The Pandemic’s Impact on Career Relaunches and Employer Career Reentry Programs

How has the pandemic impacted those who withdrew from the workforce during it, and those who were on career breaks pre-pandemic? How has the pandemic impacted employer return-to-work programs and the experience of those returning to work (a.k.a. relaunchers) through these programs or on their own? And, what does this mean for future relaunchers—is it a step back or forward? Hear from Carol Fishman Cohen, the iRelaunch CEO who has been working on return-to-work programs for nearly 20 years, as she discusses these questions from the relauncher and employer perspectives.

Carol Fishman Cohen

Bridget Finkeldey

Carol Fishman Cohen is the CEO and Co-founder of career reentry firm iRelaunch, which runs the iRelaunch Return to Work Conferences, works with over 100 employers on building and expanding their in-house return to work programs, and leads a community of over 86,000 "relaunchers." iRelaunch co-leads the STEM Reentry Task Force with the Society of Women Engineers, involving 32 corporate giants across a range of industry sectors. More than 600 relaunchers have participated in Task Force company return to work programs and over 80% have been hired. Cohen’s TED talk "How to get back to work after a career break" has over 3.5 million views and has been translated into 30 languages. She hosts the 3,2,1 iRelaunch podcast, is the author of the Harvard Business Review Magazine article "The 40-Year-Old Intern,” and writes regularly for Harvard Business Review on career reentry topics. Cohen has presented globally on career reentry over 600 times and is regularly featured in the major media outlets as a trusted source on the topic. iRelaunch also runs a Job Board for relaunchers and for employers recruiting them. Cohen is a relauncher herself, having returned to work as a financial analyst at an investment firm after an 11 year career break. A graduate of Pomona College and Harvard Business School, she splits her time between greater Boston and metro Miami.

Meg Alexander

Bridget Finkeldey

Meg Alexander joined the PowerToFly community as a job-seeker in 2014, eventually landing her first remote role working for PowerToFly's Delivery Team. Her professional experience includes roles as a Talent Advocate, Head of Purchasing for a window factory, audiobook publishing, & more than 5 years as a paralegal. She has a bachelor's degree in Art History from Indiana University (mint condition, never been used!), where she also earned a varsity letter for Women's Rowing. She loves DIY projects and will never say no to french fries. She lives in Toledo, OH with her husband Aaron, an engineering technician, and their dogs, Radar & Cake.