In direct response to the economic and unemployment crisis facing our nation, GO! Network was conceived in January 2009, as a means to address the quickly growing population of unemployed professionals in our community. The original concept was to bring together both corporate and not-for-profit leaders in the St. Louis region, to form a partnership that could proactively respond to the escalating needs of these professionals. Celtic Creative, with remarkable support and sponsorship from the United Way of Greater St. Louis, Anheuser Busch-InBev, World Wide Technology, Right Management, Paramount Planning and St. Patrick Center, established a corporate advisory board and held its first meeting on January 3, 2009. The goal was to create an environment and resource support system that would encourage, inspire, motivate and provide Growth and Opportunities (GO! Network) for the thousands of professionals who had lost their jobs. At the initial meeting, the board envisioned and designed a framework to bring unemployed professionals together weekly for seminars, networking and professional workshops. The seminars and workshops were created to provide both personal and professional growth and help connect the members to employment and entrepreneurial opportunities – all leading to successful re-employment.
Within three weeks of that first advisory board meeting we simultaneously delivered a press release, launched the GO! Network website and began taking reservations for the first event scheduled on February 3, 2009, titled “Taking Stock Of Your Situation”. Almost 200 out-of-work professionals attended the first event. The feedback was overwhelming, thanking us for the support and enthusiastically encouraging us to move forward with the program. Just 12 weeks from that humble beginning, we now have over 1000 active members in our database and have averaged 170 attendees at each weekly event (10%-15% new each week). Our membership is comprised of 47% women and 53% men – crossing 23 different industries and 18 different job roles. In addition, after the first session, a Peer Advisory Board was established to ensure we identified and addressed the most relevant topics. This board is comprised of members of the GO! Network community who willingly volunteer their time and talent to represent the needs of the larger group by providing leadership and direction for the program.
The result has been awe inspiring. GO! Network is building a powerful community where members, corporations, academia, government agencies and not-for-profits are all working together to address one of the largest (and growing) issues facing our country — helping those who have lost their jobs transition successfully to the next stage of their careers. We currently have over 80 human resource professionals, representing 38 different companies, engaged and volunteering their time and knowledge to assist members in personal branding, resume writing, interviewing skills and more. Corporate and university executives and professors have donated their time to deliver keynote presentations on the importance of networking and building sustainable relationships. Motivational speakers have delivered messages of hope and encouragement — empowering the members to rise above their current situation and move forward to new and rewarding roles. Experienced professionals have delivered quality and timely advice to help members be better prepared for the next opportunity.
|
Additionally, GO! Network is incubating new economic growth. In response to requests for information on alternative career paths and entrepreneurship opportunities, close to 100 members attended a special seminar created to provide information on: starting a business, buying a franchise, or opening a consulting practice. As a result, a committee of GO! Network members was formed to develop the process necessary to facilitate entrepreneurship, small business development and ultimately new job creation in our community.
Today, GO! Network is a replicable, well-positioned and fully branded program that is proactively responsive to the needs of its members — strengthening the community and impacting the lives of those who have lost their jobs.
