The story of Piton At age 14, I got into trouble and learned my own beliefs on careers. My teacher had us write an essay about careers and what we wanted to be when we grew up. I wrote that I wanted to be a “Renaissance Man.” I was told that a combination of arts, travel, business and continuous learning was ‘not a career.” I did not get a stellar grade on that assignment, but it launched my passion for the idea of careers and job change.

In careers, timing is everything. I landed my first job after college in October 1987, the day of the stock market crash when I pitched my cold-calling skills to a guy in line at a coffee shop. As a telemarketer and paralegal I dreamed of becoming and business trainer. I left business, but took the education part and gained my Masters in Art History; teaching at UMass, followed by researching for the Guggenheim Museum and developing audio tours for visitors to the Metropolitan Museum, SeaWorld and Graceland.

Even with a passion for education, I was drawn back to the world of business. So back to school I went. With an MBA in hand, I joined Citigroup working on their direct marketing, new product development and online sales. After being sent on a trip to recruit new bankers, I saw my next calling and moved from marketing to the recruiting side of the bank. After seven years of traveling around the county and the world, a chance phone helped me make the next step back into academia. As the Director of Career Management and Assistant Dean at Georgetown University’s MBA Program, I shared my own experience of career changes with a students whose goal was to make a transition themselves. I loved my five years at Georgetown University and realized that working to help people make career changes was incredibly fulfilling.

An observation and personal experience brought all these earlier experiences together to where I am, and where Piton Inc is, today. First, a very close friend experienced a life changing injury. A snowboard instructor, and rock climber landed head first while downhill mountain biking. He lived, but shattering his T1-T9 vertebrae. In an instant, everything he had planned, and known about his future, had changed. It was not just the physical challenges, but the way he defined himself and saw his future was altered. The second experience has come from watching our soldiers return from Iraq and Afghanistan. These men and women who had defined themselves as Solder, Sailor, Marine now face the challenges of translating their skills and changing their life direction. They have to learn what jobs were out there that will match their skills and then make their backgrounds understood for recruiters.

So this next step in my crazy career was one of the clearest. I wanted to share my knowledge of making career change with men and women who have been forced to make that change. And to share the secrets of recruiting and interviewing that have been kept by corporate recruiters and university administrators.

Piton Inc is a registered 501c3 non profit organization contact anne@pitoninc.org

What it a Piton?

In traditional rick climbing, a metal spike or piton (Peeton) was hammered into rock and used to secure a climber to the mountain. The Piton does not climb for you, it only helps you climb more efficiently and with greater safety. With Piton Inc, I have taken lessons from my experience as a career changer, a recruiter and career management director and made them available to you. I have also created a forum for people who want to share their wisdom of making career change.

How Piton can help youWe provide classes, webinars and workshops to help you, your students or your job candidates navigate career transition. Topics include:

Strategy for preparing for that change Nuts and bolts of job applications and interviews, Salary negotiation Cementing a job into a career Identifying and recruiting best available talent On-boarding and job orientation for long-term success

How you can help Piton help othersWork on a shoestring, so your support has a huge impact. Here are three things you can do to get involved.

1. Support what we do. All donations go directly to supporting career changers. You can even sponsor the creation of a webinar for students that is branded by your company.

2. Lend your talent – Have expertise that you would like to share? Apply to co-teach a class or mentor a career changer. Support in printing materials, web or graphic design can make sure that our funds go to developing and delivering classes.

3. Refer us- Help us get the word out to schools, businesses or organizations that could use our support.

For more information contact Anne Jones : Anne@pitoninc.org 347-782-1715

Piton Inc is a registered 501c3 non profit organization contact anne@pitoninc.org