Après’: A LinkedIn for women that have hit pause on their career

When life happens

I will always have a soft spot in my heart for my mother: After raising five kids and putting up with my father as a bonus, by the time she wanted to re-enter the workforce she was ill-equipped to make much headway. Technology had passed her by and there just weren’t a lot of resources out there that women could tap into. This was pre-internet and social media.

This is a give-and-take situation that any parent (not just women) can surely relate to: You give some of the best years of your life to raising a family and discover that the skills you once had don’t exactly carry over, or you’re now in an older demographic. This is not just a woman-thing. Guys experience it as well.

Getting back on track

Fortunately in this day and age there are many resources to take advantage of in terms of networking and job search. Just how many are specifically geared for women is negligible but one in particular, Après’, launched recently and was created by Jennifer Gefsky and Niccole Kroll, two women who’d been there and done that: both enjoyed promising and lucrative careers in the corporate market only to let it go while raising their respective families.

Après’ officially launched this month and is a marketplace for both full- and part-time positions, consulting projects, maternity fill-in positions, and pro-bono opportunities across a wide range of industries.

Note from the Editor: Although they’re pitching it as a service for women, we strongly believe that it could (and SHOULD) blossom to include the fathers who have been stay at home parents, because parenthood isn’t exclusive to women.

One heck of a talent base

Après’ membership, which consists of “several thousand” women who signed up to receive notification of the launch (and which is now growing with each passing day), will also have access to editorial content, career coaches, and industry experts who can guide them on the road back to employment.

By Gefsky’s estimation that there are about three million educated women looking to enter or re-enter the workforce. On FastCo, Gefsky commented:

“When older workers opted out, they tended to stay out of the talent pool. This virtually untapped pool of candidates is an invaluable source of talent for corporate America. They bring a strong skill set, a proven work record, reliability, and life experience.”

Après’ typical member is female around age 35 or older. They cut atypical profiles: Many of the members hold graduate degrees and would be open to alternative types of work. They aren’t bored; they are looking to get back to work to be financially independent she says, particularly in the wake of divorce, or if their spouse loses their job.

The fine print

Like LinkedIn, Après is free to join and search jobs. Those who want to be found by potential employers can pay $250 per year or a $25 per month charge (with a three-month minimum) for a premium membership. For its part companies pay an annual fee on a sliding scale based on their size. Unlike recruiters, Après will not take an additional fee if a candidate is placed through the platform.

Après’ is redefining how women reenter the workforce by offering inspiring content, tools to successfully navigate your transition, a roster of the very best career coaches and a diverse job market where you’ll find full-time, part-time and project-based positions.

This is a startup that matters to job market ecosystem. Après’ is a great example of what it takes to focus on the emphasis of work/life balance. It’s something that parents (not just moms) could not do even a decade ago but are just now finding that diverse choices to reenter the job market exist.

#Après’