Julia Hobsbawm, self-styled Queen of Professional Schmoozing earlier this summer delivered her inaugural speech at Cass Business School where she is the first UK Professor of Networking. What's great about Ms Hobsbawm is she's sympathetic to our fears about sidling up to complete strangers clutching a glass of warm white wine because she says networking is more sophisticated than this.

Exchange and share ideas

It is about exchanging and sharing ideas with others, and having face to face conversations with people instead. It is not about issuing a slew of meaningless emails to potentially helpful folk who can further our career or business needs. Networking is a two-way street and believe it or not, you will have a great deal of information to swap - how a particular organisation operates, current thinking in your chosen field, faces to watch, new trends, and last but not least, YOU and how great you are.

Use your knowledge and expertise as a "bargaining chip" to secure a meeting and get swapping!