Most of us have friends or colleagues who recently lost their job. Unfortunately, job losses are extremely prevalent in our beloved mitten state. Coupled with job losses, there are many recent graduates who are struggling to find jobs.
If you’re a PR professional on Twitter, you may have seen all the recent tweets about “Help a PR Pro Out” day. I noticed there were no champions from Michigan supporting this awesome initiative, so I’ve jumped on board.
On Friday, February 19, from 10 am – 2 pm CT, PR bloggers, agency leaders and PR professionals from across the country will donate their time and talents to help fellow PR pros connect with employers as part of the first-ever HAPPO day. Here’s the breakdown from co-founder Arik Hanson (the other co-founder is Valerie Simon):
- Are you a job seeker? Prepare a creative blog post, pitching yourself to prospective employers and share it via Twitter during the event on Feb. 19 using the hashtag #HAPPO. The HAPPO “market champions” will help by retweeting and connecting you with potential employers in your specific market (or markets you’re willing to relocated to).
- Are you an employer looking for talent? Follow the hashtag #HAPPO on Friday, Feb. 19 and share your openings. Market champions will do their best to connect you with talent they think matches your specific needs.
- Are you a PR blogger/Twitter addict? Yes? Then share the #HAPPO tweets with your personal networks and lend your support to those in need. Help your market champion identify job seekers and pair them with potential employers. This is your chance to make a difference!
If you’re looking for a job but prefer to do so offline, please contact me or one of the HAPPO champions.
HAPPO represents a chance for us all to make a difference for colleagues, former co-workers and friends looking for a job. Think of this as a “pay it forward” movement. With the help of the global PR community, we can make a significant difference for PR job seekers everywhere. Even if our efforts only help one person in Michigan find a job, I will still consider this a success, particularly because of the momentum this initiative has gained.
You can find more information and ongoing updates leading up to the February 19 event at www.helpaprproout.com. If you’re a PR pro in Michigan (heck, even if you’re not), please consider helping to spread the word about HAPPO throughout the week. Let’s all work together to make this a success!
Image credit: HAPPO Web site