the old-boy network

the old-boy network

A network of privileged men who are members of the same organizations and institutions and who assist each other in professional advancement. When you graduate from Yale, you're not only getting a degree, but a priceless entry into the old-boy network.
See also: network
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

the old boy network

BRITISH
The old boy network is the system of contacts made by men at private schools, universities or clubs, which they use to help each other. The majority obtained their positions through the old boy network. Note: This expression is used to show that you do not think that this sort of system is fair.
See also: boy, network, old
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

the old boy network

mutual assistance, especially preferment in employment, shown among those with a shared social and educational background.
See also: boy, network, old
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

the ˌold ˈboy network

(British English, informal) the practice of men who went to the same school using their influence to help each other at work or socially
See also: boy, network, old
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

old-boy network, the

Social contacts among a group of insiders who help one another advance. The term old boy, originally British, refers specifically to a former pupil at one’s own public school, signifying a common background (upper-class male) and therefore a mutually beneficial interest. Although the practice of fellow alumni helping one another is much older, network was added only in the mid-twentieth century, when the idea began to be transferred to members of a social club, professional organization, business corporation, and other groups. Long an exclusively male province, it came under vigorous attack from about 1970 on by women who maintained it gave men an unfair advantage in the workplace.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • network
  • old-boy network, the
  • the old boy network
  • assist (one) at
  • assist at
  • assist
  • assist in
  • assist with
  • be light years away
  • affirmative action
References in periodicals archive
The old-boy network of picking judges never failed.
Ill-judged appointment; You Say Email:letters@liverpoolecho.co.uk
We don't want a chairman who is gagged - we've had too much of the old-boy network in the past and it's time for a new-boy who isn't afraid to speak his mind.
Dog Racing: Ongoing GTA row leads to no-show at BGRB meeting
We in the executive search profession are too willing to stay within our comfort zone: the old-boy network. We should set the course in attracting the unexpected, rather than present the usual suspects.
Broaden executive searches
THE old-boy network is alive and well in the City - almost three- quarters of executive appointments to FTSE100 companies in the last three years were internal promotions, according to global executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates.
Sorted And The City: Firms promote `safe not best'
In the '80s, the division of labor between the two German art centers, Cologne and West Berlin, was still relatively clear: on the Rhine the market reigned, together with the old-boy network, the gossip, and the amusing atmosphere of chaos and mercantilist enthusiasm; the underground and counterculture movements as well as the official art boom operated at the international rather than national level.
Stage frights
The old-boy network of the former nomenklatura is still strong.
Ukraine - five years into freedom
Paula Coughlin, is typically reported as a clear-cut example of what's wrong with the military regarding the expanding role of women: The old-boy network just doesn't get it and sanctions misogyny as a semi-official policy.
Recovering from a tailspin
"We finally mastered the ways of business," they say, "and now you're pushing us to acknowledge ideas that the old-boy network calls flaky." I can see their point, though I disagree with it.
Our Wildest Dreams: Women Entrepreneurs Making Money, Having Fun, Doing Good
Moreover, there is the old-boy network composed entirely of white males.
A Croson to bear
But a recent survey seems to indicate the old-boy network is still alive in Arkansas legal circles.
The verdict is in: female attorneys consistently earn less than their male counterparts in Arkansas
The election is no longer merely a contest between habitual rivals in the old-boy network that runs the nation's politics.
Philippine election
THE old-boy network is alive and well in the City - almost three-quarters of executive appointments to FTSE100 companies in the last three years were internal promotions, according to global executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates.
Sorted and the City: FIRMS PROMOTE 'SAFE NOT BEST'
Last year he was accused of using the old-boy network to dodge a pounds 15 rail fine after being caught travelling first class without a ticket.
BUSINESS AS USUAL; Today is the last day of Tory rule and in the City it's .
Busting the old-boy network and saving those new, good, young teachers--that sounds like just the job for the school board: elected officials who can protect the interests of students when the central office won't.
Class inaction; how 3,000 overpaid administrators stymie D.C. school reform