Job Transition Groups

“People need people - for initial and continued survival, for socialization, for the pursuit of satisfaction. No one - not the dying, not the outcast, not the mighty - transcends the need for human contact.”

― Irvin D. Yalom, The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy

Being a rather introspective and independent person, I have to admit I was fairly skeptical of this ‘Job Transition Group’ idea. However, when the chips are down, you will find yourself more open to unique ideas than you would have guessed. I really didn’t know about these groups and I’m not sure I would have found them on my own, but a good friend of mine reminded me of their existence and I figured…why not. Be open to and consider opportunity and friendly suggestions from any front.

The group that I participated in was housed in a non-denominational church.  Don’t confuse the home of the group with an overtly strong religious emphasis. There was the opportunity for some religious engagement with the group, but they worked consciously to keep it as an optional support piece rather than the primary driver.  The people there were working to find their next job and the volunteers (mostly retired) were focused on that as well.  

The group met every Monday morning, and I think the that was a great strategy to help people get off on a strong start for the week. The session was broken up into about 4 different segments and you could choose 1 hour or up to 4-5 hours…depending on how much you wanted to participate that week.  I don’t have a broad set of experiences to draw on here, but I can imagine these types of groups meeting in churches, schools, coffee houses and garages.

The meeting started off each week with a celebration of the people that had secured their next role.  These folks were expected to bring doughnuts to share with the group and have some fun.  Then they stood in front of the group and gave a blow-by-blow description of how their opportunity turned into a J-O-B. This was encouraging, educational and certainly the highlight of the morning.  Great to see some people succeed in landing a role and hear about their journey.

The meeting then focused on the majority of the people that were there continuing their search. They would have new members introduce themselves and then existing people introduce themselves as well. The introductions were intended to provide possible areas of intersection with other ‘searchers.’ It was important to mention companies you had worked at, companies you were pursuing, types of roles you had been in and the types of roles you were looking at. Then they would allow time for everyone to network within the group and see if they could suggest contacts at certain companies or perhaps suggest new companies to explore.

Once a month the group would conduct a training for the newer members on the best practices of conducting your job search.  I appreciated this structured download of helpful suggestions, and that session is partly the inspiration for my taking this time to share my thoughts and lessons learned on this topic. The session was a compilation of ideas, suggestions and best practices that ranged from networking to interviewing and everything in between. The leader's commitment to help create the structure and content of this group was very much appreciated.

In talking with another job searcher, I learned that he had a similar experience.  He joined a Job Transition Group that was also sponsored by a church.  His group met every Wednesday and most of it was done virtually.  They would spend time critiquing resumes’, helping each other pick out select companies to Target in their job search and finished all of this in about 3 hours each week. They would use resources like the Better Business Bureau, the Top 100 Companies in the state and companies that were getting recognized for growth and job satisfaction.  This group was a good resource for him.

 This idea and concept will appeal to some and feel awkward to others.  Certainly, the first time showing up and engaging with a group can be intimidating or feel strange. However, you are not alone in your job search and others are struggling with similar challenges.  Meeting with people, sharing experiences and providing some structure from your week (especially outside your home) has some important merits. Worst case is that you spend a couple hours and meet a few new people, best case is you extend your network and gain some energy from other people in the job search mode.