Sponsorship Is a Relationship, Not a Favor

How are you nurturing your relationships with your sponsors?

Last week, I had the honor of delivering Grand Rounds for the Department of Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine on the topic of "𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 + 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽".

In this highly interactive talk, we tackled some of the most common myths about networking and seeking sponsorship:

❌ “If I just work hard, I’ll get recognized.”

❌ “Networking is icky, sleazy, and fake.”

❌ “I have nothing to offer Dr. Important.”

We flipped those scripts. Because networking and sponsorship:
(a) are critical for success,
(b) can easily be done authentically with a little consideration, and
(c) aren’t one-way streets—they’re bidirectional relationships.

Sure, the more junior person often benefits more from the relationship, but they also can bring value in so many ways:

✅ offering fresh perspectives and feedback to senior leaders who are often siloed at the top, helping inform their strategic decision-making
✅ helping with or expanding the impact of the leader's initiatives
✅ making them 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 good when you do a great job at an opportunity they sponsored you for, and
✅ making them 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 good when they see how they impacted you and your career

I always encourage people to make sponsorship relationships longitudinal—continuing to make deposits into your sponsors just as they continue to advocate for you.

A great example of a deposit? I sent this photo to the person who sponsored me for this opportunity: it's me and some of her colleagues/friends at the IU Grand Rounds. I hope it made her feel good to see me get to do the thing she championed me for—and hopefully, in doing a good job, I made her look good too.

Would the early- and mid-career professionals at your institution benefit from bolstering their networking and sponsorship skills? Let’s talk!