Join a Professional Organization to Advance Your Career

By Tory Johnson, CEO of Women for Hire

You've heard it a thousand times: Join a professional organization to advance your career. And yet, most of us don't follow that advice. Others join but fail to participate. But these affiliations should be more than just a line on your resume!

Professional organizations are a great way for those just starting out in their careers to make connections in their industry and find mentors.

Industry organizations and professional groups are an untapped goldmine of the job search and career advancement universe. Associations run the gamut from intimate dinner clubs to massive international membership organizations. Every industry has at least one association, and most industries have several, many of which include chapters designed specifically for women. Some associations, particularly in popular fields like accounting and marketing, even have collegiate chapters.

First step, pick a group to join.

Select an organization connected to your profession. Ask your colleagues for recommendations on the most active groups in your area. A simple search on Yahoo! will also turn up organizations in your field.

Join a women's group. Large, multi-industry women's professional and networking organizations include the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), Business & Professional Women (BPW), and the American Association of University Women (AAUW). Female-focused industry groups include fields ranging from Professional Women in Construction to Women in Film and Television. For a comprehensive directory of women's organizations around the world, contact the Business Women's Network, a Washington, DC-based organization, at bwni.com.

Check out the benefits. Some groups offer access to a membership directory, which may prove valuable to your search. Others host events that enable like-minded professionals to connect in person. The group may produce a publication or newsletter that offers the top trends and thought leaders in your field. Make sure you're aware of the benefits and determine if you can make use of them. If the group you're joining is only very active in Florida, but you live in Arizona, chances are it won't benefit you much.

Ask for references. If the membership fee is more than nominal, don't be shy about calling the membership director to ask for a justification of the benefits. Ask for names of a few members who can also explain how they've benefited from this affiliation.

Be active. Many associations are run by just a small handful of people, many of whom also juggle full time jobs. This means they're thrilled for any assistance, particularly from a motivated professional. Consider volunteering for a task that will help build your experience (writing an article for their newsletter, balancing the books, organizing the catering for an event, designing a new feature of their website), then put this on your resume as experience in your field.

If you can't commit to an ongoing task, volunteer for a position in which you'll meet the most association members--manage the database, work the registration table a big event, or make fund-raising phone calls.

Leverage the role. It's perfectly acceptable--encouraged, in fact--to list volunteer work on your resume. Hiring managers look for meaningful volunteer experience and a true connection to your line of work when making decisions. Don't be shy about touting what you've done with an influential group in your field.

Tory Johnson is the CEO of Women For Hire and the Workplace Contributor on ABC's Good Morning America. Connect with her at www.womenforhire.com