For Kelly Klug, networking with other women in the region does not require her to don a suit for a power lunch or swap business cards over cocktails. All she needs is a good computer and a reliable connection to the Internet.

John Heller, Post-Gazette Linda Schumacher, right, a certified networker, takes part in a social gathering of other networkers in the basement of Max's Allegheny Tavern on the North Side. While face-to-face networking still thrives in Pittsburgh and elsewhere, online networking is an alternative for people trying to balance hectic schedules. Click photo for larger image.

Such is business networking in the 21st century. Working from the comfort of her suburban Johnstown home, Klug helps run PittWIT, an online network for women in the Pittsburgh region that she joined when she and her husband relocated from Chicago to Western Pennsylvania two years ago.

Klug, who works part time at a technology company and runs her own technical writing and software training business at home, is executive director of the regional online networking group, which has about 250 members. It is an affiliate of WorldWIT, a 6-year-old Internet forum founded by Liz Ryan, a Chicago entrepreneur who named the original network ChicWIT, for Chicago Women Insights Technology.

Ryan, a former executive at a robotics firm, works from home and wanted to network with peers. But she realized that many working people, especially women, could no longer squeeze traditional networking events such as lunches and happy hour gatherings into their complicated schedules.

WorldWIT, accessible at www.worldwit.org, is open to women and men and features moderated discussion groups, expert columns and advice about jobs, mentoring, finances and other issues. Membership is free, and the 70-plus chapters worldwide also sponsor in-person networking events at restaurants and galleries, allowing participants to occasionally meet face to face. Members aren't allowed to post sales pitches, and moderators try to keep spam and junk e-mails from cluttering the site.

Klug launched KeystoneWIT for businesspeople in Central Pennsylvania last year. That chapter now has 65 members. "It's good for me as a small businessperson," said Klug, who likes the fact she can access the network from home and doesn't have to drive more than an hour to Pittsburgh for a social networking event.

"So many small-business owners can't get away from the office ... or might not have the money to join the chamber of commerce. So they can do this. The idea is to communicate and get good information."

Deirdra Makowiecki-Gross, a professional organizer whose business is based in South Park, co-founded another online network, Team 100, in late 2003 as a forum for her own business clients to exchange business leads and ideas.

"There are no meetings, you don't have to buy a meal, you don't have parking fees or burn gas to get somewhere. It's just a matter of sending an e-mail," said Makowiecki-Gross, 34.

While she believes face-to-face networking will never be completely replaced by the Internet, Makowiecki-Gross said online networking offered an alternative to people with increasingly hectic schedules who are trying to balance their lives.

"People are getting so busy that they won't always take time to drive to a place [and] sit for an hour and a half and listen to people."

But for those who prefer meeting face-to-face over meals or drinks, traditional networks still thrive in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.

Among those committed to them is Gail Mariana, a financial adviser for UBS Financial Services, Downtown, and a regular attendee at a monthly network called PowerLunch.

"I find when someone sees a face and gets to meet the person, it's much more lasting. When I can meet women at PowerLunch, they can get a sense of me and trust me as an individual."

PowerLunch typically attracts 60 to 70 women to its lunches, held at various Pittsburgh-area restaurants the third Friday of every month. Participants, who pay for their own meals, are asked to make a one-minute presentation during the meal about their business.

Those who hang around after lunch can network with other attendees and pass out business cards or brochures. Women who attend range from financial advisers such as Mariana to interior designers.

When Suzanne McMahon-Froehlich became coordinator of the group about five years ago, 15 or fewer people showed up regularly. She expanded the network by inviting women she had known for years as a membership representative for the SMC Business Councils, which represents area small businesses and manufacturers.

"The last thing I say at every lunch is that if each of you just calls one woman in this room, that's what networking is all about."

One-on-one networking "is still very a vital and critical element to growing your business and developing the relationships that lead to more business," said Michelle Donovan of Zelienople, who runs a training company and is a partner in a franchise program that educates people on better networking strategies. "I like to think of it as an investment in your business."