Smaller types of Networking Groups – Explained!

Don’t forget networking is not just about groups and events it is about building relationships. Attending networking groups and networking events is just the first step. To get the most out of it you must be an active and engaged participant. For some people, this can mean that they get more benefit out of smaller networking events/groups (approx 10 participants). This might include groups and events such as peer circles, sounding board sessions, workshops and roundtable events (or a combination of more than one).

We talk about each of these below:

Peer Circles

Peer circles tend to be quite informal. They are made up of a small group of peers that meet on a regular basis (e.g. monthly) to share and learn from each other and ultimately become a group of trusted peers and advisors. Group members discuss how to tackle challenges they are facing, navigate change, and grow personally and professionally. They will usually have a common thread/identifier or share the same values. For example, they are in the same profession or industry, they are women in a particular industry, they are freelancers or entrepreneurs, have their own business etc.

They are a community of people. Meetings are structured to facilitate sharing at both personal and professional levels helping participants enrich and change their lives.

Sounding Board Sessions

Sounding board sessions are small groups where you can share and talk about the challenges that you are facing and the ideas that you have. These sessions will often be confidential and with your peers.  They are a safe space and are particularly useful for people who are entrepreneurs and/or have their own business to talk about their business. The attendees of the sounding board sessions have the potential to be their peers that they perhaps lack by not being part of a large company.

They can be a collaborative problem-resolution tool.

The sessions themselves will usually have a theme or focus to direct the discussion or conversation. Alternatively, they might focus on a particular problem to help you troubleshoot or come up with a strategy. These sessions can sometimes take the form of a workshop. Again meetings are likely to be on a regular basis.

Workshop Sessions

These are not dissimilar to sounding board sessions. These are usually interactive sessions and with a focus on teaching and knowledge sharing.  Again, workshops are usually run with a small group (but may not always have formal confidentiality rules in place).

Workshop sessions are also usually run by an expert on a particular topic, rather than as a peer group discussion. Once again it is a space to learn, learn and network with other attendees, share experiences, ask stupid questions and ask for advice. Examples of workshops might be a particular session on a skill development like networking or coaching. A session on learning how to do something really specific like how to create a video about yourself – with a specific output etc where you have actually created a first draft (or even a finished product).

Roundtable events

Roundtable events are discussions. Participants are usually a cross-section of people (or can be peers) but the key thing is that they have agreed on a specific topic to discuss and debate. There will be a facilitator to help guide the discussion, but each person is given equal right to participate and discuss the topic.

Roundtables are often invite-only or have a select group of attendees to help make the roundtable more beneficial for all attendees.