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 preparing for the transition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
As part of a group of about 30 task applicants, she attended a hiring reasonable Jan. 30 that State profession opportunities at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.
“I simply try to take advantage of all the resources and services that the (Transition Assistance Program) Center needs to use, just to ensure I’m as prepared as possible,” she said.
The focus of the job fair on state work, rather than work in various industries, made it different than others on the setup. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, WorkSource and the TAP, it started with a panel of veterans from state firms, who shared their experiences and responded to concerns. Following the panel, recruiters from state companies were offered to address hiring questions, stated Frank Handoe, deputy transition services supervisor for the TAP.
Informational tables represented companies including VERG, WorkSource and Washington State’s Department of Veterans Affairs and 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 occasion, the task fair is “a low-stress, low-pressure chance to discover out what sort of opportunities exist here outside your back entrance,” stated Christopher Gentz, transition services supervisor for the Directorate of Human Resources.
Additional task fairs like the Jan. 30 occasion will be held May 8, July 10 and Sept. 11.
To get ready for them, “gown for success,” bring your resume and practice your elevator pitch, Gentz said.
An elevator pitch is a “fast introduction of yourself, who you are and what you’re aiming to do,” Handoe said, discussing that the ability is taught as part of the TAP.
Among the task fair’s goals was to assist people learn more about profession chances and how their abilities align with them, Gentz stated.
Education is an essential advantage of going to a task fair, as about 40% of those who start with the TAP learn they’re “not prepared to make that dive yet,” or they have actually seen the available chances and decide to continue serving, Gentz said.
“We see that basically every year,” he stated. “We want them to make an informed choice about their profession.”
Part of the education piece is discovering financial resources, consisting of credit reports, budget plans and “constructing a savings so you have something to deal with when it’s time to go out,” Handoe said.
“Everybody’s going to get out of the Army someday,” he said, “but while you’re in, are you doing whatever you can to prepare to get out?”
Job fairs also exist to assist people with networking, seeing what people in the outdoors world are trying to find – consisting of certifications, accreditations and education – and learning more about their working with practices, referall.us Handoe said.
“You should be doing prep work now for what it is you wish to do later on down the roadway,” he said.
That preparation work includes preparing for job fairs.
“You require to enter into a working with reasonable with a plan of what you’re going to do and not simply meander around,” Handoe stated.
He explained that attendees need to pinpoint the business they desire to talk with and research them ahead of time, to permit for informed discussions with recruiters.
Nolan took pleasure in the Jan. 30 task reasonable and consulted with some employers. A senior information innovation specialist with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has actually found she wants to serve those who serve in her approaching civilian function.