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 preparing for the transition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

As part of a group of about 30 task applicants, she participated in an employing fair Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State profession chances at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

“I just attempt to benefit from all the resources and services that the (Transition Assistance Program) Center needs to use, just to make certain I’m as prepared as possible,” she stated.

The focus of the job fair on state work, instead of work in numerous industries, made it different than others on the setup. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, WorkSource and cn.wejob.info the TAP, it began with a panel of veterans from state firms, who shared their experiences and answered concerns. Following the panel, employers from state firms were available to respond to working with questions, stated Frank Handoe, deputy shift services manager for the TAP.

Informational tables consisting of 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 out what type of opportunities exist here outdoors your back door,” said 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 [empty] practice your elevator pitch, Gentz stated.

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

Among the task fair’s objectives was to help individuals discover about profession opportunities and how their skills align with them, Gentz stated.

Education is a crucial advantage of going to a task reasonable, as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP discover they’re “not ready to make that jump yet,” or they have actually seen the available chances and choose to continue serving, Gentz said.

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

Part of the education piece is finding out about financial resources, consisting of credit reports, budget plans and “developing a savings 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 sooner or later,” he said, “but while you’re in, are you doing whatever you can to prepare to go out?”

Job fairs also exist to assist individuals with networking, seeing what people in the outside world are looking for – consisting of accreditations, dessinateurs-projeteurs.com accreditations and education – and learning more about their working with practices, Handoe stated.

“You ought to be doing prep work now for what it is you wish to do in the future down the road,” he stated.

That prep work consists of getting ready for job fairs.

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

He discussed that guests ought to identify the companies they wish to speak with and research them ahead of time, to permit for educated conversations with recruiters.

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