Most finance professionals will tell you networking is important.
They’ll also admit they don’t really do it.
At least not in a deliberate, consistent way and not until they need it – it’s one of those important things we put off until it becomes urgent (job promotion, new job, etc) and then it’s too late to be effective.
In my experience, finance tends to do networking poorly.
Not because we’re antisocial, introverts or incapable, but because it feels awkward, inefficient, and somewhat manipulative.
It doesn’t sit comfortably with how many of us see ourselves. We’re here to do good work, deliver insight, support decisions.
If we do those things well, we will be fine.
Unfortunately, that’s not how the world most of us live in works. The world where we want to grasp opportunity and may have to compete with others to get it.
The irony is that the people who say they “don’t need networking” are usually the ones who need it most – senior finance professionals with deep technical capability, solid track records, and limited visibility beyond their immediate circle.
Here’s a familiar scenario.
You walk into a networking event, conference, industry function, or internal offsite. You scan the room almost instinctively. You spot someone you know. Relief. Most likely sitting on a corner table or at the back of the room away from the spotlight.
You head straight over, exchange updates, talk about work, complain lightly about the same pressures, maybe introduce a colleague or two. Time passes. The event ends. You leave thinking, “That was good – nice to catch up.”
That isn’t networking. That’s social comfort.
This is what the professional networker calls connecting with strong ties – people we already know, trust, and feel safe with. There’s nothing wrong with strong ties. They matter. They’re important. They often support us when things get tough.
But they rarely change the trajectory of our career, our influence, or our opportunities.
The research on this is very clear. “Strong Ties” tend to give us emotional support and reinforcement of what we already know. And timing plays a big part as to when and how you might be able to leverage that network.
The opposite to strong ties is “Weak Ties” – people we know lightly, loosely, or indirectly – they are where new information, fresh perspective, and opportunity actually come from.
Weak ties are the people you met briefly at a conference, the stakeholder you worked with once and left a good impression on, the peer in another organisation you spoke to for ten minutes, the manager who knows of you, not deeply, but positively maybe by association.
People who are aware of you, had a somewhat decent interaction with you, but the deep connection is left to a time when its more focal for either.
This is where I spend my time. And it’s helped me build and sustain a career and a business working with people from all facets of life.
Most roles, promotions, secondments, board seats, and advisory opportunities don’t come from your closest colleagues. They come from weak ties – people who think of you when something comes up.
Finance professionals often underestimate how much this matters for business partnering.
Influence without authority doesn’t come from org charts or titles. It comes from being known, trusted, and remembered across the organisation. If your network is small, tight, and internal-only, your influence will be the same.
The most common thing CFOs tell me is “My team is technically strong, but they don’t have the same impact as others.”
When you dig into it, one of the consistent patterns is limited networks. They know their immediate stakeholders well, but they aren’t visible beyond them. They aren’t part of the broader conversation.
And when problems come up to solve or opportunities present themselves they are not thought of.
That’s not a communication problem. It’s a networking problem.
The good news is that effective networking doesn’t look like selling yourself, handing out business cards, or pretending to be extroverted.
It looks a lot more like good finance business partnering.
Here’s how I suggest finance professionals approach it.
Firstly, prioritise weak ties. When you walk into a room, notice the instinct to go to people you already know – then resist it.
Don’t head toward the safest corner of the room or the safest face you recognise
Instead, go for the middle of the room. With people you don’t know.
They are the networkers looking to connect with others like you. Perfect candidates for weak ties. The ones in the back of the room are there for comfort and looking to hide – accordingly the conversation will go like that as they don’t want to talk to anyone either so won’t
Join conversations where you know no one
Introduce yourself simply and without performance. Maybe notice someone’s shoes, or tie or shirt and comment on it “Hey that’s an interesting shirt”
Ask them questions like what they’re working on, what brought them to the event, etc. Good what and how questions to find out more about them, not them find out about you. Be interested rather than interesting.
Trust me eventually they will ask about you.
Once you have connected, follow up lightly and professionally. This is where most people fall down. A simple message a few days later referencing the conversation, sharing something relevant, or saying it was good to connect is enough.
You’re not asking for anything. You’re reinforcing the weak tie.
Finally play the long game. Strong networks aren’t built when you need something. They’re built well before that point. Most people only start networking when they want a new role, a promotion, or an exit. That’s already too late. At that point, networking feels desperate – and people can sense it.
For finance business partners, this matters more than ever.
As finance moves away from reporting and towards insight, influence becomes the differentiator. And influence is rarely granted; it’s earned through familiarity and trust. Stakeholders are far more likely to listen to someone they recognise, feel comfortable with, and have seen around – even peripherally.
You gain earlier access to information, more cross functional credibility, and opportunities to be involved in things and hence influence decisions.
And like most things in finance business partnering, it works best when you treat it deliberately – not when you leave it until you need it.
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