Being the text of a paper delivered by Dr Sulaimon Olanrewaju, Chief Press Secretary to Oyo State Governor, at a webinar on entrepreneurship, innovation and employability organised by the University of Ibadan Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation on Friday, February 28, 2025.

Introduction

Networking and mentoring are two sides of a coin because the two leverage relationship to actualise desired goals. Every entrepreneur that wants to go far needs strong networks and great mentors because relationship is a critical success factor in business. The reason is that most people are at ease doing business with those they know, trust and like more than those they do not have any relationship with. Since success in an enterprise is largely a function of the volume of patronage enjoyed by the business, entrepreneurs should deliberately initiate and cultivate relationships that can bolster their businesses.

 

Networking

Networking provides entrepreneurs the opportunity to expand their scope of influence and extend their reach. By building relationship with people within and outside their immediate environment, entrepreneurs increase their chances of succeeding in business because in the final analysis, it is not only what you can do or what you know that counts but who knows you. Those who have a network of contacts stand a better chance than those who operate alone. According to Porter Gale, an American entrepreneur and author, an individual’s network determines his net worth. It is also said that an individual’s net worth is the mean of the value of his network (a summation of the worth of all the contacts divided by their number). In other words, the quantity and quality of the people known by an individual plays a significant role in the determination of his worth.

The value of a network is determined by the depth of the relationship. This is where cultivating relationship comes in. Cultivating a relationship is taking a relationship from acquaintanceship to bonding. This requires serious work. Hence the observation by Diane Helbig, an author, that networking is an investment in your business. It takes time and when done correctly can yield great results over a period of time. It is when a relationship is well developed that its dividends begin to manifest. It is then that networking becomes social capital.

 

Mentoring

Everyone who aspires to greatness needs a mentor. Anyone who is imbued with the vision to make an impact in life requires a mentor. Anybody who hopes to be better than he currently is needs to get a mentor. To build a great company, you need to have a mentor. To be an outstanding athlete, you require a mentor. If you want to become a leader worth following, you must of necessity submit to a mentor. This is because having travelled the route before, a mentor helps to avoid obstacles, and helps you back on your feet when you experience a setback. Mentors curb excesses and give wings to vision. They help in managing weaknesses and maximizing capacity. Mentors bring closer what seems afar; they also bring to realization what ordinarily wears the toga of illusion. To operate without a mentor is to subject oneself to avoidable difficulties and put a cap on the realization of one’s potentialities.

A mentor is a person knowledgeable and experienced enough to guide another person, candid enough to earn the trust of a mentee, passionate enough about the mentee’s vision to invest his time in its realization and patient enough to bear with the inadequacies of his mentee.

Behold Walter Sisulu, Nelson Mandela’s Mentor

Nelson Mandela is regarded as one of the most respected political leaders in history. Honours were bestowed on him across the globe. He was courted by royalty and sought after by presidents. Businessmen, sports people and politicians flocked around him; everyone wanted to identify with him. Mandela wrote his name in gold not just because he was in prison for 27 years or because he fought for the emancipation of his people but principally because as President of South Africa, he resisted the temptation to pay back the champions of apartheid in their own coin. Rather than build walls, he built bridges and used his presidency to heal the wounds of the past in his country. This endeared him to the world and he became a global icon.

But Mandela would probably have been an inconsequential South African if not for his encounter with Walter Sisulu, the South African anti-apartheid activist who inducted him into freedom fighting and molded him into becoming a great leader. Sisulu did not have much of formal education, he left school after Standard 4 but he was able to inspire and challenge those with university education, helping them to find purpose in life.

Mandela, in the tribute he paid to Sisulu after his demise in 2003, wrote that “By ancestry, I was born to rule. Xhamela (Sisulu) helped me understand that my real vocation was to be a servant of the people.” He added, “His home was the centre of our being together. He held his own; he interacted with ease and without a trace of inferiority. He was attracted to each of us, yet he was the magnet that drew us all together. That was his hallmark: an ability to attract and work together with highly competent and talented young men, a ready sounding board for ideas. He was a powerful influence who exuded respect for their talents and a born diplomat. He was courageous and his quiet self-confidence and clarity of vision marked him out as a leader among us.”

Sisulu mentored and modeled Mandela into a world-class leader. Mandela’s focus would have been different and so would have been the course of his life if not for the mentoring provided by Sisulu. So, though he never became the South African President nor won the Nobel Prize, Sisulu had a prize more desirable than the Nobel; he had riches that were more precious than diamonds; he mentored Mandela and gave the world one of its best men.

But Mandela would have missed the opportunity of that great mentoring if not for the social capital he had built as a result of his membership of a network.

 

Digital Networking

The world has become increasingly digital. So, it is best for entrepreneurs to engage in digital networking because it allows them to connect with like-minded people across geographical boundaries and industries. Through digital networking events, entrepreneurs can tap into vast knowledge and opportunities that can help them achieve their business goals.

Digital networking is about making connections and leveraging those connections to propel your business. You can attain valuable insights, stay updated on industry trends, and discover new opportunities for collaboration by actively engaging in online communities and groups relevant to your industry or interests.

 

Key components of digital networking

Online presence

Building a strong online presence is important for effective digital networking. This includes having a well-designed website or professional profile that showcases your skills, experience, and achievements.

 

Social Media Engagement

Engaging on social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook can help you connect with other entrepreneurs. Sharing valuable content, participating in discussions, and interacting with others’ posts can enhance your visibility and credibility.

 

Virtual Networking Events

Virtual networking events like webinars or conferences provide an opportunity for an entrepreneur to meet other entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds without physical attendance. These events provide opportunities for learning, exchanging ideas, and making new connections.

 

Online communities

Joining relevant online communities or groups linked to your industry can help you connect with like-minded entrepreneurs with similar interests or goals.

 

Between Digital Networking and Traditional Networking

Digital networking differs from traditional networking primarily due to its virtual nature:

 

Geographical boundaries

Geographical boundaries often limit traditional networking since they require physical presence at events or meetings. In contrast, digital networking allows you to connect with professionals worldwide, breaking geographical barriers.

 

Accessibility and convenience

Digital networking provides the convenience of connecting with other entrepreneurs anytime and anywhere.

 

Reach and exposure

Digital networking has a broader reach than traditional networking. You can connect with a larger audience and gain exposure to a wider range of opportunities by leveraging online platforms.

 

Information sharing

Digital networking events allow quick and efficient information sharing through various digital channels. It lets professionals share resources, insights, and real-time industry updates.

However, whether an entrepreneur opts to network physically or virtually, he needs a dose of social capital.

 

Social capital

Social capital is the benefit derivable from being relational. It refers to the structure and quality of social relationships, from which individuals, social groups and the society may benefit. It is a multidimensional resource that is generated through interpersonal interactions, and it includes network ties that may facilitate cooperation and collective action. It is the sum of resources, actual or virtual, that accrue to an individual or a group by the virtue of possessing a durable network of institutionalised relationships.

Social capital is a concept used to define productive and beneficial relationships. It involves the effective functioning of social groups through interpersonal relationships, a shared sense of identity, a shared understanding, shared norms, shared values, trust and cooperation. It also reflects the material advantages gained by individuals who participate in various social networks. These networks include religious associations, trade groups, alumni associations and neighbourhood associations. These networks constitute a collective resource that all participants have access to, and where their commitment and intentional action is required.

The quantum of social capital to which individuals have access depends on the size of the network connections that they can effectively mobilise, and on the amount of social capital possessed by the individuals and groups of their social environment.

There are three primary forms of social capital. These are; bonding, bridging and linking.

Bonding refers to social capital created within a group with shared interests and goals. Examples include neighbourhood association and old students association.

Bridging is the creation of social capital across groups. This happens when members of different groups discover shared interests and goals and work together to achieve them.

Linking is the creation of social capital across groups that span different socioeconomic groups.

However, social capital is hinged on goodwill.

 

Goodwill

Goodwill can be at the personal or corporate level. At the personal level, goodwill is the benevolence or courtesy extended to a person as a result of his reputation. At the corporate level, goodwill is an intangible asset which enables a company to earn higher profits in comparison to the normal profits earned by other firms in the same business. A company’s goodwill is rooted in its reputation; how it is viewed by the buying public, the investing public and the regulatory authorities.

Reputation

As an entrepreneur, do you know what you are known for? Do you know your worth in the estimation of people? As an entrepreneur, your reputation communicates your values to others. Your reputation is what the public knows and believes about you. This is what comes to mind before anyone comes in contact with what you are putting on the table. It is what they hear before the actual words are uttered by you. It is what casts you in a particular mould. It is what determines whether you are believable or not, trustworthy or not, acceptable or otherwise. Your reputation determines your marketability. It is what determines how far you will go as an entrepreneur and those that will accompany you on the trip. A good reputation makes both the life and the work of the entrepreneur easy. Not so a bad reputation; it is a burden which weighs him down and makes him repugnant to all.

But it is not the entrepreneur alone that is affected by his reputation; his organization is also impacted by it. An entrepreneur with a good reputation is a blessing to his organization but a company with a leader whose reputation is tainted will be saddled with an arduous task of living down the reputation. Therefore, every entrepreneur is a brand.

 

The entrepreneur as a brand

The entrepreneur’s brand is who he is, what he represents and what he promises to do. An entrepreneur’s brand is his trademark; his message to the public. It is the totality of his being as seen by the public; his values, abilities and worldview. It is about what he has done and can do.

Every brand communicates beyond its immediate location. So, whether the entrepreneur is conscious of this or not, his actions and inactions send specific messages to the public by virtue of who he is and what he represents.

 

The entrepreneur and his reputation

Reputation is built willy-nilly. As an entrepreneur, you should be intentional about building your reputation. It is the entrepreneur’s responsibility to carve an image for himself in the public. If he fails to do it, because nature abhors a vacuum, a reputation will be created for him, though this may not really represent who he is. However, he has to live with the effect of whatever reputation is carved for him.

Image is everything: Goodluck Jonathan As a Case Study

By the time former President Goodluck Jonathan realized the truth in the axiom that image is everything, it was too late. He was a leader who did not pay any particular attention to how he was framed by the public. Rather than make effort to manage his reputation, he left it to the public to carve him in the mould it wanted. His belief was that his accomplishments should speak for him. The opposition saw this gap, latched onto it and created the image of a corrupt and incompetent leader for him. This was sold to the public who came to see the former president as an epitome of corruption, unfit to continue in office.

After framing Jonathan as corrupt, the opposition sought out Muhammadu Buhari, a man who was seen as the direct opposite of the former president, and fielded him in the March 28, 2015 presidential election.

The opposition’s strategy was simple; demonize Jonathan and canonize Buhari. Jonathan was portrayed as a corrupt and inept leader; Buhari was framed as incorrupt and competent. With that, it was easy to sway the public to vote for the opposition. Jonathan lost the March 28, 2015 election principally to bad reputation.

Three factors determine reputation. They are; character, competence and compassion.

 

Character

A strong character is a product of integrity. Integrity is adhering to the highest standards in all situations. Some people have different sets of standards for different situations; they have a standard of behaviour at work, they have a different set of rules at home, and other modes of behaviour for other settings. So, profiling such people is herculean because they manifest different traits under different conditions and that leads them into avoidable ethical issues. This makes it difficult for people to trust them.

Character is important because people deal with those they trust. Even those who are not trustworthy always look for those they can trust to deal with. So, having an unimpeachable character is a boost to reputation. Good character positions an entrepreneur as trustworthy and enables him to reap the benefit of networking. On the other hand, a blemished character leaves an entrepreneur with a huge trust deficit and inhibits him from accessing the endless possibilities inherent in networking because people only do business with those they trust.

 

Competence

Competence enhances reputation. Competence is magnetic because everyone wants to get close to a competent person so that they can find solutions to their problems. Networking is a two-way street; everyone wants to benefit from it. So, being known as a competent person enhances the entrepreneur’s chances of increasing his network as those who want solutions to their issues will naturally gravitate towards him.

Knowledge is the foundation for competence. The more the knowledge or information at the disposal of an individual, the more competent he becomes. Competence breeds confidence, which also attracts people. Anyone who is on top of the situation in his industry will find it easier to traverse networks than somebody who is perceived as deficient.

 

Compassion

Tibetan scholar, Thupten Jinpa, defines compassion as a mental state endowed with a sense of concern for the suffering of others and aspiration to see that suffering relieved. According to him, compassion has three components: cognitive, which connotes, “I understand you”; affective, which says, “I feel for you” and motivational, which tells the other person, “I want to help you.”

Everyone needs cheerleaders, backers and supporters. At one point or the other, everyone needs a shoulder to lean on, a heart to commune with and a pair of hands to achieve balance. Being known as a compassionate person will draw people to you as an entrepreneur. A reputation as a compassionate person will make you a go to person.

 

Reputation and Strategic Positioning

Building a good reputation requires a bit of strategy because it will not happen naturally. This is one of the reasons companies spend oodles of money on Public Relations to project themselves as being of good character, spend a fortune on advertisements to present their products as competent to solve customers’ problems and invest in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to present themselves as compassionate.

 

Conclusion

Relationship is critical to entrepreneurial success. Cultivating the right relationships reduces the distance between expectations and realizations. This is usually done through networking. However, networking effectiveness is hinged on the ability of the entrepreneur to navigate the web of social capital and goodwill to build a good reputation.

Copyright © 2022 Nigerian Tribune Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).