A network is a group of people whom we interact daily. Our relationships are networked. If you look at nature, networks are everywhere. The cellular network in the human brain, for instance, is an amazing network that makes human life possible.
But what are networks? Networks are a ‘set of nodes and set of ties’ (Brass, 1994: 42). The things that are connected are usually called nodes. A node might be a person, a computer or even a hyperlinked text. The connections between hubs are called “associations” and here and there called “edges”. They are relations that bind the tie or even make the ties suffer. It is imperative for leaders and managers to precisely see the system relations that associate individuals and to effectively oversee them. Awareness concerning social networks is important to the extent that people are uncertain who is connected to whom. It is a means of developing contact and exchange of information. It provides us the opportunity to interact with people outside of our regular social circle. It is vital also to entrepreneurs, professionals, and job seekers.
Networks are analyzed in terms of density, hierarchy, multiplexity, interdependence and embeddedness (Kilduff and Tsal, 2003, pp.3off).
- Density- The density of a network is based on the number of connections between and among the actors. According to Kilduf and Tsai, the higher the number, the denser the system.The density of a network depicts the potential associations in a system that are genuine associations while a potential connection is an association that could possibly exists between two “hubs” paying little respect to regardless of whether it really does.
- Hierarchy- Actors in the network can pull their investments in social relations by establishing relations with a diverse set of groups in the community (preferably groups that are not connected to each other), rather than establishing all of their relationships with members of one group.
- Complexity- Complexity is the extent to which a link between actors served a multiplicity of interests in the community. The more complex relations have considered have higher tie strength. Complexity also represents the extent to which two people are bound to each other in different social grounds.
- Interdependence- The ties in the network can be useful in facilitating change and reform. The interdependence of social ties in a community produces benefits for actors and members. Interdependence facilitates cooperation and creates social capital necessary for the progress of the community. Social capital is the accumulated benefits as a result of the maintenance of a positive relationship between different groups and associations in the community.
- Embeddedness- The networks of relations within each person is rooted include family, friends, and acquaintances. To be sure, business associations themselves are held together by formal relations of power as well as by casual connections that interface individuals crosswise over departmental and progressive limits.
