Why They Don't Teach Networking in College

Upland, CA (PRWEB) May 9, 2005 -- Ask one professor of business, and he would tell you that most people who read even lightly on the subject of referral networking have actually received a better education than what you would have received at most universities or colleges around the world. As hard as that is to believe -- it's true.

Dr. Ivan Misner, a professor of business at Cal Poly in Pomona, CA recently surveyed over 1,400 business people and 88% of the respondents said they never had any college course that even covered the topic of networking!

Networking, or word-of-mouth marketing," Misner says, is one of the most important ways for entrepreneurs to build their businesses, yet we dont teach it in colleges or universities around the world. Despite that fact, according to a third survey of business professionals that I've conducted, 82% of all business people belong to some type of networking group!"

While business schools hand out bachelor's degrees in marketing, business, and even entrepreneurship, but they are hardly taught anything about the one subject that virtually every entrepreneur says is critically important to their business -- networking and social capital.

Why don't business schools teach this subject," Misner asks. I think it's because most business schools are made up of professors who've never owned a business in their life! Almost everything theyve learned about running a business they've learned from books and consulting. Well, I've read a fair number of books, I was a consultant for many years, and I've run my own business for more than two decades. I can tell you first hand that if you haven't actually owned a business, you have a handicap in teaching a course involving entrepreneurship."

Along with his position at Cal Poly, Dr. Misner happens to run BNI, (Business Network International), the world's largest referral networking firm.

BNI (www.bni.com) is a referral networking organization, which at last count had over 3,600 individual chapters in 22 countries worldwide. BNIs Founder & CEO, Dr. Ivan Misner is the author of several books including the NY Times best-seller, Masters of Networking, (www.MastersofNetworking.com) and the recently released #1 best-seller, Masters of Success (www.MastersofSuccess.biz).

Contact:

Michael Drew

850-747-8188

promoteabook@comcast.net

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