Category Archives: Careers

[POSTPONED] Making Your Impact: Planning for Action Workshop

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Posted by menteral on May 29, 2010 – 10:22 am
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO THE FALL… PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES.

Workshop on Making Change in Your Organization!!

Date: TBD
Time: 10:00-1:00 pm
Location: TBD (potentially outdoors or in a sunny venue appropriate to a Sunday afternoon)
RSVP: http://makeyourimpact.eventbrite.com/

Join us for a practical workshop on making social and environmental change at your organization from within. In an interactive morning, we will cover topics such as strategically approaching your company culture, navigating sustainability conversations, goal-setting and action-planning. Combining short lectures with small and large group discussions, this session is designed for you to develop and tailor an approach that allows you to make a difference in your organization. The frameworks and topics covered will be broad enough to accommodate a wide variety of experiences. Whether you have already launched an established initiative or have felt tongue-tied in your attempts to broach the topic of sustainability at work, this workshop is for you!

Abby Jandro is a PhD candidate in Organizational Psychology at Alliant International University with a passion for leadership, organization strategy and making positive change.

Alessia Carega is a Sustainability Practitioner in San Francisco. She is a Senior Strategist in consulting services at Saatchi & Saatchi S, specializing in designing and implementing strategies for integrating sustainability into company culture by engaging employees.

Careers to Callings: Discussion Session Notes

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Posted by menteral on April 18, 2010 – 10:20 am
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

The discussion at last Wednesday’s “Careers to Callings” event was fantastic. Thanks to everyone who made it out – and a special thanks to Ibanga Umanah for conceiving and catalyzing the event, Julie Menter for facilitating, Rayna Wiles for visually recording, and all of our special guests (Phillipe Goldin, Colleen Murray, Kate Mulder, and Brian Sullivan).

Some quick takeaways of the event are below (thanks to Emily Sadigh for helping with these notes!)

Personal Actions to Improve Work:

  • Being happy at work often simply involves really knowing yourself. Taking the time to be mindful of your emotions and meditate can help with this – as can really understanding your particular strengths. Remember, what comes easily to you might be a valuable strength.
  • Simply clarifying and stating your values can reduce stress-causing cortisol levels.
  • Being really up front about who you are with co-workers is important – bring more dimensions of yourself to it. Don’t be a different person at work than you are outside of work.
  • Journal, keep track of your successes and failures
  • Take advantage of review processes, take people out to lunch, ask your boss what his/her long-term goals are
  • Realize that what you’re doing at work – even if you don’t love it – may prove invaluable to you later on in life (and towards ends you care more about). Think about your experience path and the skills you are building.
  • Each day, think about who you’re serving? When you feel like what you’re doing is helping others (even if only one person) – it can bring you out of the daily grind and give you a greater sense of meaning.

Model Company Programs (good examples for your workplace)

  • The companies that have the most engaged employees are those that have a strong culture and can really clearly tell you what they are and what they are not (i.e. Patagonia).
  • Google’s G2G program (googlers teaching googlers, everything from biking to statistics) (http://knol.google.com/k/steph-fastre/teach-and-you-shall-learn/1fc9wqbhtn4k0/2#)
  • Google’s meditation rooms (knowing yourself builds self-confidence) and places for play and interaction (ball pen, cafeteria)
  • Title 9’s worst mistake contest (risk-taking indicates autonomy/ownership)
  • Sabre’s Walk in Your Shoes Program
  • Sabre’s “Hack Day” (open time to invent something new and improved)
  • St. Jude Medical bringing in a patient helped by the company’s product or emailing when a heart valve is made for a baby
  • Talent show or group volunteer program to unearth skills and create other forms of interaction
  • St Jude Medical’s performance reviews requiring employees to write down long-term goals that ensure annual conversations about employee’s long-term jobs and their current job relates

Other takeaways:

  • As companies (and individuals) grow – there is an “ossification” process that makes them move slower.
  • People are much more likely to stay in a situation where they feel unfulfilled than shift to something that is uncomfortable.
  • Alignment of personal, societal, and business goals is a powerful combination.

Further resources and reading:

  • Drive by Daniel Pink (three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose). Also see TED Talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html
  • Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn (the example of Fred the Postman)
  • Firms of Endearment (about how values-based firms outperform) http://www.firmsofendearment.com/index.html
  • Habits of the Heart (job, career, calling) (preview available on google books)
  • Gallup’s “best friend at work” dimension: http://gmj.gallup.com/content/511/item-10-best-friend-work.aspx
  • Wired to Care by Dev Patnaik (of Jump Associates)
  • Mindfulness clock

Below are some images from the event – including the mindmap-style notes from Rayna (click to see larger).

April Monthly Gathering: Turning Careers into Callings in Your Workplace

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Posted by Cornhusker on March 1, 2010 – 7:20 pm
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

Date: Wednesday, April 14th, 2010
Time: 7:00 – 9:00pm
Location: Galleria Park Hotel (Joie De Vivre), 191 Sutter St, San Francisco, CA 94104
RSVP: http://nisfapril2010.eventbrite.com/
(NOTE: This is not an event about finding a job or for networking. This will be a small group discussion for people looking to to transform their workplaces and bring a greater sense of meaning into corporate culture. Please come ready to contribute!).

  • A job is something you do to get money.
  • A career is something you invest in, are deliberate about, and is important to you.
  • A calling truly resonates with the core of who you are and lends meaning to your life.

April’s NI-SF monthly gathering will be a smaller-group, unconference-format discussion on how to create a sea-change in our corporate culture. As more and more millennials are entering the workforce, they’re looking for more than jobs. They’re looking for workplaces that connect with their values, allow them to be creative, and make them happy. At the same time, folks at the cutting edge of HR and organization design have largely stopped thinking about companies as big machines that need to be optimized and tuned… but rather as social groups of people that have distinct cultures and norms.

As an institution looking to attract and retain people, do you now need to help your employees find their calling at work?If so, how?

As individuals with a job, how can you connect your day-to-day work with a higher purpose? How can you align professional and personal goals to really thrive?

Don’t expect any silver bullets – but do expect to hear from some inspiring and interesting folks doing their best to be true to themselves.

Confirmed special guests so far are:

Colleen Murray – Jump Associates
Philippe Goldin – Stanford Neuroscience + Google
Brian Sullivan – Google
Julie Menter - BluSkye Consulting
Kate Mulder – Citizen Effect
Joie De Vivre Hotel

Events

Green Jobs Event: Tips from the Experts

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Posted by admin on July 9, 2009 – 4:05 pm
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

What a success! Last night we had over 60 RSVP’s and 2 great speakers that left the crowd in an upbeat and hopeful mood. Leonard Adler of Green Jobs Network and Christina Gilyutin of Bright Green Talent were there to assure us that there are jobs out there…we just need the right tools and strategies to sniff them out!

You’re good enough, smart enough, and gosh darn it! People like you!

The burden of finding a job is not only like dating with its many high expectations and low results, but many of us feel like we need therapy just to get through it! How many resumes do we have to send into oblivion via Craigslist/Career Builder/Hot Jobs/Monster before we get a break? According to Christina Gilyutin, Director of Development and Chief Career Counselor for Bright Green Talent, we need to stay positive and remember that we are smart and talented, we just need to find strategies so that we are seen. Leonard and Christina helped the crowd to stay positive with some inspiring tips on finding a job.

Tips on how to be noticed: Networking

  • Volunteer to meet people or become a leader of a group, this not only helps you to meet new people, but it shows that you have initiative
  • Join affinity groups such as Green Jobs Network (www.greenjobs.net), Net Impact (www.netimpactsf.org) or SF Green Drinks (sfgreendrinks.org) which all serve to surrounded you with people who have similar interests
  • At networking/social events, TALK TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE
  • Comments from the crowd included using your every day activities as an opportunity to tell people about your interests, you never know who you’ll meet!
  • Another suggestion from the audience was to organize dinners with friends and acquaintances who have similar/related career interests
  • A Net Impact leader mentioned that he found his job by talking to people in his field of interest as a peer, which resulted in a job! Confidence pays! He continued to say that if you’re looking for a job in sustainability, you need to find a 3rd vector to define your niche. Green + Business isn’t specific enough. Are you into design, procurement, logistics, materials science, …? The more specific the better.
  • Be a connector! Link people to others, they will likely return the favor!

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Get Strategic! Leonard Adler of Green Jobs Network highlighted 3 points for us to remember:

  • Follow the Venture Capitalists! They might want to fund your idea!
  • Follow the money! Where is the government funneling money right now? To Green projects! Find out what kind of projects and to which companies the funds are going.
  • Follow the law! What laws have been passed recently? How does this legal change relate to my industry of interest?

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Online Tips:

Spend only 10-20% of your time online for your job search and use the rest of that time giving your elevator pitch to new networks. While job boards are great, try to find job boards with a clear focus on your industry of interest such as Treehugger.com. There are a lot of Green job boards out there! General job boards can be more competitive due to their high amount of traffic and tendency to cover a broad number of industries. Also, try your old university’s job board, they often post jobs for alumni.

Need help with your resume?

Did you know about the Job Forum? The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce holds an event every Wednesday evening (6:30 to 8:30) called the Job Forum where they provide feedback on resume writing and give advice on job hunting http://www.thejobforum.org/.

What if I don’t have experience?

Try interning, its not just for the 20-somethings! If you don’t like that idea, try volunteering. Many businesses would love to have you work without paying while you gain valuable experience.

Seek Professional Help!

To learn more about Bright Green Talent’s Career Counseling Services, please visit http://www.brightgreentalent.com/

To get more tips on successful job searching and learn more about last night’s event, please go to Bright Green Talent’s blog posting:

http://brightestgreen.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/wisdom-of-the-net-impact-crowd/

Net Impact Monthly Gathering: Green Jobs

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Posted by admin on June 22, 2009 – 9:45 am
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

Date: Wednesday, July 8th
Time: 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Cafe International; 508 Haight St. (between Fillmore St & Steiner St), San Francisco, CA 94117
RSVP below or at http://nisfjuly.eventbrite.com/

At this month’s Net Impact SF gathering, we are pleased to announce that we will be partnering with the Green Jobs Network for a casual discussion on Green Jobs: Where are they? How do I get one?

The Green Jobs Network’s mission is to connect people with opportunity by providing resources to help green job seekers succeed! More details at www.greenjobs.net.

We are inviting a few inspiring and approachable speakers:
- Leonard Adler is the founder of Green Jobs Network, a social enterprise with a mission to connect people who are seeking jobs that focus on environmental or social responsibility with jobs and career development resources. He has worked in the private and non-profit sectors for organizations including FindLaw and Equal Justice Works and is the recipient of a social entrepreneurship grant from the Echoing Green Foundation. Leonard has a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, where he was a Public Interest Law Scholar and co-founded the Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty. He also has a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and received a Bachelor’s degree with Honors in Political Science from Stanford University. Leonard is a Net Impact member.

- Jim Cassio is a career information and workforce development consultant to workforce boards, educational entities, and private corporations involved in career information or talent management. His newest book (with co-author, Alice Rush) is called Green Careers: Choosing Work for a Sustainable Future. His work involves industry, occupation, job and skills research, data analysis, technical writing, and resource product development. In recent years, Jim has been focusing much of his research on green jobs/careers and published the Green Careers Resource Guide in 2007. Jim is an experienced trainer and workshop facilitator, and conducts popular seminars on Green Jobs and Careers.

- Christina Gilyutin is the Director of Development and Chief Career Counselor at Bright Green Talent.  She attended Stanford University, spent some time living in Jackson Hole, WY before heading over to the University of Michigan’s Erb Institute of Global Sustainable Enterprise earning a joint MBA/MS in Natural Resources and Environment. She’s been a Net Impact member since 2005 and served on the board of Michigan’s chapter which has been named Chapter of the Year for 3 years running. While at Stanford, Christina captained the varsity lacrosse team and continues to play with the San Francisco club team. When not wielding a stick, she is out biking, snowboarding, doing yoga and laughing, incredibly loudly, at jokes that most people think aren’t that funny.

Following a brief conversation with our speakers, we’ll turn to the audience to get your tips to getting a dream green job. Should be fun!

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We host a gathering for the Net Impact SF community on the second Wednesday of every month, featuring a different discussion topic each time. This offers the opportunity for informal interaction with the invited guests and with your fellow Net Impact members, with the discussion topic serving as a launching off point for engaging conversations.

Contact Us: sfprofessional@netimpact.org
Chapter Website: www.netimpactsf.org
Venue Website: www.cafeinternational.com

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Cafe International is easily accessible via public transportation. Take J, K, L, M or N MUNI lines from downtown to Church St Station. Go to 511.org for more details.


Info Session Thursday, June 25th — Join one of 2 NEW Service Corps Consulting Projects!

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Posted by on June 19, 2009 – 12:35 am
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact), Service Corps, Uncategorized

INFO SESSION:::

Learn More About the Chapter’s 2 NEW

Service Corps Pro Bono Consulting Projects

for Summer 2009!

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What: Learn about the chapter’s 2nd and 3rd Service Corps projects of 2009, with:

- Clean Tech Open (sustainable business advising to cleantech startups). Applications due July 3rd, project starts July 7th.

- Foundation for Self-Sufficiency in Central America (non-profit supporting sustainable development in El Salvador). Applications due July 10th, project starts July 21st.

When: Thursday, June 25, 7-9pm

Where: Cafe International, 508 Haight St. (btwn Fillmore & Steiner)

Directions: www.511.org (5 min walk north from Church MUNI/Castro Safeway)

MORE INFO: “Service Corps” tab above

Net Impact Central is looking for interns

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Posted by menteral on April 29, 2009 – 7:06 am
Filed under Careers

The central office of Net Impact is located in SF and they’re looking for interns to help with their various programs. They’ve asked us to reach out to the Net Impact-SF community and let you all know about these positions. Check them out here.

“Please keep in mind that these positions are designed for undergraduate students or recent graduates, but we know that some graduate students or other professionals might want to use their business skills while possibly looking for other work”

Service Corps Program Launch (April 22)

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Posted by on April 12, 2009 – 11:21 pm
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact), Events (other Bay Area), Service Corps, Social Entrepreneurship

Mark Your Calendar: Wed, April 22nd

* Come Celebrate the Launch of Service Corps *


6:30 – 7:30pm at Cafe International, 508 Haight St. (between Fillmore St. & Steiner St.)

This Earth Day, join fellow Net Impact SF Professional Chapter members to celebrate the launch of our chapter’s 2009 Service Corps program; the opportunity to engage in pro bono consulting for local non-profit organizations through Net Impact!

Take this opportunity to meet Rubicon National Social Innovations (http://rubiconnsi.blogspot.com) Director Jonathan Harrison and Senior Business Analyst Katherine Daniel, and to express your interest in the Energy Retrofit Enterprise Feasibility Study that our chapter is carrying out for Rubicon this spring, in partnership with Green For All (www.greenforall.org) and a team of Bain & Company (www.bain.com) pro bono consultants.

SF Pro Chapter members are encouraged to submit an application (CV and statement of interest) to join our team of Rubicon consultants prior to this meeting, as applications are due on April 24th (see posting below for details).

First Service Corps Project of 2009 – Apply Now!

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Posted by on April 12, 2009 – 10:21 pm
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact), Events (other Bay Area), Service Corps, Social Entrepreneurship

* April 13th Announcement *

First Consulting Project of 2009

for Net Impact SF Professional Chapter


Apply by Friday, April 24th to join the team of Net Impact SF professionals participating in a nationally scalable green consulting project!

Rubicon National Social Innovations (RNSI) (http://rubiconnsi.blogspot.com) is a recent offshoot of 35-year old Rubicon Programs (www.rubiconprograms.org), a social services agency that runs two social enterprises, including a bakery and a landscaping firm, in Richmond, CA. The goal of the San Francisco-based non-profit organization is to launch nationally-scaled social enterprises that have a positive and lasting impact on individuals living in poverty and are financially sustainable in the long-term from the revenues they generate.

Rubicon’s Director Jonathan Harrison would like to recruit a team of Net Impact SF Professional Chapter members as pro bono consultants to carry out a feasibility study for a national energy retrofit enterprise. Green for All (www.greenforall.org), a team of part-time pro bono consultants from Bain & Company (www.bain.com), and three business school interns will partner with our team to carry out this study. In addition to earning revenue, the social enterprise must achieve three social objectives:

· To employ hard to employ groups and create an enterprise which will help facilitate disenfranchised populations to tap into the burgeoning green jobs that will form the apex of the new economy.

· To increase the value of low- and middle income homes by making them more energy efficient.

· To increase the ability of low and middle income households to invest in deep efficiency measures by increasing their access to financing tools that increase the affordability of these measures.

RNSI is looking for our team of consultants to conduct research and analysis into several areas upon which the success of this business is contingent. Please contact us if you have an interest or knowledge these areas and would like to be involved:

  • Energy retrofitting/weatherization
  • Market analysis
  • Strategic analysis
  • City level energy efficiency incentives/programs
  • New technology for efficiency
  • Financing tools for efficiency
  • Community impact of green jobs

Pro bono consultants will each be expected to devote 5-6 hours per week to this effort, for a total of about 4 months (during evenings/weekends).

This is a unique opportunity and spots for this project will fill up quickly.

By Friday, April 24, 2009, please send your CV and a brief statement of interest in the Rubicon project to:

Sarah Miller, Project Lead for Rubicon Study at sarita.miller@gmail.com

Please send any questions about the Service Corps program offered by the Net Impact SF Professional Chapter to:

Sarah Rea, Service Corps Program Coordinator at rea.sarah@gmail.com

Rock Climbing & Green Jobs with Net Impact & Bright Green Talent

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Posted by menteral on April 11, 2009 – 10:02 am
Filed under Careers, Events (Net Impact)

greenclimbing

What do rock climbing and green jobs have in common?

…They’re both awesome!
And Net Impact is teaming up with Bright Green Talent
to bring them together for a fun event on the eve of earth day.

Come join us on Tuesday, April 21st from 6-9 pm for an evening of casual fun and physical and mental challenge at one of the best new indoor rock-climbing walls in the country – Planet Granite!

It should be a fun way to meet your fellow Net Impacters, learn more about them, and share a good laugh. Also, some members of the green recruiting firm, Bright Green Talent, will be there so you can meet some people on the “front line” of green jobs.

Don’t worry if you have never climbed. A few of us have our belay certification, so you can climb the higher wall (if you are daring!) with one of us, or you can play around on the fun boulder problems in the training area. Also, lessons are available if you want them (at 6:30 and 7:30 – must book separately in advance), but we recommend just getting a feel for it first before you jump into a lesson.

ALSO… we’ll likely meet-up at Liverpool Lil’s for a drink afterwards to continue the conversation and give our forearms a rest. (2942 Lyon St San Francisco, CA 94123)

Please RSVP by APRIL 20th at http://greenclimbing.eventbrite.com/ (OR the form below). Space is limited and spots will be given on a first-come, first served basis. This event is open to both members and not-yet members. If there is still space available, walk-ups are welcome on the date of the event.

(NOTE: Refunds will be given if you let us know you can’t attend on or before April 20th. Email sfprofessional@netimpact.org)

** A special thanks to Matthew Savage from Bright Green Talent for organizing the event! If you have a great idea for an event you’d like to plan with Net Impact, e-mail us at sfprofessional@netimpact.org.