Strategic Network Test

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Identify missing perspectives and critical future dependencies in an existing professional network map.

Use it when: Use when an individual or team has already mapped their existing contacts and needs to evaluate whether those relationships support long-term goals.

Skip it when: Skip if participants do not have an existing list or visual map of their contacts ready to inspect.

Group arrangement: Individual review followed by pairs and brief whole-room sharing

Timing: 15 minutes suggested by the source band (5 to 15 minutes) to allow individual auditing and paired discussion.

Materials and tools

• One pre-existing network map or contact list per participant
• One copy of the Strategic Network Audit Worksheet per participant
• One pen or pencil per participant
• A visible countdown timer

Before participants arrive

1. Confirm every participant has brought or drawn their network map before starting.
2. Hand out one Strategic Network Audit Worksheet and pen to each participant.

Say this to open

A strategic network is different from a list of people you talk to every day. It accounts for who you will depend on in the future and who will depend on you. Today we will audit our current networks against four specific criteria. Take your network map and the worksheet in front of you.

How to run it

1. Introduce criteria and context 3 minutes

   Facilitator delivers the opening script and defines the four audit categories: Future Dependency, Diversity of Perspective, Critical Support/Challengers, and External Reach. Show a neutral example: auditing a project team network to realize all contacts are internal software engineers, with no contacts in regulatory compliance or end-user support.

2. Audit existing network map 5 minutes

   Participants work silently and individually. Inspect your network visual against the four prompts on the worksheet. Mark checkmarks where relationships exist and note clear blind spots where future allies are missing.

3. Pair debrief and action commit 5 minutes

   Form pairs with the person seated next to you. If there is an odd number, form one group of three. Share one gap you uncovered without disclosing confidential contact names if preferred. Each person writes down one concrete relationship to build or renew within the next 30 days.

4. Room debrief 2 minutes

   Bring the room together. Invite two or three voluntary contributions addressing what common blind spots surfaced across the room. Keep comments focused on categories and patterns rather than personal relationships.

Debrief questions

• What common category or perspective was most frequently missing across our maps?
• How did separating day-to-day contacts from future dependencies change how you viewed your network?
• What is one realistic first step you can take to reach someone outside your normal circle?

Finished output: A completed audit worksheet identifying network gaps and one named action to connect with a critical contact.

Remote

Run via video meeting. Participants review their personal contact lists or digital network diagrams locally. Distribute the worksheet prompts via digital document or chat. Conduct step 3 in two-person breakout rooms for 5 minutes. Return to main room for chat or voice debrief.

Hybrid

Pair in-person participants with in-person partners and remote participants with remote partners in dedicated breakout rooms. Ensure the digital audit prompt is visible on the room screen and in the shared virtual meeting space.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may audit a team network or project network instead of their personal professional contact list.
• No one is required to name specific individuals aloud; sharing may focus strictly on roles, departments, or external industries.
• Written worksheets remain private to the participant unless they volunteer to share.

If the session gets stuck

Participants focus only on people they like or work with daily.

Remind the room that the test specifically asks who will be critical twelve months from now, including competitors, regulators, or internal challengers.

A participant did not bring an existing network map.

Have them quickly jot down the top 10 people they interact with for their work on scratch paper, then run the audit on that baseline.

Terms used here

• Strategic Network: A deliberate set of relationships oriented toward future goals and mutual dependencies, rather than incidental daily interactions.