“Taking on a project that was a little outside of Dr.Woodruff’s expertise […] required that I collaborate and network from the very beginning,” McKinnon says.
And she isn’t alone in her need to work, and interact with, others. For many lab professionals, it’s a necessity to be aware of, and involved with, experts in their fields and sometimes with those in other fields […]”
This extract from the Labmanager’s article: Professional Networking for Today’s Scientist (with the statement made by Dr. Kelly McKinnon – PhD candidate and researcher at Woodruff Lab at Northwestern University.) Summarizes perfectly the importance of knowledge among professionals in the same industry, which can be reflected, especially in the scientific field, with prolific collaboration.
Networking is important at various levels, although it is true that at an early stage it is useful to find a job (many job opportunities are filled with networking) it is true that it is also crucial later, in fact, an easier peer co-operation improves significantly the results of your work and research (with an effect of improving about your own position).
Obviously the “dynamics” of networking are very complex to decipher and constrained by the “human factor”. There are many mistakes that can be made in these experiences such as lack of follow-up or mismanagement of new knowledge.
In recent years, the growing presence of social media has surely favored networking and connections between people, allowing a better peer-to-peer communication.
The power of networking is demonstrated by the fact that people normally reach important goals when they are able to build a team and a profitable collaboration with others, so we must learn to consider the ability to create a professional network as a fundamental resource for the development of our projects.
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