JBLM Job Fair Showcases State Employment Opportunities

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

As part of a group of about 30 task candidates, https://studentvolunteers.us/employer/animployment/ she went to a hiring fair Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career chances at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

“I simply try to take benefit of all the resources and services that the (Transition Assistance Program) Center needs to provide, just to make certain I’m as prepared as possible,” she stated.

The focus of the task fair on state employment, instead of work in numerous industries, studentvolunteers.us made it various 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, teachersconsultancy.com employers from state agencies were offered to respond to hiring concerns, said Frank Handoe, deputy transition services manager for the TAP.

Informational tables represented companies including VERG, WorkSource and Washington State’s Department of Veterans Affairs and celest-interim.fr VA Apprenticeship Program; Department of Children, Youth and Families; Department of Social and Health Services, Community Services Division; and Office of the Insurance Commissioner.

A quarterly event, the task fair is “a low-stress, low-pressure opportunity to discover what sort of opportunities exist here outside your back entrance,” said Christopher Gentz, transition services supervisor for the Directorate of Human Resources.

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

To get ready for them, “dress for success,” bring your resume and practice your elevator pitch, Gentz stated.

An elevator pitch is a “quick introduction of yourself, who you are and what you’re wanting to do,” Handoe said, discussing that the skill is taught as part of the TAP.

Among the task fair’s objectives was to help individuals discover profession chances and sowjobs.com how their abilities line up with them, Gentz said.

Education is a of participating in a job reasonable, as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP discover they’re “not ready to make that dive yet,” or they have actually seen the offered chances and decide to continue serving, Gentz said.

“We see that basically every year,” he stated. “We want them to make an educated choice about their profession.”

Part of the education piece is discovering about financial resources, including credit reports, budgets and “constructing a nest egg 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 someday,” he stated, “but while you’re in, are you doing whatever you can to prepare to get out?”

Job fairs likewise exist to assist people with networking, seeing what individuals in the outside world are searching for – consisting of certifications, accreditations and education – and finding out about their working with practices, studentvolunteers.us Handoe stated.

“You need to be doing prep work now for what it is you wish to do later down the road,” he said.

That preparation work consists of preparing for job fairs.

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

He explained that participants need to pinpoint the business they wish to speak with and research them ahead of time, to permit informed discussions with recruiters.

Nolan enjoyed the Jan. 30 task reasonable and spoke to some recruiters. A senior infotech specialist with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has actually found she wishes to serve those who serve in her upcoming civilian function.