ECS City Social: Bringing Online Networking Offline
Let me tell you this: I am an introvert. Gatherings and social events are usually taking away all my energy, so naturally, I tend to avoid it. However, there are times when I am really looking forward to attend an event, I have a great time there and I leave fully energized: it happens when the meeting is meaningful. And this is exactly what I have experienced at ECS City Social in Krakow, a networking event, connecting young and seasoned professionals from different fields, with the aim of navigating today’s challenging workforce landscape more effectively.
Special thanks to Lusine Yeremyan & Aleksa Honchareko, who both contributed to the content of this article.
It’s no secret by now that I am a big supporter of Europe Career Support (ECS) community. This is an open public LinkedIn group that is connecting professionals looking for a career in Europe, by linking them to talent acquisition professionals through professional networking. I’ve wrote more about this when I published the interview with Joe Stevens, the founder of the community. If you didn’t read it yet, I encourage you to take a look, to understand more what ECS is and how you can benefit from this community too.
ECS City Social Initiative
The initiative of organizing a City Social was introduced by Lusine Yeremyan, one of the ECS Ambassadors from Prague, who joined the ECS community at the end of last year, when she was searching for a new job. “Watching Joe Stevens build this platform has been inspirational. To be honest the ECS first social in Prague was inspired by the community and its founder and the motto to collaborate, connect and communicate. So that’s how the first social idea came about — we wanted to bring folks together to connect and collaborate, in person!” – says Lusine. In 4 days, Lusine and another ECS Ambassador, Feruza Sayfi, organized the event that gathered a professionals with different background and seniority levels: from Recruiters to IT professionals, and from Specialists to Director level.
“If someone is looking to change roles or wants to explore a brand new field, the first step is to fire up your network – not just search for jobs online or on Linkedin, but to connect in person too” thinks Lusine.
Lusine Yeremyan (second from left) and Feruza Sayfi (second from right) organized an ECS City Social event in Prague.
ECS City Social in Krakow
Lusine set the wheels on motion with this initiative, and last week, on Friday 16th, Aleksa Honcharenko, also ECS Ambassador, organized the next ECS City Social, in Krakow: “The news about the first ECS event in Prague spoke to me very much, it inspired me to bring a similar initiative to Krakow. Given the significant presence of ECS members in our city, I felt a strong need to take the lead in organizing an event that would meet the needs of our local community. Taking up this responsibility with enthusiasm, I rolled up my sleeves to make our event in Krakow simply unique.”
Following the event, the feedback received from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, confirming the value of networking and the importance of fostering connections within the ECS community. The opportunity for individuals to come together, share insights and engage in meaningful discussions about the challenges and opportunities in today's job market played a key role in the success of the event. It was a truly enriching experience that not only strengthened existing connections, but also laid the foundation for future collaborations and ventures.
If you’re interested in learning the 5 things you should have in your CV when you don’t have experience, that we discussed during the event, you check it here.
Why Is Networking Important
One of the pillars of career development is building a network of professionals that you can learn from or that can connect you with unique opportunities. As social beings we tend to thrive in communities, as we feel supported, encouraged and have easier access to resources. On top of that networking can get you exposed to diverse perspectives, that can only leverage your understanding of business, best practices or simply give you a unique advantage in your professional path.
Lusine shared that through networking she recently had a chance to meet a senior leader in Prague who works at a very reputable company: “It was a wonderful exchange – we shared our experiences with digital transformation, consultancy and even Agile methods. I felt very supported. He understood my profile and experience level, and appreciated my experience, and right away he came up with several ideas on how to connect me to professionals in his network who might be able to help me find the type of opportunities I am looking for.”
Aleksa shared that networking helped her secure a new job in just 9 working days: “I found a job in just 9 business days, all thanks to networking. Although I have applied for many jobs, the most important were the referrals and constant support of people in my network. Thanks to this, I gained access to job offers not publicly advertised, received referrals from contacts, and gained valuable advice and strategies that improved my job search and leveraged my profile for the companies. This example is proof of how networking works and how it can help you.”
How You Can Start Networking Too
You may not know where and how to start networking if this is not your comfort zone or you are more of an introvert, like I am. Joe Stevens, the founder of ECS community advices to “reach out to people and ask for a meeting. The worst a person can do is to say “no”. But be OK with people saying “no”. Continue to build connections” he says. You can make a first step by joining ECS group, but don’t be afraid to look for other online and offline opportunities. The “red car theory” says that once someone notices something unusual or distinctive (such as a red car), they tend to notice it more frequently afterward. This phenomenon highlights how our attention can be drawn to specific details or patterns once they've been brought to our awareness.
And now that you are aware of the benefits of professional networking, I wish you start spotting more opportunities to leverage your number of meaningful connections!
