March is B Corp Month and something we are proud to celebrate as a business that became B Corp certified late last year. While this month is about celebrating organisations that use business as a force for good, for me it has prompted deeper reflection on something that has shaped my entire career – the power of networks.

When I started out in PR over two decades ago, ‘networking’ was the word that filled me with dread. It felt forced and awkward. I imagined myself knocking on doors, asking people to be my friend. For someone who preferred to let my work speak for itself, the idea of putting myself out there didn’t come naturally.

Over time though, I learned that genuine networking looks nothing like the intimidating version in my head. It is simpler, warmer and far more human. It is not about working the room or gathering business cards. It is more about joining the dots, being generous with your time, saying yes to a coffee with someone who wants to pick your brain, or making an introduction simply because you can. And it is also about being brave enough to ask for help when you need it in return.

I have also learned that not every network is for everyone. For me, broad ‘women in business’ groups, while full of brilliant people can often feel too fragmented. Over the years I have found more connection, more purpose and frankly more joy in smaller, more relevant networks. For example, women in food and drink; sector-specific journalists with shared interests; people in purpose-led, climate-conscious or non-profit organisations. When you share more lived experience, relevant interests or values, the relationships grow faster and run deeper.

And sometimes, the network you need may not exist yet. When I moved back to Sligo over three years ago, I kept meeting fantastic people working in marketing, PR, communications and digital roles with lots of shared experience.
So we created the North West Comms Collective – a simple idea to bring people together for quarterly meetups with no agenda other than connection and knowledge sharing.

Which brings me back to B Corp Month.

Our ambition to become a B Corp was rooted in a desire to validate our commitment to people, community and planet. But what we didn’t fully anticipate was the sheer strength of the network we were about to join. The B Corp community is full of businesses who think beyond profit, who care deeply about the impact they make, and who are generous with their experience and insight. It makes connecting effortless because the foundation of shared values is already built.

So, as we celebrate our first official B Corp Month, I would like to also celebrate networks of all kinds – the ones that shaped me as a young professional, the ones I grew into, the ones I built myself, and now, the global one we have become part of.

If there is one thing I have discovered, it is that the best networks are not about business cards or events. They are about people and the human connection. And when you focus on that, everything else falls into place.