You’re young. You’re successful. You know the ins and outs of doing your job.

But when you’re young and you’re successful, do you know the ins and outs of advancing your career?

A Bangor-area networking group for young professionals is offering a series of four professional development seminars designed to help its target group get ahead.

The Fusion Forward series will kick off from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, June 25, at the Dyke Center for Family Business on the Husson College campus in Bangor with “Career Navigation for Young Professionals: Making Your Own Path.” The guest speaker is Amy Jaffe of the Yarmouth-based career development company Heart at Work.

“We really felt there is the 20-40ish group of the work force, they’re active, they’re getting involved in their community, but they’re often not sure how to navigate their careers in this area,” said Tanya Pereira, economic development officer for the city of Brewer and the chairwoman of the Fusion Forward committee.

The session costs $15, or $50 for all four. Lunch is included.

Other seminars will be about how to succeed in a multigenerational workplace (set for Sept. 24), how young professionals can get involved with the community (Jan. 28, 2009), and the skills necessary for young managers (March 25). The final seminar will be a capstone social event during which attendees can put their skills to work. The final event will be held on a date in April to be determined.

The seminars are especially important in this area of Maine, where there are fewer professional opportunities, said Pereira.

“It also tends to be a work force where … there aren’t a lot of lateral places to go,” she said. “You often find people moving around in different sectors, doing different jobs.”

The June 25 seminar will serve as an introduction to the series with an overview of what the work force looks like, an examination of the disappearing model of professionals working for one company their entire career, and a discussion about how professionals can develop and brand themselves.

The idea for Fusion Forward was something Fusion members had talked about doing for a while, Pereira said. The group got a $3,000 grant from REALIZE! Maine, a statewide initiative that seeks to strengthen networks for young professionals.

“We realized there was a unique opportunity to help young professionals understand the job market, understand the workplace in today’s economy, in this area particularly,” Pereira said, “and understand how they can set themselves up to be successful for the long haul.”

In other Fusion news, the group is again offering its Fuse Cruise, a two-hour boat tour down the Penobscot River.

The cruise is set to leave from the Bangor Waterfront at 6 p.m. Friday, July 18, and return at 8:30 p.m. Cost is $30 per person or $50 for two people.

There will be music, free food and a cash bar. Space is limited.

To RSVP for Fusion events or for more information, go to www.fusionbangor.com or e-mail info@fusionbangor.com.

jbloch@bangordailynews.net

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