Professional community platforms give job seekers a chance to connect in virtual rooms to gain invaluable career advice. Explore a few additional benefits, including:
- Preventing isolation in your career
- Dealing with problems at work
- Gaining insight into what your peers are making
Community platforms for work are people you most closely associate with your job or company. These are your go-to people — the ones you grab lunch or after-work drinks with and the ones you complain to when work has you burnt out.
But, as wonderful as these groups are, you may not always feel that you can be your real self. Maybe you don’t feel comfortable confiding in your coworkers because of their position within the company or because they don’t understand what you do. Maybe you don’t know how to connect with other remote employees — working in a hybrid position or fully remote can make it even harder to build relationships or even advance your career.
Fishbowl by Glassdoor allows you to post and answer your most burning workplace and career questions anonymously using a forum-style platform. You can connect with like-minded professionals from all over the world and you are free to discuss everything from your work environment, experience, management, and even your salary.
You might think, “Eh, I don’t know if I need this.” But, workplace communities like Fishbowl can offer you the support and reality check you need to reach the next step of your career.
1. It keeps you from feeling isolated in your career
According to a Pew Research survey, the COVID-19 pandemic drove the huge wave of remote workers — whether people want to be working remotely or not. People are having trouble staying connected while working from home and may feel isolated while working whether they are working from home or are going into a mostly empty office space.
Joining an online community that matches your role, career path, or industry can introduce you to people who not only get what you do but also speak your language, helping you combat work isolation and even love your job more!
2. It helps you deal with problems at work
A coworker can behave unprofessionally, your boss can mismanage you, or your direct reports can completely drop the ball. It’s unrealistic to expect that you’ll never run into problems at work. Luckily, an online workplace community like Fishbowl is the perfect place to get advice.
Join a bowl — a professional community on the platform — that relates to your work problems, such as work/life balance, diversity in the workplace, or even a group for working moms. Post your problems or questions in the bowl to start a discussion and get the help you need.
No matter what problems you're facing at work, there's a good chance someone else has faced them too or can provide valuable insight on how to deal with them.
3. It’s a source of honest career advice
A role at another company has opened up that seems to match your skills and talents. You're eager to learn more about the role, but who can you ask? After all, you like your current job and you certainly don't want anyone to think you're trying to jump ship, but you also want to do what's best for your future.
Joining a workplace community on Fishbowl is the perfect place to turn when you're seeking candid advice on your career. Look for who has the best online community that’s focused on the job you're considering and the company you're thinking of moving to so you can gain the most insight into your next career move and avoid moving to a job you'll regret.
4. It can show you how much your peers are making
For many, talking about how much you make is deeply taboo. At the same time, most professionals want more openness when it comes to money talk. A 2021 Glassdoor survey found that 70% of employees believe that conversations about salary should be more transparent among professionals.
So, we want to talk about salaries, but what’s stopping us? Likely, it’s that awkward moment when one of you finds out that you’re really underpaid.
You can avoid all that discomfort by giving an online workplace community a try, where you can get the real scoop on the salary for your position — anonymously or not — without worry.
You can review your salary with peers in your industry, professionals in other fields, and even employees at the company you're applying to. With these details in your pocket, you’re in a better place to ask for a raise or evaluate a new job offer.
Join the right online workplace community with Fishbowl
Fishbowl by Glassdoor is a free community platform that makes it easy to join in on conversations around your industry, career, company, race, gender, orientation, and even trending topics. Fishbowl can help you connect with the right people who can help steer you in the right direction — whether you need help dealing with your current job, advice on getting a new one, or simply need the motivation to finally quit and become that self-starting entrepreneur you've always dreamed of being. Looking for more specific recommendations? Check out Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work list.