A club devoted to supporting those looking for work
Amy Gregson – Times Reporter
It takes hard work and dedication to find a job, but a new club in Strathmore is trying to make it easier for those looking for work.
A Job Finding Club has been started by the Siksika Nation (S.E.T.S.) in partnership with Dragon 9 Training and with support from Community Futures Wild Rose Community and Employment Services to support people finding a job.
“The objective is to get the highest quality, feasible job in the shortest possible time,” said Denise Urbanski at the Job Finding Club.
Urbanski said the club was started because of the recession. She ran Job Finding Clubs back in the 1980’s and said she had a success rate of close to 100 per cent.
The goal is to find a job within the three-week program, which started Jan. 11 with ten participants.
As of Jan. 20, seven of the participants had already located work.
According to Richard Bolles, author of the best-selling job-hunting book “What Color is Your Parachute”, out of every 100 people who use a Job Finding Club, 84 would find work. Bolles states that this is 11 times higher than if you dropped off resumes on your own.
The group, based in Strathmore, learns important techniques when trying to find a job such as phone skills, sending thank-you cards, using technology, setting up e-mail, doing research on the Internet and resume building.
“We have a good time. Everybody supports everybody else. There’s lots of clapping and cheering,” she said. “It’s hard work, but it’s not hard when everyone is supporting and helping you.”
The club focuses on looking for the hidden jobs that haven’t been advertised, cold calling employers and letting their friends and relatives know they are looking for work, so they can keep their eyes open.
All that is required to sign up for a job finding club is you have to be ready to accept a job and have nothing preventing you from taking a job.
Urbanski said they help anyone from young people to professionals to those who are retired.
“I love job finding clubs when the group is heterogeneous [mixed], where you have old people giving advice to young people and young people giving advice to old people. It’s really a morale booster.”
There are plans to continue holding the Job Finding Club quarterly.
For more information phone Denise Urbanski at (403) 934-6402 or Angeline Ayoungman at (403) 934-7949.