Obtaining New Business Opportunities Through Networking Internships

Easy access to a number of promising individuals that fit the requirements to your business at your fingertips? That is something that any business owner or director wants to have. Having access to the right person for the right job usually means you need the right networking channel in order to find them. Of course, distributing recruitment ads through the media is easier and may be a big help, but that also means that it will cost the organization tons of money. Alternatively, recruiting interns may also prove to be an investment towards promising employees in the future. How can a sole proprietor use networking for the purpose of acquiring the right workforce? In what way is offering internships through networking beneficial to a company? In what way is networking internship opportunities a step towards the development and growth of the company?

Elektro-Technisch Installatie Buro Toekimin (EIBT), an electrical installation company based in Suriname. EIBT is owned and operated by Mr. Toekimin, who resigned from his previous job as an electrical engineer to start his own company as a EBS (N.V. Energie Bedrijven Suriname, Suriname’s electricity facilitating company) registered electrical engineer. The workforce of this organization consists of two employees and three contracting teams of electricians.

EIBT excels in safely installing electrical wirings and accessories in projects that are as small as home installations to installing large facilities or factories, all according to the international rules and regulations of the NEN1010 (the safety and regulatory norm on electrics based on the European electricity system), which is implied by the N.V. EBS. As an electricity company they also preform voltage measurements, inspections and revising complete and old installations.

In relations to partnerships, EIBT works with reliable suppliers when it concerns delivering quality products and services. When it comes to projects, they are on contract with large companies for maintenance and installments of their electrical networks in existing installations and new and upcoming projects. They also have partnerships concerning the entry on the level of industrial or government financed projects. To sum up EIBT is a rather achieved company despite being a small company and sole proprietorship. Which begs the question why they need networking to improve their development.

In contrast to what this company represents, its operations and achievements, it has a rather concerning weakness, which is its workforce. To elaborate, the employee count is really low, and even though there are multiple contracting teams, they also have their own projects which is why they are not reliable or rather available during busy seasons. The reason why this will pose a problem is because, the company cannot manage multiple projects and will not be able to complete them if they do not have a dedicated installation team. The solution to this problem lies within networking. What is meant with this statement is that, the company should make use of networking in order to gain the necessary and manageable workforce to be able to effectively and efficiently manage their projects. Engaging in this development is not an easy task. The company needs to introduce itself to the right sources and channels maintain a steady relationship with others for this to work. To take into account that this is a small company and may not have the financials to outsource this problem. In contrary to large companies who do.

‘Business networking is leveraging your business and personal connections to bring you a regular supply of new business. The concept sounds simple, but because it involves relationship building, it can be a deceptively complex process’ (Misner, 2008). To identify ones’ position on networking is to ask the questions: How many people do I know? How many of these people truly understand what I do? Business networking is much more than attending networking functions and collecting business cards. It is about proactively maintaining your relationship with your contacts, remaining focused and being consistent with the networking goal you want to achieve and discover new opportunities for steady growth of your business. That being said, ‘networking for business growth must be strategic and focused. Not everyone you meet can help move your business forward--but everything you do can be driven by the intention to grow your business. You have total control over whom you meet, where you meet them and how you develop and leverage relationships for mutual benefit’ (Misner, 2008). ‘Business networking is a skill and a low-cost method of marketing that is used to build new business contacts through connecting with other like-minded individuals’ (Johnson, 2016). Networking is powerful in many different ways. One of which is presenting opportunities to new business ventures. It also helps the company to develop and cater to the needs of its clients.