Businesswoman networking: An Eastern perspective

Networking studies remain limited, often overlooking key structure, content, and cultural issues. This article attempts to fill the gap through describing the networking attributes of composition (who), motives (why), faste and methods (how), and network building and maintenance. Results show that (1) businesswomen indicated a preference for male networks, (2) formal networks were more socially accepted, and (3) online networks are becoming popular. Finally, although businesswomen need to extend their networking activities through participating in mainstream networks, cultural limitations on intergender interactions need to be considered; imposing a specific networking model (i.e., male‐dominated) might force women into more isolation. ©2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.