The strength of a professional network can influence economic outcomes
Senior Staff Economist at LinkedIn
Economic networks, such as the people we are connected to on LinkedIn, can significantly influence the information we receive, the knowledge we gain, and the career opportunities available to us. However, these networks are not equally strong across all groups, including across gender.
In a new white paper with Danielle Kavanagh-Smith, Osonde Osoba, and Yuwen Wu, we build a new model of network strength. We analyze how the network strength and its components differ between men and women in the US. We then explore how differences in network strength and its features relate to economic outcomes, such as recruiter contact and job title seniority. This research is also highlighted as part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report.
A new model of economic network strength
Our new model of network strength is based on four key factors:
The total number of connections
The characteristics of these connections (e.g., are they in senior positions? Are they in related industries and occupations?)
The frequency of communication between connections
The diversity of information provided by connections (e.g., weak ties)
Network strength and the structure of networks are important factors that impact economic outcomes. Creating a new conceptualization model to analyze and evaluate an overall network helps us better understand their economic impact. Our new network model takes into account the quality and the nature of a network’s connections and how they impact economic outcomes.
Overall, men Have stronger networks than women, but women particularly excel in network diversity
The median overall network strength for men is 8.3 percentile points higher than that of women. This means if you ranked 100 people by the strength of their networks in a line, the average man would be positioned eight spots higher than the average woman.
One trend that can explain this gap is that men on average have larger networks which are characterized by more frequent communication, and connections to individuals in senior positions within related industries. However, while women's overall networks may be weaker on average to men's, they excel in one key aspect: network diversity (framed in the paper as a measure of information non-redundancy), particularly in the realm of weak ties. Weak ties are people we are connected to that have other connections we do not know. Weak ties offer inroads to new information, and have been shown to lead to better career outcomes. This suggests that women have access to a wider array of unique information pathways. On average, women outperform men by 6 percentile points in this regard.
Our analysis shows that while more than half of the gender gap in network strength can be attributed to differences in men and women's occupations, firms, and seniority levels, with the remaining network strength gaps due to unknown factors. In other words, even when comparing a man and a woman in identical occupations, seniority levels, and firms, the man would still tend to have a stronger network. These network gaps reflect underlying, systemic gender disparities and biases in the labor market that have persisted for decades. The measured gaps in our paper are almost certainly an improvement over historical gaps built off-platform. Traditional networking favors a small group of more privileged workers, who are more likely to be male. These network systems do not have widely accessible ways for people outside these circles to find and connect with people, as LinkedIn’s platform enables.
Stronger networks are associated with more recruiter outreach and higher job seniority
In developing this network strength metric and conducting group comparisons we explored how stronger networks might translate into better career prospects. We find that individuals with stronger networks tend to receive more contact from recruiters, regardless of gender. Specifically, a 10 percentile point increase in total network strength corresponds to a 0.27 percentile point rise in monthly recruiter InMails received. However, when we look at the breakdown by gender, men–due to having a stronger network–receive 0.48 percentile points more InMails than women on average. When women and men have similar network strength, the gap , reduces by more than half; it further diminishes to a negligible 0.085 percentile points when we compare men and women with the same characteristics.
Regardless of gender, stronger networks also correlate with higher job seniority. Specifically, a 10 percentile point increase in network strength is associated with a 1 percentile point increase in the likelihood of attaining a higher seniority level in job titles.
The size of one's network and the frequency of communication within it exhibit stronger associations with economic outcomes than the characteristics of the connections (with whom a person is connected).
Discussion
There are numerous potential explanations for why women may possess smaller and weaker economic networks compared to men. Deep-rooted systemic issues, ingrained over centuries, contribute to these discrepancies.The network gaps we observe on platforms like LinkedIn are actually likely to represent an improvement over historical norms, which relied heavily on informal networking channels that perpetuated social advantage within exclusive circles. In fact, the existence of platforms may actually dramatically help to reduce historical gaps in network strength between different groups. For example, we observed in a prior study that the gender gaps in network size and growth rate are narrowing, and that in the last six years, Black workers switched from growing networks slower than White workers to faster.
As a platform, one of LinkedIn’s guiding principles is to promote fairness and inclusion. One example of how they have done this is through representative search in the Recruiter product. When a hiring manager is searching for a talent pool, representative male to female gender results are reflected. For example, if there are 6500 potential engineering candidates (40% women, 60% men), the output will display 40% of women on each page of the search results to more fairly represent the available pool. Individuals can also take steps to strengthen their networks by fostering more frequent communication with their contacts. By leaning on LinkedIn’s My Network Tab individuals can reconnect with their network while building relationships with people who align with their professional background and goals.
However, it will be employers who play the most crucial role in fostering such information-sharing initiatives, contributing to fair hiring practices in the pursuit of reducing disparities between different groups. Companies should actively promote inclusive networking practices. This can involve hosting networking events and establishing mentorship programs that encourage diverse interactions. Additional research can also investigate reasons for gaps in these inputs in network strength. It is our hope that we begin to see some of the gaps outlined above narrow.