Whether you are looking for help with your career or you are retired from a successful career and want to give of your time to help others, The Naperville Career & Networking Center (CNC) is the place to start. The center was started 30 years ago and remains strong today. They have a structured program set up to help the underemployed, the unemployed or people needing guidance on career advancement.
Many services are offered by the CNC. They include help with resume writing, interview prep, interview branding help, general care exploration, LinkedIn usage, and job search networking. An orientation webinar is offered every Tuesday at 9AM. You will learn about the various ways the CNC can assist you. If you decide to become a member, you can avail yourself of one-to-one job coaching. The Career & Networking Center is open M-Th from 9AM to 3PM.
Many services are offered at no charge such as webinars on topics such as wellness/self-care, application tracking techniques, AI and how it is currently used in filters for job applicants, and age bias in the job marketplace. Networking and accountability groups meet every other Monday.
The Job Club Networking Group meets weekly where job seekers can work on and practice your “elevator pitch.” Networking Mixers allow you to interact with others and sometimes even get your “head shot photo” taken!
Executive Director Kim White said the CNC has 200-300 clients at any point in time. She said you do not need to live in Naperville to use their services. Clients come from throughout DuPage and Will counties. The center is always looking for volunteers and coaches, too. To volunteer, email CNC@careernetworkingcenter.org.
A recently retired insurance executive, John Clark, started volunteering as a coach at CNC about a year ago. He said, “I’ve always had a passion to help people get a job. It can really change someone’s life. I am a BIG believer in networking.”
John shared several stories with me. One was about his friend whose son was a graduate from Marquette University. He was a talented, creative young man with experience making videos and had a show on the college radio station. Even though John knew someone in a marketing firm who also created videos of new products, he knew they were not currently hiring. John still called him to see if he would at least meet and talk with the recent grad.
John’s friend was so impressed with this young talented graduate that the company wound up creating a position so that they could hire this young man. Networking is a key way to learn about opportunities and positions!
