Employees may want to consider joining the club -- in the form of an industry or trade association, that is.
According to a survey of 150 senior executives from the human resources, finance and marketing departments of the nation's 1,000 largest companies, 86 percent of hiring managers surveyed cited involvement in industry or trade associations as beneficial to an employee's career. The national poll was conducted by an independent reseacrh firm and released by staffing firm Accountemps.
When asked how beneficial involvement in industry or professional associations is to an employee's career, 25 percent of those exectuives surveyed said "very beneficial," while 61 percent responded "somewhat beneficial," 13 percent said "not very benficial," and 1 percent said "not at all beneficial."
"Companies value employees who proactively seek opportunities to develop their skills and expertise," said Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps. "Participation in professional associations is an effective way to learn of new industry developments and network with others in the field." According to Messmer, taking an active role by volunteering for committees, writing articles for association publications and delivering presentations, "allows members to strengthen their leadership abilities, interpersonal skills and business acumen."
