Hosting a Speed Networking Event is a great way to meet a number of people and build your office’s community. Networking doesn’t have to be excruciating, a speed networking event is fun way to get the job done!
How to Host a Speed Networking Event
Hosting a speed networking event is easy – all you need is 30 minutes, an open space, and people. To get started, have all the participants fill up the space you are using. Everyone then has 5 minutes to talk to someone they’ve never met, learn about what they do, and share a little bit about themselves. After 5 minutes, a bell rings, and people find someone else they’ve never met and repeat the process.
This goes on for 6 rotations (or how many ever you decide) and at the end of the event, everyone in the room has 6 new contacts.
Tips and Tricks to Effective Networking Events
The whole event should be relatively relaxed, but there are a couple of tips to make the most of the speed networking event:
- Tell participants to bring business cards. Encourage everyone to write one thing about the person they met on the business card given.
- Recommend some interesting questions. 5-minutes is a short period of time to get to know someone. Asking good questions is the key to really getting to know someone.
- Keep things relaxed. Remind people that the purpose of the event is to just establish initial contact and open the door for future water-cooler discussions or 1on1 meetings. (see 5 Tips for Better One-on-One Meetings)
As an added bonus, you can end the session with volunteers telling the group an interesting fact about one of the new people they met. This can be a great way to get a sense of what type of connections were made and serve as a brief introduction of a few people to the entire group.
The great thing about Speed Networking Events is that it’s quick, easy, and low pressure.
Got your own tips for networking and building a work community? Share them in the comments.
