NETWORK WEAVING
GUIDE
Network Weaving
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About this guide
You are opening one of six guides of a Network Leadership Toolkit created by Circle Generation in partnership with Danida Fellowship Centre .
Our intention is for this toolkit to be more than a collection of resources by providing overarching, yet practical, guidance and inspiration for the application of concepts and approaches in your specific context and with your unique network.
Each guide offers ideas, templates, and examples to help extend the theory and practice shared in Circle Generation’s Network Leadership Series to cultivate healthy impact networks.
Circle Generation's approach to network practice has been influenced by many years of direct collaboration with networks, partnership in the Converge Network, contributions to the book Impact Networks, and engagement with key leaders who inspired Converge, including June Holley, Margaret J. Wheatley, and The Monitor Institute.
The guides signpost you to additional places where you can access further inspiration and tips from others working in the broader field of network cultivation.
We invite you to try things out, experiment, and customise what’s here. Please do share your experiences and feedback with us by emailing�Danida Fellowship Centre’s Network Team.
We would love to hear from you!
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Network Weaving
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What’s Inside
Content
Weaving Concepts
The 20-40-40 framework
Preparing for Weaving Calls
Resources
Intentional introductions
Weaving questions
Weaving call topic guide
Weaving call synthesis example
Links to Additional Resources
Introduction to
network weaving
Communities are built on connections. Through the connections members share knowledge, resources, and care for one another. What’s flowing through the connections is what generates value for network members.
�Spontaneous connections between groups of people tend to emerge very slowly, or not at all.
Network weaving is the practice of actively building a network by intentionally facilitating healthy connections between network members.
Network Weaving
WEAVING CONCEPTS
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Network Weaving
Weaving Concepts
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Weaving is one of the most important tasks of network coordinators
Weaving helps us understand network members on an individual level: What’s happening in their professional worlds and with their organisations, and most importantly, what each person sees as the potential value associated with their participation in the network.
By gaining this understanding across multiple members, weaving can also help uncover what is generating value for the network as a whole. Weaving happens through learning, connection and follow up.
Note that different terminology may be used to describe similar network leadership roles.
For example, Danida Fellowship Centre, Circle Generation, The Network Leadership Series and David Ehrlichman’s book ‘Impact Networks’ refer to the leaders of networks as Network Coordinators and weaving as one of three core activities of network coordination alongside framing and facilitating.
June Holley and Fito Network, on the other hand, often refer to the lead role in a network as a Network Weaver and as well to particular responsibilities held by other active curators of the network.
LEARNING
The first step of weaving is to learn about people in the network.�In practice, this happens through one to one and group conversations such as calls, coffee dates and check-ins before and after meetings.
CONNECTION
This second step happens when the coordinator sees an opportunity for two or more people to support one another and intentionally fosters a connection between these people by making an introduction or facilitating a meeting.
FOLLOW UP
The third step is following up
later to find out what happened.
Did the they connect somehow? Did they
share resources or other support? Do they plan to meet again? Activities in each of the three steps translate as data points in the network impact dashboard (see the guide ‘Network Health Dashboard’).
Network Weaving
Weaving Concepts
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STEP 1
STEP 2
STEP 3
June Holley, author of the original Network Weaver Handbook, describes the role as a network weaver/coordinator as being to:
Resource�Intentional Introductions
Network Weaving
Weaving Concepts
Weaving calls
When done intentionally and comprehensively, weaving conversations are an opportunity to listen across the network as a living system. It is particularly useful to speak with a wide number of network members before a larger gathering to inform the design of the event, when developing funding proposals, or at least once a year for the simple reason of keeping up to date with the network.
When synthesised, the insights from weaving conversations help us tell a comprehensive story about the network as a whole: What’s inspiring people, where do they want to collaborate, and what needs our collective attention - either within or outside the network.
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Network Weaving
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THE 20-40-40 FRAMEWORK
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Network Weaving
The 20-40-40 framework
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The 20-40-40 model
The model illustrates a general distribution of participants in a network. This pattern is not a precise measure, yet Circle Generation and their peers witness that this general picture tends to hold true over time for a large variety of networks.
At the centre:
The network coordinators (NCs) are at the centre.
Inner 20%:
People who take leadership and frequently contribute to the network, for example, the core team, steering committee and leaders of project or activity teams.
Middle 40%:
People who typically engage and occasionally volunteer, for example attending network meetings, activities and webinars.
Outer 40%:
People participating sporadically based on time or as and when there is focus on topics of particular interest to them.
The dots on the map signify network members.
The dashed circles signify smaller communities or teams within the network. Here members may come together to collaborate on organising activities and projects or to engage in mutual learning related to a shared challenge or area of interest.
Network Weaving
The 20-40-40 framework
Concepts to keep
in mind
As a coordinator, your time and priorities may shift depending on the lifecycle and goals of your network, informed by your regular weaving conversations with members.
Weaving tactics may differ�based on audience. Storytelling has become important in one network, e.g. sharing members’ stories of the network’s value. Mentorship is another tactic. Networks may link older and more experienced members with younger members to create connections and opportunities for
learning.
Networks are living systems. In reality, the dots (people) are not static. They move in and out over time—that’s part of being in a network and, as coordinators, we accept that member engagement happens across a spectrum (as per the map on the previous page).
Weaving can be deep or shallow. Sometimes you may plan to engage a broad range of members in in-depth conversations about for example a launch or refresh of the network. At other times, your weaving may be focused on supporting leadership teams, special interest groups or collaborative initiatives within
the network.
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Using the Framework
The 20-40-40 model can help you:
Consider the makeup of your network and member distribution at a given moment in time. See the explanations on the network map example as part of assessing where your members lie.
Look at where your members are and prioritise where, when, and how to focus on supporting them in order to enable value creation within the network. Things to consider:
Network Weaving
The 20-40-40 framework
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Determine a plan for weaving calls and the connections to be facilitated (see more on this in the next section of this guide).
Adapt weaving conversations to meet participants where they are. The conversations you have will differ depending on who you are meeting with.
Remember: your network map represents a living system and is not constant, but a snapshot in time.
HOSTING�WEAVING CONVERSATIONS
Network Weaving
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Weaving Questions for 1:1 calls
(created by the Converge Network)
What do weaving conversations look like?
The specific topic, tone and structure of weaving conversations will depend on many factors, including the network’s maturity, recent network activities, your personal style and who you are speaking with.
A general rule to guide your planning is to use weaving calls to gain some insights into your members across each of the three levels: personal, organisational and network.
Resources:
Network Weaving
Hosting Weaving Conversations
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Network Weaving
Hosting Weaving Conversations
Framing
Explain the call’s purpose, the topics you’ll touch on and how you will use the reflections and insights arising from the conversation. Make sure you obtain consent for recordings or transcriptions from participants and establish agreements about confidentiality. It is important for people to feel that they can speak openly with trust that the conversation will be handled with care.
Opening
In group calls you’ll also want to begin with introductions and updates that allow people to have a sense of each other as people. Simple, playful questions can be a good way of opening the call and creating a good atmosphere about being together.
Core questions
After setting the stage, move through your core questions.�You will have designed these as part of your preparation to prompt some sharing at the personal, organisational and network levels (maybe seeking inspiration from the resources listed on the previous page).�The questions should give people a chance to respond to what moves them and build on each other’s responses.
Closing
Close the conversation with a reflection on the value of their time. Question to consider, might be:�Who did they meet for the first time? What did they learn? What ideas do they have for themselves, their organisations or the network?
Throughout
You may experience the tension between sticking to the plan�(= your list of questions) and emergence (= the unexpected rich reflection that arises). As a host, you must balance what’s meaningful for the network with the time on the clock. You also need to ensure that diverse voices are heard. To do all this, you will occasionally need to be assertive and interrupt those, who dominate the space or steer the conversation off track. This can feel challenging, but is rooted in care for the group.
�Potential prompts to support this, could be: �“I’m sensing your enthusiasm, but in the interest of time, �I need to stop you there. I’m curious to hear what reflections the rest of you are sitting with?” or “I appreciate your energy here, but let’s move back to the initial question. What do the rest of you think?”.
You will also need to take notes. There are many ways to take notes during a conversation. An easy way is to manually log notes directly in the agenda, using a new document for each weaving call. If there are two of you hosting, it is helpful for one person to take on the role of note-taker, whilst the other guides the conversation. Having two hosts in group calls is also very helpful when creating your summary.�Bringing your perspectives together helps maintain humility and prevent biases from interpreting the contributions of participants.
SYNTHESISING�WEAVING CONVERSATIONS
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Network Weaving
Synthesising Weaving Conversations
Synthesising (or summarising) weaving calls enables you to tell a story about the whole of the network at the current point in time. Similar to creating a picture on a puzzle box that includes all the pieces held by individuals participating in the network, the purpose of the synthesis is to help everyone get a sense of the network beyond the selected people and activities they directly engage with.
Having a sense of the bigger picture enables participants to think
strategically about the capacity, direction, and opportunities for the network to collaborate in pursuit of shaping the larger system they seek to influence.
Synthesising Weaving Conversations
How to develop a weaving synthesis?
There are many ways to approach the synthesis. Here is one approach that has proven useful time and again with different networks.
Pull all the notes from your weaving conversations into one summary document, grouping them by question or topic. We often summarise comments anonymously to support a sense of equity among participants and level power dynamics. Sometimes we colour code responses by actors, for example: community members, business, funders, government agencies, NGOs. This can be helpful when building understanding and bridging across groups or communities within the network.
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Collate
responses
Take a look at the responses as a whole. Describe the patterns you see across participants. Highlight what stands out. Get creative with your notes. Maybe make a mind map or use a white board to visually organise the information.
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Identify themes
Consider the primary framing of your synthesis. We often refer to this as telling the network the story of itself. What’s important for your network to see about its energy, aspirations and orientation? Structure your narrative around the key points in a way that can be communicated to network members at your next network meeting. Including quotes from the conversations can strengthen your story’s credibility.
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Tell the overall story
It’s important to consider how you might graphically present the summary. Visualising the data can illustrate intersections across themes, actors and perspectives in ways that aren’t easy to express in words.�We have seen Mural and Miro boards, hand drawn sketches and other creative ways of sharing a visual representation of a weaving synthesis.
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Visualise findings
Often the first place participants get to hear a synthesis is live as part of a network meeting. You might share some key findings in advance. It’s important to remind members of the purpose and process of the weaving calls. Share who participated, especially if some segments within the network were missing from the weaving conversations. Importantly, whether in person or online, do invite additional reflection. We often hear very interesting reflections from members once they start to engage with the holistic sense of the network. These conversations, following the sharing
of a weaving synthesis, can be pivotal moments for a network to recognise
its collective potential.
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Sharing and reflection
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Network Weaving
Synthesising Weaving Conversations
Resource:
Additional Weaving Resources:
Network Weaving Articles from
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Network Weaving
Synthesising Weaving Conversations
Considerations for using AI
You might consider using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support some of the heavy lifting related to our suggested approach for developing a weaving synthesis (as illustrated on the previous page).
It might be especially relevant in relation to the first 2-3 steps of the described approach.
Some considerations for using AI to support your weaving synthesis:
THANK YOU
Please do share your experiences and feedback with us by emailing Danida Fellowship Centre’s Network Team.
We would love to hear from you!