Job Search Can Profit By Volunteering

BOSTON - April 23, 2013 - PRLog -- Boston – It’s becoming more of a vicious circle for people who have been unemployed or working outside their areas of expertise for a long while. One of the biggest objections they hear from potential employers is they have not been using their professional knowledge and skills. How can they, many counter, without a job?

One possible way to do this is by volunteering for charitable, civic or religious nonprofit organizations.  6 out of 10 employers said they view volunteer work as an effective way for unemployed people to build, expand or strengthen their skills, according to a nationwide survey of 3,000 employers by CareerBuilder.

“If unemployed or under-employed people fill a gaps in their resume with activities and experience that show they are still using their skills, most employers would focus on the value they can bring to an organization rather than their long-term unemployment,” said Annie Stevens, managing partner with ClearRock (http://www.clearrock.com), an outplacement and executive coaching firm headquartered in Boston.

The number of long-term unemployed has unfortunately been remaining stable in recent months. Almost 5 million people have been out of work for 27 weeks or more and long-term unemployed now comprise 4 in 10 unemployed people, according to the U.S. Labor Department.

“While volunteering for nonprofit groups is a worthwhile endeavor in itself, there are other benefits such as being able to keep your professional knowledge and skills up to date, make valuable new networking contacts, and try out careers in other areas to which you may be interested in switching,” said Stevens.

ClearRock offers these advantages to volunteering for workers – whether they are long-term unemployed, under-employed, or currently employed:

1. Volunteering helps freshen one’s professional knowledge and skills. "A major concern of employers is that people who have not been working in their fields lose some of their skills because they have not been regularly utilizing them. Volunteering shows potential employers you have spent time using and strengthening your skills and will be ready to work if hired," said Stevens.

2. It assists in building new networking contacts. Making new networking contacts through volunteer work is a way to tap into the “hidden job market,” or the huge pool of unadvertised job openings, in which about 8 out of 10 job openings are not advertised or posted. Volunteering also offer more face-to-face networking opportunities.

3. Presents opportunities to try out new skills or careers. “Nonprofit groups may be more likely to give people who are thinking about switching careers useful experience in jobs where they currently lack the necessary skills or credentials to be hired for paid positions. Accomplishments people achieve while working with nonprofit groups can then be used to show potential for-profit employers,” said Stevens.

4. You may be able to volunteer for the same organization in which targeted employer contacts participate. “Join or become more active in the same professional or volunteer group as the hiring managers at some of your targeted companies. This may provide an ideal opportunity to stay in touch in a low-key way and get to know each other better,” said Stevens.

5. Volunteering may lead to a paid position. “Don’t volunteer with an automatic expectation that the organization will offer you a paid job. Although this sometimes happens, many nonprofit groups are going through the same economic difficulties as are for-profit businesses. They’re looking to stretch their budgets through unpaid volunteers, rather than serving as employment agencies,” said Stevens.

6. Don’t quit your service to the nonprofit as soon as you have found your ideal job. “Choose an organization you feel comfortable supporting, believe in, and have a real interest in continuing to serve even after starting a new job. Nonprofit service rounds one out as a person, in addition to just looking good on a resume,” added Stevens.