might not get answers. I’ve met a lot of people just being out and about, at the restaurant or the grocery store, and have a conversation with them. It’s almost like a chain letter. That’s how I do it.”
How to reach: WOIO, (216) 367-7300, or www.19actionnews.com
Perspectives ’15 Panelists
Debbie Donley finds ‘relationship trees’ help her better define a network
When Debbie Donley, principal for architecture and interior design firm Vocon Partners LLC thinks about networking, she doesn’t actually like the word. Rather, she prefers to call it a relationship tree, with authentic relationships in bloom.
“Be authentic when you approach a potential connection,” she says. “Don’t go after organizations that aren’t aligned with how you think about things because it will never work. If they just aren’t a fit for you, it’s going to feel very fake and not authentic.”
Then as your relationship tree grows, you will notice there are strong branches and weaker ones toward the ends. Keep the strong branches healthy by maintaining relationships that are really strong and true to your core and it will lead to more strong relationships, she says.
Less is more
The number of people on your relationship tree isn’t as important as the quality, Donley says.
“To me, less is more. I can’t help the people in my network if I have 20,000 people who I am trying to touch,” she says.
Business leaders should not be opportunity seekers when building their network.
“I don’t feel that that is an authentic way to build relationships,” she says. “I build relationships face-to-face with people. I don’t do it over email. I still write handwritten thank-you notes.
“The way I work is very personal, and what I have found is I don’t sell our services. I never have sold. Although I own the business with my brother Paul Voinovich, neither one of us are salespeople — we are relationship builders.”
While social media has been touted as the essential communication tool today, it doesn’t replace personal contact, Donley says.
“An organization can still participate in that, but I really feel like if you’re having a conversation with somebody about their family, and you are doing it over email, it’s not the same as really saying, ‘Hey, how is your daughter doing? She was struggling the last time we had lunch,’” she says.
In the memory banks
When relationships get personal, they create more memorable connections.
“As you reach out to people and give them a hand up and five years later that person comes back out of nowhere and says, ‘Hey, don’t you do this? Can you help me here?’” she says.
Having that trust as you enter a project is critical, Donley says.
“There are many times when I have known somebody for 10 years and have never done any work with them — which is fantastic because when you then do work with them, there is that automatic trust you have built in a real authentic way that exists and helps form the whole dynamic of the relationship, the engagement,” she says.
While based in Cleveland, Vocon opened a New York office in 2010 — an authentic relationship tree has helped guide the company into the New York market.
“We have 120 people here in Cleveland and about 25 in New York, which has been really exciting and fun; a new adventure, and it has gone well,” Donley says.
How to reach: Vocon Partners LLC, (216) 588-0800 or www.vocon.com
Kelly Hancock’s networking gains strength when categorized by goals and objectives
Kelly Hancock, executive chief nursing officer for the Cleveland Clinic, refers to the power of three when talking about networking: a professional network, a personal one — and a strategic one. But one thing is critical to all networks: Work hard to strengthen each relationship and not let any weaken.
“I belong to many professional organizations, and the networking that goes on there from the nursing and health care standpoint has been tremendous,” she says. “Not only for me as a leader and a health care professional, but for what I bring back to my organization, which allows me to share best practices. It has an influence on my thinking, and it is also an opportunity for me to learn to manage better.”
Hancock also thinks of professional networking as an opportunity to consider who the stakeholders are and to receive feedback, making sure that you’re meeting the needs of your business.
“One of the professional organizations I belong to is an advisory board for chief nursing officers,” she says. “It includes my colleagues from across the country, meeting periodically to discuss current topics in health care and offer creative solutions together. It is an opportunity to take back solutions to your own organization and as a leader to help influence your decisions.”
Engaging with colleagues
The second category, a personal network, involves engaging with colleagues who have a shared interest, typically outside your line of work, Hancock says.
“A personal network can help me for my own personal development or help others for their own personal development. A good example of that is an organization I belong to, In Counsel With Women. Most members are outside of health care. We strategize with other women in leadership to learn how to have an impact on the work that we do. That personal networking for me has been fabulous.”
Strategic networking, the third category, involves connecting with colleagues to support the overall business needs.
“We talk about professional growth, whether it be health care or not, and hopefully taking back some opportunities to influence growth in your organization,” she says. “Networking in general is creating a web, an integrated web of personal contacts that provides yourself as a leader with a different support and feedback course.”
Getting through challenges
Hancock says she finds networks are especially helpful in getting through the challenges that nursing and health care present.
“If you are in any forum with my colleagues throughout the country, you most definitely will hear a moan when somebody brings up electronic documentation of health records,” she says.
“Networking is an opportunity for us to share strategies and how we continue to have a strong connection and leverage technology as opposed to having it as our enemy. It has been a great way to share best practices. Whether it is webinars, social, meetings, picking up the phone, sharing publications or whatever it may be, that’s very powerful. Truly we are all in it for the same reason. That compassionate piece is alive and well.”
How to reach: Cleveland Clinic, (866) 320-1385 or clevelandclinic.org/exechealth
Kelly Steward’s key to networking: Find something in common and expand on it
When Kelly Steward, general manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland, preps her team members before they attend a networking event, she makes a simple assignment:
“I want you to come back with five new relationships. It might not be a full-on relationship, but at least the start of one.”
Get into the mix
Avoid being a wallflower at networking opportunities, she says.
“Many times we go to network events with our buddy, and we only network with the two that we came with,” Steward says. “You’ve got to get out of your comfort zone. I think it is so important. It is hard, but you can find something in common and expand on that.
“I think that is how you start a relationship.”
Communication skills rank at the top of relationship building, Steward says, especially body language.
“You have to be focused,” she says. “If I’m in a conversation with you, I need to look at you directly in your eyes. I need to concentrate on what you are saying.
“It is very important to show your heart and be real with people. I always teach our ladies and gentlemen that the eyes are the windows to one’s soul. You can really tell a lot about people when they look you in the eye.
“You can tell someone is real when they ask about you as a person.”
Being real with people is important, she says, because then they will trust you.
“It shows your integrity, it shows your commitment, and above all, it is about respect. It is so important. You start to build that trust when you show that you are genuinely interested in someone.”
Avoid mixed signals
While at a networking event, it’s also important not to send mixed signals to others.
“I have had some team members tell me they were hurt when they were trying to have a conversation and were showing genuine interest in the person, and the other person was looking around the room to see who else to scope out — who else should I get to know,” Steward says. “You don’t want to send those signals, so you’ve got to watch your body language when you are networking.”
Steward, who has been general manager for the past two years, relocated from the Los Angeles market. Her promotion to general manager meant the first element that she needed to do with networking was to get to know her team and then the businesses in town.
“In my role as the general manager of the Ritz-Carlton in Cleveland, I have to go up and approach people, I’ve got a network and I’ve got to get to know people.
“I had to get to know who we sell to, who are our customers and start those relationships. And it was critical to the success of not only our business and our team but also my success. If I stayed in an office all day, we were not going to be successful here.”
How to reach: The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland, (216) 623-1300 or www.ritzcarlton.com/cleveland
Margaret Mitchell learned the ropes of NE Ohio networking and focused on listening
When Margaret Mitchell moved to Cleveland eight years ago from Plano, Texas, she realized one of her first challenges would be to build her network.
She didn’t know anyone in Northeast Ohio, didn’t have any family here and hadn’t attended college here.
“I started out with obviously a very small network, and it was kind of lonely the first year,” says Mitchell, president and CEO of YWCA Greater Cleveland. “But I don’t think the size of the network matters. For me, it was important to be genuine with people, and let time take its natural course.”
In other words, you’ll build stronger relationships and create a better network when you focus on quality over quantity.
Broaden your reach
“I abide by the principle that it is not who you know — it is who knows you. I haven’t lived here my entire life, so I am very dependent upon who knows me and how they position or share my work or the changes that have happened at the YWCA as a result of my leadership,” Mitchell says. “You want your leadership to live past the four walls of your organization.”
As time took its course, Mitchell found that building a network in Greater Cleveland first required some background on how networking works here.
“When you come to Cleveland, you find it is a very well-networked community,” she says. “People want to know things about you to put you instantly into categories: ‘Where do you come from?’ ‘What side of town do you live on?’ ‘What high school did you go to?’ Those things help people decide whether they are going to put you in their network.”
For Mitchell, one of her key strengths in developing her network was her interest in meeting others.
“I love meeting new people and listening and understanding what they do,” she says. “I have a smaller, tighter network that I work with most closely, and I am clear about my own DNA — what it is that I bring to the table and what I want to share with people. I think that helps people identify who I am and how they can support me, as well.”
Listening is vital
Another quality that is important in developing a network is to listen to what your connections have on their minds.
“Be a good listener. When you can hear others and those others know that you see them and value them, then you have a really strong and important network that is going to pay dividends for you,” Mitchell says.
While the number of people isn’t critical in your network, getting a broad mix of connections is very beneficial. Doing so could involve stepping into unfamiliar territory.
“I think it is important as a woman that I build an incredibly diverse and complex network and include people who don’t look like me and who aren’t my gender,” she says. “We tend to build a network that looks like ourselves, and it is an unconscious bias.”
How to reach: YWCA Greater Cleveland, (216) 881-6878 or www.ywcaofcleveland.org
