Until a couple of months ago, I knew nothing about JCI. The best way I could describe it to a colleague was “the biggest organisation I’ve never heard of”, which is sad in a sense especially as it has so much to offer to young professionals making their way in the world. That said, the first meeting of the soon to be revived Birmingham Chapter was really eye opening. The first thing that strikes you is the enthusiasm of the existing members, Kirstie Barnett (2013 President) and Kay Purser. Both seem genuinely excited to be involved in the re-launch and have clearly taken a lot away from JCI during their membership terms, including training opportunities and new friendships both nationally and internationally. Their enthusiasm is refreshing to see and not to mention infectious!

Next thing I knew, I was volunteering myself to organise the next social event and promising to formerly join as soon as possible. Considering this was an informal meeting over drinks to discuss the re-launch, there were still three other new faces all of which seemed keen to be involved and hopefully, they’ll attend again. I originally learnt about JCI through a friend of mine, Stuart Pownall – one of the Directors of the Edinburgh Chapter, who actually attended the meeting as well as he was in the city on business.

Excitment and ideas on relaunching JCI Birmingham

He too is keen to help Birmingham in any way he can which is pretty impressive given he’s based 300 miles away! So why am I joining? Originally I was drawn in by the training and networking events, but I now see something else - the chance to be involved growing an organisation that I feel could be very popular in Birmingham, that could help a large number of young professionals to better both themselves and their careers. This really feels like an exciting time for both JCI and Birmingham!

Colin Lawrence- Waterhouse
New JCI Birmingham member