Increasing Member Engagement with a Career Centre
Why Do Career Centres Matter?
From time to time we hear that all career centres are the same and are used as a non-dues revenue driver, but in a minimal and narrow way, such as job posting sales only. Associations tend to get a career centre as a way to “check the box” off the list as a member benefit and then are finished and moving on to the next to-do item. But what a career centre can deliver is much more than a place to just post jobs.
The hub of the career centre is the job board. This is where your members, job seekers and partner employers can find true value in your association’s career centre. This is where employers and job seekers interact by posting and seeking jobs, but this is only the beginning. With a strategic plan in place, having an online career centre has the potential to improve member engagement through content and thought leadership, industry professional career growth resources, mentorship, and advocacy efforts. Thus, serving as a huge member benefit.
Knowing this, it is no surprise that the 2021 Association Adviser Association Communications Benchmarking Report found that over the last three years the importance of career/professional development has consistently ranked in the top five benefits that members value when joining an association.
For many associations it’s unclear where to get started when it comes to professional development opportunities, and the clearest and easiest answer to solve that problem is your association’s website. Your association’s website hosts valuable content and thought leadership, making it a clear first stop. Career Centres and job boards are a natural addition to an association’s website and traditionally serve as the second most visited page after an association’s homepage.
With the job board at the core, a career centre can host other essential items such as:
- Job opportunities
- Member & industry professional career growth resources
- Mentorship opportunities or advice
- Advocacy efforts
- Promotion for upcoming career webinars
- Information on upcoming live or virtual career fairs
- And, more!
Offering these resources, and marketing them accordingly, brings great value to your members and can help drive member engagement with both your website and career centre, which in turn brings value to your partners in the form of eyes on job postings and advertising.
Career Fairs – Virtual or In-person
Your members have professional goals that impact your industry. To help with reaching these goals, host a career fair. Offering a platform to both registered job seekers and members to meet prospective employers and help advance their careers will add extreme value to the niche market you serve. With remote working here to stay, an association can effectively offer both an in-person and virtual career fair to optimize attendance and success. It can be an excellent opportunity for an organization to offer introductory member offerings and promote the benefits of becoming a member for your association.
A career fair is a tremendous member value and can also serve as a lucrative revenue source – from exhibit sales, sponsorships, online advertising, retargeting campaigns, and more!
Member & Industry Professional Career Growth Resources
It is essential to These resources tend to land less in thought leadership, and with more of a footing in terms of coaching and materials for the job seeker landing a new role.
Leveraging the resources for your members to become industry experts will only strengthen your association and increase member engagement while priming the funnel for late engagement and renewals.
Mentorship
Having a mentorship program can really bring your career centre to a top-notch level. Your association membership is full of experts who can help other members identify goals and provide coaching with first-hand experience. The mentor can offer unique guidance, help motivate success and recommend useful training areas and topics. The mentee leans on the mentor while the mentor taps into the association for the tools and resources to keep new members motivated and ready to celebrate success.
Advocacy Efforts
While navigating the career landscape, associations and organizations need to continue to focus on strengthening their performance and results in workplace engagement, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Learning how to advocate effectively is imperative to the industry, your members, and your association. This can be achieved through education, inclusion training, a knowledge centre, advisory services and an overall DEI commitment and strategy. Recruiters can then identify and directly connect with top talent and ensure that initiatives related to any DEI strategies are being successfully achieved.
As the leader in your industry, associations bring a unique value proposition to members who are looking to grow professionally in their career. Having a career centre can help you do this as well as provide an avenue for non-dues revenue, increase member engagement, and help shape top-notch talent. To learn more about career centres, reach out to our team today.
