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Related Experiment Videos

How to build your network.

Brian Uzzi1, Shannon Dunlap

  • 1Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, Evanston, Illinois, USA.

Harvard Business Review
|December 13, 2005
PubMed
Summary
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Building a strong personal network is crucial for idea success. Diversifying your contacts through high-stakes activities and information brokers can expose your ideas to new opportunities and drive innovation.

Area of Science:

  • Social Network Analysis
  • Organizational Behavior
  • Innovation Management

Background:

  • Ideas often fail due to limited reach within homogenous networks.
  • Personal networks are vital for information dissemination, skill access, and influence.
  • Traditional networking methods often result in clustered, insular groups.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explain the importance of diverse personal networks for idea success.
  • To provide methods for assessing and diversifying professional networks.
  • To highlight the role of information brokers in connecting diverse groups.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of personal network structures and their impact on idea propagation.
  • Identification of 'super-connectors' and 'information brokers' within networks.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Strategies for actively diversifying contacts through shared activities.

    • Main Results:

    • Highly clustered networks limit exposure to novel ideas and opportunities.
    • Information brokers bridging diverse clusters are key to idea success.
    • Actively diversifying networks increases access to varied perspectives and resources.

    Conclusions:

    • Strategic network construction is essential for maximizing an idea's potential.
    • Diversity within a personal network is a critical factor for innovation and success.
    • Individuals can learn to assess, manage, and diversify their networks effectively.