Managers and executives who have fallen victim to the recession are fighting back after being made redundant by joining forces in an exciting new initiative to help each other get back on the career ladder.

The unemployed former high-fliers are sharing their experience and expertise, often gained during many years in senior management, to find ways to get back into work.

They include a helicopter pilot whose passengers have included Prime Minister David Cameron and members of the Saudi royal family.

Employment experts Pertemps People Development Group (PPDG) have launched the Executive Job Club in Tamworth, Staffordshire. It has been so successful the company is now considering extending the initiative to other areas across Staffordshire, Birmingham, Coventry and further afield.

Several PPDG clients have found new jobs thanks to the scheme and they are now looking for opportunities for their new employers to recruit other members of the club.

The PPDG Tamworth Executive Job Club is co-ordinated by employment coach Chris Sly. He said: "The idea is to help executives and people who have had jobs at management level to find employment at a similar level. It has really snowballed since its launch and we are now looking to work alongside business organisations such as the Round Table, Business Link and the Chamber of Commerce.

"The members are job-searching together and networking online with potential employers through sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Linked-In."

Nigel Howard, a client who secured employment with computer giant IBM recently, is social networking secretary of the club and is planning to give a talk on how to harness the power of the internet for executive job search.

A monthly breakfast networking meeting is staged and guest speakers are invited to address members on employment and business topics. The next meeting will take place at PPDG's Tamworth offices at 8am on December 6.

Speaker will be former PPDG client Peter Holland who secured a job as sales and marketing manager at cloud computing company Cnap. His wife Lynn, another former club member, has begun working as a training manager.

Chris added: "The club seems to have captured the imagination of the members who are driving it forward themselves and developing ideas, with advice from PPDG and free use of all facilities such as computers, business stationery and IT equipment. They are using their initiative and are motivating each other. Members are reminded that they are not alone in a very difficult economic climate and are regaining confidence by working together, sharing contacts and supporting each other as a team. Even those that have secured jobs are coming back to help those still searching for work.

"From a very encouraging start, and the support of a great team at Tamworth PPDG, the Executive Job Club is going from strength to strength. We aim to get the local community and influential organisations fully involved to build a successful business model which can be rolled out nationally.

"The maximisation of PPDG's expertise and resources, along with the use of networking IT sites, gives enormous potential to the project. We look forward to many more successful PPDG executive customers gaining employment and returning to us as visiting speakers." 

PPDG delivers the Government's Welfare to Work strategy across the Midlands through Flexible New Deal, Work Focused Training and other employment initiatives. PPDG is using its vast experience of helping long-term unemployed people get back into work to help local jobseekers secure employment opportunities.

PPDG's team of employment experts provide advice on benefits, confidence building, one-to-one support, CV and interview preparation as well as finding the right job or training course. In partnership with DWP, the Ministry of Justice and Jobcentre Plus, PPDG delivers a diverse range of employment and training initiatives including Flexible New Deal, Working Neighbourhoods Fund, Learndirect and many ESF funded programmes.

More than 100,000 job seekers have been helped into sustained employment by the company since the projects began.  It has trained 130,000 people in vocational skills, and over 175,000 people have benefitted from professional information, advice and guidance services.