Jessica Grundy, Early Talent Acquisition Strategy EMEA at Johnson & Johnson, shares ten benefits to a thriving community.

Building a thriving community continues to be a critical strategic objective for the ISE board and we are really passionate about it. As a membership organisation, our success very much lies in the contribution we all make.

Here are 10 reasons why a thriving community is better for us all:

#1 It gives us a stronger voice when lobbying government and policy makers.

#2 It upskills our profession enabling us to achieve greater impact and create meaningful careers for talent across the industry.

#3 It helps us to solve problems that we face within our own organisations – it’s surprising what you can learn from others, even from other sectors and industries.

#4 It helps us to develop new ideas when we engage likeminded people. The wisdom of this crowd is far greater than working alone.

#5 It gives us richer and more insightful data that helps us to drive our own strategies.

#6 It helps us to connect the dots – our membership is diverse with employers, universities and suppliers. This ecosystem has the power to unleash great things! Consulting with experts will help drive better results.

#7 It helps us to push our limits as when we work as individuals (or even teams) it can be easy to give up or take the path of least resistance. We can gain great motivation by surrounding ourselves with others working towards a similar goal or objective. This support, and even friendly competition, will help us all to achieve what at first felt impossible.

#8 It is therapeutic – we have all been to events where we walk away feeling lighter and with a renewed perspective. We are not alone in our struggles!

#9 Together we can have fun! It’s not all work and no play.

#10 It means that we can raise industry standards. Whether ethics in AI or changing the game around social inclusion, we all play a role and have a collective responsibility to drive change and raise standards across our industry.