NETWORKING GROUPS IN ADELAIDE. THE HONEST LIST.

First, the bias. I run one of the groups on this list. I'm not going to pretend otherwise, and I'm not going to pretend the others are rubbish either.

Adelaide is a small town. The right group depends entirely on what you actually need. Referrals are not the same thing as peers. Peers are not the same thing as community. So here is what each one is, in plain words, and who it suits.

BNI ADELAIDE

The big structured one. Weekly 90 minute meetings, chapters all over Adelaide and regional SA, and the whole model is built on referrals. One person per profession per chapter, so your competitor can't join your room. You can visit a chapter twice before they ask you to decide.

Best for: trades and service businesses that live on referrals, and people who like structure and turn up every week.

Worth knowing: it is a weekly commitment, and it is formal. That is the point of it, not a flaw.

BUSINESS HOUSE AUSTRALIA

Classic Adelaide breakfast networking. Monthly business breakfasts plus special events, membership includes the year's breakfasts. Professional, friendly, been around a while.

Best for: people who want regular face to face networking without a weekly commitment.

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

Peer mentoring for executive women and business owners, running since 2008. Members meet for three hours, ten times a year, in small facilitated groups. Adelaide is actually their largest base, and it runs nationally.

Best for: women at executive level, or business owners who want serious peer mentoring and board level connections.

Worth knowing: this is the premium end of the market, priced accordingly.

MUMS & CO

The national one for business owning mums, mostly online. Membership gets you a community network, expert advice and events. If you're regional, or your week has no room for another in person commitment, online is a genuine answer.

Best for: mums in business who want national reach and online flexibility.

BUSINESS MUMS HUB

This is mine. Read it knowing that.

Open Coffee is a ticket, a coffee, and two hours with Adelaide mums who run businesses. $30, coffee included, 10am to 12pm. Kids welcome, and that is not a footnote here. It is the point.

Village Circles are small fortnightly groups across three locations, Goodwood, Hillcrest and Evanston Park. Claude training, body doubling and community in the same room, $249 a month.

Best for: mums in business who want their people, not a pitch. If you'd have to find a babysitter to attend a networking event, you're who we built this for.

HOW TO ACTUALLY PICK

Want referrals and structure? BNI. Want a proper breakfast once a month? Business House. Executive level and want peer mentoring? Behind closed doors. Want online and national? Mums & Co. A mum in business who wants a room where you can bring the baby? That's us.

Whichever one it is, go to one thing this month. Sit next to someone. See what happens.

Sandra x