Sacramento county has been one of our state’s hardest hit areas for job loss in recent years, and for job seekers that can mean streaming through newspaper want ads, scouring the internet, or going business to business dropping off a resume or application to get a career back on track. Following that type of job search formula can often lead to more headache and frustration than satisfaction when local unemployment is at a blistering 12.3 percent in this shrinking job market. However, for many area professionals they are turning to other methods such as attending job clubs or network groups for help and those dividends seem to pay off.

Job clubs are nothing new when it comes to the circles of job hunting, but since the down turn in our economy has left more and more professionals out of work they are taking some proactive steps to reenergize their efforts to land another job, and it all starts with some networking. One such organization that has been providing a source of network connection is the Sacramento Professional Network or SacProNet (www.sacpronet.com). On a typical Monday meeting there can range from 30-40 professionals who formerly worked as Project Managers, Corporate Executives, Architects, Educators, Web Developers and a host of other professions all taking in a job workshop, getting resume advice, going through a mock interview, and of course networking for that next job lead. “What I get out of attending these meetings is a opportunity to meet other people and learn from their experiences trying to find a job, when jobs are so scarce”, says Pat McConahay, who is a media and public relations professional and looking to land a new job.

SacProNet began as cluster job group through the Experience Unlimited network, a volunteer job program that soon progressed with an emphasis on helping highly skilled and educated professionals regain some leverage on the career fast track. Although it can’t promise its members jobs, the primary goal of SacProNet is to provide the resources which allow both employers and job seekers a chance to find a match of needs. SacProNet claims to have a great success with its many members who typically find work within 6-8 months on average after joining the group. Moreover, employer representatives and other career advice professionals can showcase their job openings and offer services about finding the hidden market jobs. In a tough job market those hidden jobs are largely made up from small business organizations who often don’t mainstream advertise. Similar to those businesses, a lot of SacProNet members find out about the group through a referral or website search, that is how Rebekah Green, a unemployed Executive Assistant found out about the group “I had been recently laid off and a friend of mom’s told me about the One Stop Job Center, where I met a representative who told me about Sacramento Professional Network”.

It is currently an employers market for finding new candidates to fill openings, and most employers are inclined to fill those openings with referrals from the people who work for them. Career analysts, recruiters, and job coaches tend to suggest potential candidates take stock in the referral method as it is the simplest way to letting someone know you are looking for work. “I often will spend a few hours a day searching the internet for jobs, but it helps to know someone else to network with”, says Green. Green and McConahey are both more encouraged with their job prospects since joining SacProNet. We are in a time period where even technology can’t outdo good old fashion knowing a friend of a friend as a way making that personal connection. While these aren’t the times of our father’s generation, personal techniques still matter in job hunting, and while technology can be helpful it often can be impersonal when a candidate’s resume may be one of thousands that a recruiter or hiring manager has to comb through to fill openings. “Finding a job is like a job and it comes down to the approach and application” says Don Moore, an unemployed Education Administrator and SacProNet President. “What we orientate our members to is having a 30/60 second presentation because you never know where your next lead may come from” says Moore. That 30/60 presentation approach is a key tool that each member is encouraged to develop and practice in each meeting.

While a 30/60 is important, for many professionals job hunting can sometimes mean trying to transition into a new career field altogether. There is an abundance of professionals who have spent X number of years within the same profession and or industry and suddenly find themselves unemployed. The trend that most employers look for is how well can your past skills and work experience transfer into a new position or industry. According to recruiting expert Duane Roberts, employers are more willing to hire candidates with broad experience and a host of skills, “If employers are filing through hundreds of candidates with similar backgrounds its important for many that their skill sets stand out”. Standing out is one thing that SacProNet has done in taking a back to basics approach with job seekers by providing them with an array of services from peer coaching, referrals, job fair calendars, contact hot job leads, job search strategies, resume review, practice interviews, and a Personal Strategic Plan.

SacProNet meets Mondays from 9:30am-1pm at Sacramento Works One Stop Career Center located at 5655 Hillsdale Ave. Suite 8 in Sacramento. For more information about SacProNet or how you can attend an orientation workshop visit the SacProNet website at www.sacpronet.com .