Ivan Misner, BNI: Trust is like a currency!

Integration has now become an intrinsic aspect of the corporate world. People who inspire, create and develop interact with similar intellectual giants to foster a vision that all successful organizations systematically work towards. It is this particular phenomenon that BNI is tapping into. It takes the concept of an integrated business community and gives it credibility by creating a formal structure within which it can thrive. Thus, instead of merely dealing with transactions, organizations can take their beliefs, ideas, theories and business referrals and share them with other organizations, creating a transformation in the functioning of the corporate sector. BNI, a business and professional networking organization, is present in 47 countries around the globe in about 5900 groups. Talking to Adgully in an exclusive conversation, Ivan Misner, Founder and Chairman of BNI discusses India related plans and gives a more elaborate insight on business networking.

Adgully: What is the Philosophy of BNI?

Ivan Misner: The philosophy of BNI is Giver's gain. If you give business to people, you will get business in return. The basis lies in social capital theory. In this theory there is a concept of a law of reciprocity which has a transformational law out of transactional law. This is where a lot of people make a mistake by making it transactional. It needs to be transformational more than transactional.

Ag: What trends have you noticed internationally?

IM: First would be integration of face to face and online. I believe online social media and face to face networking is powerful. I see with time, good organizations networking through the integration of both face to face and online mediums. Second is education as a trend in this sphere. We don't teach networking in universities. Companies will train people to do good business. It is not very different in India as well. India is a sponge of information and its members are so receptive to ideas and knowledge.

Ag: What are your India related plans?

IM: I believe India would be one of the two largest countries for BNI within the next five to ten years. We will have more chapters in India than almost any country in the world. India has a very entrepreneurial population, a young population, so it is very aspiration driven. It is an upcoming middle class. India has an incredible catalyst for helping this growth. I believe the opportunity as we move along in the next ten years is getting one lakh members across India. Last year we help generate 188 crores worth business between just 1000 members here in India. So going in this pace, we are sure India poses a lot of opportunities.

Ag: How do reach out to the companies India?

IM: It is primarily through word of mouth. Social media is an important part and we do get little visits through that but 80% is organic through members themselves. India is absolutely a powerhouse.

Ag: What are the setbacks for a business like this?

IM: During the recession of the economy, it is very difficult to do business. People who have a large part of business through referrals are doing well even in difficult times. This is because trust is almost a currency. If somebody trusts you, there are going to refer you especially when the economy is doing badly. Organizations are going to want that referrals.

Ag: What are your expansion plans?

IM: Our goal is to be present in every entrepreneurial country in the world. There are some countries that won't be entrepreneurial but there are some amazing things happening in the world right now. So our goal is to be present in every country eventually. In India, we are present in Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Gurgoan and will be opening up in Chennai, Hyderabad. We are also looking at expanding in tier two cities. We finding that this is working better because there is a lot more trust in two tier cities, where everyone knows each other but don't end up talking about business as they meet socially. We are just building up the infrastructure that can help support the growth of this organization. Currently the pipeline for new chapters is very strong. The average number of members in India is than the international average. India is a very strong region.

Ag: Anything else you would like to add?

IM: One of the things we try to teach is that networking is more about farming than it's about hunting than it's about cultivating relationships with people. It isn't a get rich quick scheme; it's when you built a solid foundation from a long term successful business. So we tell people, take your time. Trust doesn't happen overnight. Get to know the people and the business will follow. | By Janees Antoo [janees(at)adgully.com]