Man Who Coined the Term “Networking” Steps ForwardIn 1985, telecommunications expert and consultant Bill Lewis was the first person to use the term “networking” to describe connecting people in order to build a business network. Now, Lewis plans to take credit for coining the term.
By: Liz Ernst In a 1985 article on cutting telephone costs to consumers, Lewis, a self-described problem solver, is quoted utilizing the term “networking” While sifting through a box of newspaper articles that pay homage to his multi-faceted career – Lewis is an author and inventor with a background in marketing, real estate, telephone and cellular communications – he recently came across the article in which he was the first to use the term “networking” While researching the issue, Lewis said that his own questions raised a new one: how does one prove or disprove their role in coining a phrase? “If you Google the phrase ‘coined the term networking’, you will find everything but the right answer”, Lewis says. “For instance, in one of the Google ‘hits’ you will find that it has been attributed to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, but there doesn’t seem to be any written or published proof to back that claim.” Lewis's biography places him in an arena ripe for the pioneering technology language and business models that are taught and practiced today. After his honorable discharge from the U.S. Marines in 1963, Lewis joined IBM at a time when “network” was the term used to define a connection of computers. Two decades later, Lewis was able to visualize the benefits of connecting people to expand a business network. The term “networking” “When I was at IBM in the mid 1960’s, ‘network’ was a computer term”, Lewis says. “The difference between a ‘computer network’ and people ‘networking’ Today, the term “networking” For instance, in October, 2010 ESPN Sports Guy columnist Bill Simmons “accidentally” By surfacing now to claim recognition for coining the term “networking” “The truth is the truth”, Lewis says. “But I invite people to challenge me on this”, he added. “I think it would be interesting to hear from anyone who remembers the first time they heard the term used on television, or the first time they saw it quoted in an article.” The proof, Lewis says, is in paragraph two of an article titled “Consumer Group Forms to Cut Telephone, Cellular and Other Communicartions Costs”, written by Stuart Crump, Jr., and published in a 1985 edition of ”Personal Communications Report”, published by FutureComm Publications, Inc. in Williamsburg, Connecticut. Photo: https://www.prlog.org/ End
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