Designing the Networked Organization

Chapter 4

Creating Connections

Let’s now start network building, adding affiliates, and creating connections. By way of preparation, let’s think about some obvious questions:

• Why do we want affiliates?
• Who are we looking for?
• How do we select each other?
• How will we find them?
• What can we do if it’s not working out?
• What are the benefits we gain from a phase 1 network?

In terms of our model, we want to establish lots of hub-affiliate connections (see Figure 4.1). Together they will form a phase 1, or star, network (see Figure 4.2).

This looks deceptively easy. But it isn’t, especially at the beginning when you have no track record. Later, with successful affiliates in place, you will have good references to offer and maybe enough income to ...