An old boy network (also known as old boys' network, old boys' club) is an informal system in which wealthy men with similar social or educational backgrounds help each other in business or personal matters. The term originally referred to social and business connections among former pupils of male-only elite schools, though the term is now also used to refer to any closed system of relationships that restrict opportunities to within the group. The term originated from much of the British upper-class having attended certain fee-charging public schools as boys, thus former pupils are "old boys".
This can apply to the network between the graduates of a single school regardless of their gender. It is also known as an old boys' society and is similar to an alumni association. It can also mean a network of social and business connections among the alumni of various prestigious schools. In popular language, old boy network or old boys' society has come to be used for the preservation of social elites in general; such connections within the British Civil Service formed a primary theme in the BBC's satirical comedy series Yes Minister. The phrase "It's not what you know, it's who you know" is associated with this tradition.
