Mastering the Game of Networking

The Turkish bazaar was in its usual excitement, bustling with the sound of vendors moving their goods, and Shohina Sultonova knew how to get a good deal.

Sultonova, a University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) business administration major concentrating in business analytics, sales, and international business, studied abroad in Turkey last summer, prepared to use her business knowledge when interacting with locals.

Having prior experience traversing through local bazaars with her grandmother when she was a little girl, she knew that these vendors operated on a bargaining system. She also knew that vendors tended to inflate prices for those who behaved like tourists.

“I became a chameleon,” she said, purposely avoiding speaking English to the vendor. “And I tapped into my adaptability skills I discovered through UNO”

It worked. Leaving the bazaar with a $50 purse she haggled down to $8, she chalked up the exchange to not street savviness but her business education — most importantly, the art of people skills.

Finding Her People

Sultonova is a go-getter. She had participated in eight internships — all acquired through networking, including at campus events. Since freshman year, she had served as part of the American Heart Association’s Sweethearts program, where she volunteers every month in heart health campaigns, mentorship events, and leadership workshops for high school girls in Omaha.

Arriving at UNO as a first-generation student, she has made the most of her time in the College of Business Administration. She joined student organizations associated with the college, aimed at developing well-rounded business skills and providing a community to students. With all, she holds leadership roles.

As the president of Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization (CEO), she orchestrates weekly gatherings that let UNO students of all majors meet with company founders, executives, and entrepreneurs.

These are the gatherings she strives for. She has long been interested in sales and admits she would like to run a company someday. Even practicing social skills has helped her in many ways, Sultonova said.

“CEO has helped me set goals and keep hitting benchmarks,” she said. “I learned I could be a good leader with experience, because I believe leadership can be taught.”

CEO’s driving mission is nurturing leadership, as it encourages students to be leaders in their own fields. With a surge of new interest in the CEO club in the past year, its membership has increased by 133%.

“Our guest speakers are successful in business,” she said. “They're so driven and ambitious, and they are not scared of failure. It's really inspiring for students, no matter what you pursue.”

She also serves as the marketing officer of the Maverick Investment Club, a student-run organization that manages an investment portfolio, using real money and giving students experience in high finance. With it, she is learning a sector of the global economy she wants to understand more.

“How do you play their game?”

In June 2023, she co-founded the Gen-Z Linkup, a business conference, with a fellow student, Faith Suh. The conference aimed to narrow the gap they noticed in their classmates who had drive but no direction or mentorship to guide them. Together, they formed a day that centered on entrepreneurship, recruiting speakers and getting the word out.

Developing the conference moved quickly. The time from ideation to the event was a swift 40 days, bringing in over 70 college students and other youth from across Omaha who were looking for mentorship.

Another key to her success is a mindset to better understand the world. She has studied abroad twice, first in Spain at Universidad Complutense and later in Turkey, where she represented UNO as a Nene Field Ambassador and attended classes at Sabanci University, a privateresearch institution some 25 miles from the heart of Istanbul. Through the ambassadorship, she took classes in entrepreneurship and organizational behavior.

That same summer, she traded the minarets and shades of the Mediterranean for the ivy-adorned halls of Harvard University, joining 150 students from around the country at the Harvard Summer Venture in Management Program.

She stumbled upon the program on LinkedIn and was immediately hooked. The pre-MBA program is highly coveted and includes a week of networking, lectures from Harvard alumni, and analyzing case studies.

Her passion for learning is infectious, and she finds joy in understanding the people around her.

“I’ve always been curious about people. I love asking what drives them and what makes them who they are. I like analyzing how they think and what motivates them because it helps me connect with people and be a better leader,” she said.

In most settings, it’s called being social. In a professional setting, she calls that trait adaptation.

Sultonova finds that being adaptable is critical in life, whether it helps you find your path to success in the workplace or dealing with the people around you.

“I always ask, ‘How do you play their game?’ Breaking that down, it means adapting to their communication styles, the way they operate the business or organization under them, so that you’re blending in. UNO has helped me learn that,” she said.