Ignite Speed Networking and Interview Angel, Inc. Partner to Help Virginians Find Jobs, Donate to Dress for Success(R)
RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 13, 2009 — Brush off your personal elevator pitch. Virginians out looking for jobs have a new way to meet HR professionals and recruiters. Ignite Speed Networking (http://www.IgniteSpeedNetworking.com) and Interview Angel, Inc. (http://www.InterviewAngel.com), both based in Richmond, have joined forces to create a first-of-its-kind career-networking event for job seekers to meet key hiring professionals — Get Hired! Virginia: The Career Speed Networking Experience.
The inaugural event of Get Hired! Virginia takes place from 4:00-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 27, 2009 at Meadow Event Park, the new site of the Virginia State Fair, in Doswell. Powered by Ignite's revolutionary software, Get Hired! Virginia provides a unique career speed-networking experience allowing participants an opportunity to connect directly with dozens of hiring professionals. Participants will rotate to pre-arranged tables for multiple rounds of 10-minute networking sessions. Unemployed professionals can expect to make 50 or more contacts during the evening, and give back to the community while at it.
"Traditional job fairs and work-the-room networking events don't meet the needs of job seekers looking to create meaningful professional connections," said Brent Peterson, Founder of Interview Angel, Inc. "We hear that at least 70 percent of all jobs are secured through networking. This event is a game changer that we feel will do more for connecting job seekers with key hiring professionals than anything Virginia, or even the country, has experienced."
"Interview Angel and this event take what Ignite has been doing in the area for years — help people build better business relationships — to an entirely new level and we're happy to help the region," said Mike Ogilvie, President of Ignite Speed Networking.
Twenty-five percent of the $20 admission price will enable Peterson to provide his company's padfolio to women being served by Dress for Success Hampton Roads. Dress for Success (Email) is an international non-profit organization that provides disadvantaged women with professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. The Interview Angel padfolio includes unique job interview tips and advice, worksheets, checklists and templates to use in the interview. Peterson has already donated a number of Interview Angel padfolios to Dress for Success Worldwide in New York City, many of which were received by women that have recently become unemployed.
"Our women love the Interview Angel padfolios and they are the perfect complement to the Dress for Success job development and employment retention experience. We are committed to providing career resources and tools to assist our women with landing jobs and building careers. The well-organized, structured material helps ensure that Dress for Success women are prepared and more than competitive in this economic environment," said executive vice president of workforce development at Dress for Success Worldwide, Denalerie Johnson.
Ignite Speed Networking and Interview Angel, Inc. are planning to expand Get Hired! events to other cities across the country over the next two years. "We have a large team of volunteers from the local community that believe in the concept and purpose," said Peterson. "Unemployed Americans are fed up with ineffective job fairs and work-the-room receptions. We are about to change the way professionals network for their careers in this country while giving citizens an opportunity to give back to their communities."
Contact: Jennifer Fortney
Email
773/529-7547
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