JBLM Job Fair Showcases State Employment Opportunities

JOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD, Wash. – Staff Sergeant Danika Nolan’s military exit date is a couple of weeks away, and she’s getting ready for the transition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

As part of a group of about 30 task seekers, she attended a hiring fair Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State profession opportunities at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

“I just attempt to make the most of all the resources and services that the (Transition Assistance Program) Center needs to use, simply to ensure I’m as prepared as possible,” she said.

The focus of the job fair on state employment, rather than employment in numerous industries, made it different than others on the installation. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, WorkSource and the TAP, it began with a panel of veterans from state firms, who shared their experiences and responded to concerns. Following the panel, recruiters from state agencies were available to answer employing questions, said Frank Handoe, deputy shift services supervisor for the TAP.

Informational tables represented companies consisting of VERG, WorkSource and Washington State’s Department of Veterans Affairs and VA Apprenticeship Program; Department of Children, Youth and hornyofficebabes.com/archive/indian-office-porn/ Families; Department of Social and Health Services, Community Services Division; and studentvolunteers.us Office of the Insurance Commissioner.

A quarterly occasion, celest-interim.fr the job fair is “a low-stress, low-pressure opportunity to discover what sort of opportunities exist here outside your back door,” said Christopher Gentz, shift services supervisor for the Directorate of Human Resources.

fairs like the Jan. 30 event will be held May 8, July 10 and Sept. 11.

To prepare for [empty] them, “gown for success,” bring your resume and practice your elevator pitch, Gentz stated.

An elevator pitch is a “fast intro of yourself, who you are and what you’re aiming to do,” Handoe said, mentioning that the skill is taught as part of the TAP.

Among the job fair’s goals was to help individuals find out about career opportunities and how their abilities line up with them, Gentz said.

Education is an essential benefit of attending a task fair, as about 40% of those who start with the TAP learn they’re “not all set to make that jump yet,” or they have seen the readily available opportunities and decide to continue serving, Gentz said.

“We see that generally every year,” he said. “We desire them to make an informed choice about their profession.”

Part of the education piece is finding out about finances, consisting of credit reports, budgets and “constructing a savings so you have something to work with when it’s time to get out,” Handoe stated.

“Everybody’s going to get out of the Army at some point,” he said, “however while you remain in, are you doing whatever you can to prepare to go out?”

Job fairs likewise exist to help individuals with networking, seeing what individuals in the outdoors world are looking for – consisting of certifications, accreditations and education – and studentvolunteers.us finding out about their hiring practices, Handoe stated.

“You must be doing prep work now for what it is you desire to do later on down the roadway,” he stated.

That prep work consists of preparing for job fairs.

“You require to go into an employing reasonable with a strategy of what you’re going to do and not just meander around,” Handoe said.

He explained that attendees ought to determine the business they want to speak to and research study them ahead of time, to enable educated conversations with employers.

Nolan enjoyed the Jan. 30 job reasonable and talked to some employers. A senior infotech expert with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has discovered she wishes to serve those who serve in her upcoming civilian role.