Service Clubs

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Il Soroptimist è una associazione femminile nata nel 1921. In questo libro si racconta la nascita e la diffusione del Soroptimist in tutto il mondo.
In Italia l'associazione ha cominciato a svilupparsi dal 1948 e oggi è presente in quasi tutte le città italiane. Molti e importanti i progetti e le realizzazioni a favore di donne e minori

Les cercles et clubs bourgeois des métropoles européennes ont jusqu'ici surtout fait l'objet de monographies isolées. Le cas milanais permet de passer à une analyse relationnelle : les institutions de gestion collective du capital social des classes dominantes y forment en effet un espace de jeu et de différentiation relativement autonome et cohérent. L'opposition concerne les origines historiques, la composition sociale, les formes de fonctionnement et les modalités d'adhésion, mais elle porte aussi sur les critères particuliers auxquels fait appel chaque institution de sociabilité pour organiser, mobiliser, décrire et légitimer les liens qu'elle tisse entre ses membres, ainsi que pour se distinguer de ses concurrentes. L'analyse met en évidence la manière dont la représentation du capital social contribue à sa réalité : elle fait apparaître qu'une partie de son efficacité découle de la valeur distinctive de la forme sous laquelle il se présente et des catégories symboliques qui accompagnent ses usages. Elle suggère que le débat sociologique sur le capital social doit prendre en compte ces jeux de distinction qui définissent son objet, et dans lesquels il est lui-même pris.

This chapter discusses the emergence and proliferation of service and social clubs in two Mexican cities: Puebla and Tijuana from the 1920s to the early 1960s. It shows that civic clubs that were formed after the 1920s were no longer associations mainly for wealthy men, like those seen in Porfirian Mexico. Instead, social and service clubs in post-revolutionary Mexico were increasingly more varied in kind, numerous, and also populated by men and women from different socio-economic backgrounds. The chapter then closely examines one association, the Rotary Club of Puebla, from its establishment in 1924 to 1960, and traces the changes in the club’s membership composition. By analyzing the occupational background of members, the chapter reveals that, while in the 1920s and 30s the majority of club members were small and medium business owners, by the 1940s the membership balance shifts to a majority of white-collar employees and independent professionals. This pattern in membership reflects a broader change in Mexico’s workforce with the expansion of white-collar workers and individuals with managerial positions. The proliferation of social and service clubs points also to the development of a culture of leisure and consumption by these new social groups in urban Mexico. Furthermore, given the interest by Mexicans to participate in voluntary associations, this chapter suggests that civil society in post-revolutionary Mexico was stronger than some observers have previously have noted.

Les cercles et clubs bourgeois des métropoles européennes ont jusqu’ici surtout fait l’objet de monographies isolées. Le cas milanais permet de passer à une analyse relationnelle : les institutions de gestion collective du capital social des classes dominantes y forment en effet un espace de jeu et de différentiation relativement autonome et cohérent.L’opposition concerne les origines historiques, la composition sociale, les formes de fonctionnement et les modalités d’adhésion, mais elle porte aussi sur les critères particuliers auxquels fait appel chaque institution de sociabilité pour organiser, mobiliser, décrire et légitimer les liens qu’elle tisse entre ses membres, ainsi que pour se distinguer de ses concurrentes. L’analyse met en évidence la manière dont la représentation du capital social contribue à sa réalité : elle fait apparaître qu’une partie de son efficacité découle de la valeur distinctive de la forme sous laquelle il se présente et des catégories symboliques qui accompagnent ses usages. Elle suggère que le débat sociologique sur le capital social doit prendre en compte ces jeux de distinction qui définissent son objet, et dans lesquels il est lui-même pris.

The emergence and unexpected success of Social Network Sites has at its core one of the principal issue of contemporary sociology: the importance of social networks beyond the boundaries of simple socialization. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the socio-economic field. Several studies confirm the role of social networks in shaping economic phenomena such as the labour market, international trade, migration, entrepreneurship etc. Most of the literature is about the economic effects of social networks; less is known about the factors that generate, sustain and reproduce these networks.
Business Social Network Services (BSNSs) are ‘intentional organizations’ the aim of which are to build and maintain professional relations. They can be in presence (business club) or online (business social network sites).
Early studies regarding the Internet almost always treat it as an isolated social phenomenon without taking into account how interactions on the Net fit together with other aspects of people’s lives. With the growth of virtual communities and later SNSs it has become evident that people lives are not neatly divide into two discrete sets – people seen in-person and people contacted online – but rather, community ties that began in-person can be maintained online, while online ties can be reinforced and broadened through in-person meeting.  Likewise, organizations were set up to utilize Business Social Networks Sites also to build and maintain face-to-face professional relations.
This paper studies the case of Milan IN, a non-profit association set up in 2005 to allow members of LinkedIn living in Milan to physically meet up with each other. We were thus able to analyse both online (LinkedIn) and face-to-face (Milan IN) business social networks, and to highlight any differences perceived by people who use them both.

Beginning with Mark Granovetter’s studies in the early Seventies, the attention of social scientists was drawn to the “strength of weak ties”. This intuition gave rise to a wide range of studies aimed at analysing the role of social capital in the employment market (some of the most important are by Ronald Burt and Nan Lin). In such research, attention is especially focussed on the impact of the structural configuration of networks on the professional success of individuals (job search, career promotions, etc.) as well as on the competitiveness of organisations (new business start-ups, innovation, etc.)
Little attention has been given so far to the strategies intentionally pursued by individuals in order to change their own position in professional networks and increase their own social capital. In recent years, professional associations expressly aimed at building weak links have emerged: business social networks. These networks are set up to help facilitate exchange and meetings among professionals by arranging settings aimed at building trust relationships based on reputation. One of the main objectives of such networks lies in reducing the influence of ascribed variables onto an individual’s social capital building processes.
Two case studies are analysed in the paper: BNI (Business Networking International), the world’s largest referral organisation, set up in California in 1985 and now present in 48 countries, and ClubIn, the business networking club founded to enable face to face meetings between members of the online social network LinkedIn coming from the same geographical area. The Italian version of the two associations is examined in both cases (BNI Italia and MilanIn).
The analysis is exploratory in nature and aimed at examining the reasons that lead a professional to register in a business social network, the profile of such professionals, the social mechanisms governing its functioning and the impacts on the professional performances of its members.
Special attention is given to the role of ascribed characteristics (gender, age, family of origin) and acquired characteristics (education, profession) of its members. The two main questions investigated are the following: do members’ characteristics influence how such networks work? Does belonging to business social networks make it possible to overcome differences in terms of employability linked to members’ characteristics?
The research methods implemented are the following: interviews with the main people involved (founders and those in charge of networks), semi-structured interviews with a sample of members, a structured questionnaire to all members, a Social Network Analysis of the exchange of referrals among members.
This first investigation yielded new research paths. Among others, comparing the different locations of the networks turned out to be particularly interesting, in order to examine the impact of cultural variables on the social mechanisms by which business social networks operate.

Professional networking has become an important aspect of many professionals’ work and is often regarded as a valuable asset to businesses. This thesis presents a qualitative study of how professionals in Norway employ the social networking service LinkedIn.

Several social networking services provide support to the creation and maintenance of professional networks, and this has led to an increased potential for many professionals. In January 2008 LinkedIn had 17 million members world-wide, representing over 150 different industries.

The study focuses on how professionals in Norway perceive social networking services and how they employ LinkedIn as a professional networking tool. As such, the study explores how professionals manage their professional network through LinkedIn and examines possible implications of this use.

The empirical findings in the study are based on in-depth interviews with 11 professionals in Norway, which were conducted in November and December 2006.