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, teachersconsultancy.com and she’s preparing for the transition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

As part of a group of about 30 job candidates, she participated in an employing fair Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career opportunities at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

“I just try 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 stated.

The focus of the job fair on state work, rather than employment in numerous industries, made it various than others on the setup. 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 . Following the panel, recruiters from state companies were offered to answer employing concerns, recrutamentotvde.pt stated Frank Handoe, deputy transition services manager for the TAP.

Informational tables represented organizations 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 opportunity to discover what sort of chances exist here outside your back door,” said Christopher Gentz, shift services manager 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 stated.

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

Among the job fair’s goals was to assist people find out about career opportunities and how their abilities align with them, Gentz said.

Education is an essential advantage of going to a task reasonable, as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP learn they’re “not all set to make that dive yet,” or they have actually seen the offered opportunities and choose to continue serving, Gentz said.

“We see that essentially every year,” he stated. “We want them to make an informed choice about their career.”

Part of the education piece is learning more about finances, consisting of credit reports, spending plans and “building a nest egg so you have something to deal with when it’s time to go out,” Handoe stated.

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

Job fairs also exist to help individuals with networking, seeing what individuals in the outside world are trying to find – consisting of accreditations, accreditations and education – and discovering their working with practices, Handoe stated.

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

That preparation work includes getting ready for job fairs.

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

He discussed that participants should determine the companies they wish to talk with and celest-interim.fr research them ahead of time, to allow for informed conversations with employers.

Nolan took pleasure in the Jan. 30 job fair and spoke with some recruiters. A senior infotech expert with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has actually discovered she wishes to serve those who serve in her upcoming civilian function.