I LIKE NETWORKING: a new platform for women and non-binary people in the creative industry has become a success and is expanding in 2021.
Like many across the world, I LIKE NETWORKING’s founder Isabel Sachs lost her job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As someone in the creative industry, she understood how hard it was to find employment in the normal world, let alone in the middle of a pandemic.
Her response was to start a small networking group, in June 2020, where industry leaders would open their black book of contacts and give some of their time to support those who had difficulty getting started (or getting ahead) in the industry, with the aim of tackling the lack of support & diversity in the sector.
Without any funding, I LIKE NETWORKING evolved into a full- blow career platform for women and non-binary people in the creative industries, with an events series to upskill as many people as possible, newsletters, job boards and a podcast, with a range of guests from all over the world, featured on The New York Times, Stylist and beyond. In total, the pilot program saw over 215 mentoring sessions, over 500 events attendees and more than 2000 podcast downloads from June to December 2020.
The mentoring scheme will still be free for those selected through an online application form. I LIKE NETWORKING aims to create a movement where mentees will eventually become mentors and have a huge community of members supporting each other throughout the career paths.
The I LIKE NETWORKING mentoring scheme applications will launch in March with the programme starting from September, with four encounters between the mentors and the mentees. Applications will be via UnderPinned, I LIKE NETWORKING’s 2021 sponsor.
In 2021, I LIKE NETWORKING is also offering a membership scheme to expand on their motto over collaboration over competition. The membership gives access to a community of like-minded individuals to facilitate support, networking and access to all of their events. The membership is now live to book, from £8.50 a month, with bursaries available for those who cannot afford it.
