Networking With Purpose

The SPS Women’s Alliance Network (SWAN) recently hosted its annual event for 2025 in London – Networking with Purpose, aimed at helping attendees overcome their nerves when it comes to connecting with their peers.

Hosted at an SPS client site in London, with 90 people attending in person and 20 more watching via livestream. The audience were welcomed by long-time SWAN lead Helen Kopicki, before introducing a brand-new SWAN subgroup – for Menopause & Women’s Health. This new group’s lead, Christina Banahan, explained the background to its formation and its goals: to support colleagues going through the menopause and educate the impact it has beyond an individual’s experience. There are up to 100 different reported symptoms of the menopause, and 86% of women say it has a negative effect on their careers. Through mentor programmes and a support framework the group hopes to help anyone going through the menopause maintain their confidence and thrive.

Christina then handed over to SWAN Executive Sponsor Claire Ward who, after breaking down the slogan for the day – confidence, resilience and impact – chaired a panel of SPS colleagues discussing their own experiences of networking. The panel was made up of Jason Ross, Mel Simpson, Daniel Stonard and Nicole Mangarella, who each answered questions on their experiences of networking, the lessons they’ve learned from careers spent building relationships, and tips and tricks that worked for them as they’ve connected with people.

The panel was followed by the day’s keynote speaker – Jo Phillips, founder of The Woman Behind the Women – who began by highlighting some impactful statistics. Jo shared that 90% of Fortune 500 CEOs have one thing in common: they play golf. The proportion of those golfers remains overwhelmingly men, and contributes to the fact that only 20% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women.

90% of Fortune 500 CEOs have one thing in common: they play golf. The proportion of those golfers remains overwhelmingly men, and contributes to the fact that only 20% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women.

Women often find it difficult to enter spaces like the golf course that traditionally welcome men, and often have less time on evenings or weekends due to caring responsibilities at home. With only 10% of a woman’s career success based on performance – compared to 64% based on anecdotal feedback – its vital women feel equipped to take full advantage of the networking opportunities they are afforded.

Jo echoed the responses of the SPS panel lists, recommending preparation before attending a networking event. By targeting those people you want to meet and make a good impression on and preparing some relevant talking points for the event, you can ensure you feel prepared and more at ease. Similarly, Jo recommended not being afraid to approach your networking targets to ask for support, or “reverse engineering” your contacts. Establish the sort of person that you want to work with then seek them out – people are often very happy to help.

As soon as Jo was finished, the audience left for a networking session amongst themselves, with Jo running several clinics to give some more direct guidance, and panel members offering some speed dating-style chat opportunities. With plenty of valuable information to put into practice, the attendees left grateful for the event, and thankful to the SWAN team for pulling it together.