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 shift at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

As part of a group of about 30 task seekers, she went to a hiring reasonable Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career chances 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 provide, just to make certain I’m as prepared as possible,“ she said.

The focus of the task fair on state employment, rather than employment in numerous markets, made it different 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 employment answered questions. Following the panel, recruiters from state firms were available to address hiring questions, employment said Frank Handoe, deputy transition services supervisor 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 job fair is „a low-stress, low-pressure opportunity to discover what kind of opportunities exist here outside your back entrance,“ said Christopher Gentz, transition services manager for employment the Directorate of Human Resources.

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

To prepare for them, „gown for success,“ bring your resume and practice your elevator pitch, employment Gentz said.

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

One of the task fair’s objectives was to help people discover career chances and how their skills align with them, Gentz said.

Education is a crucial advantage of attending a task reasonable, as about 40% of those who start with the TAP learn they’re „not all set to make that jump yet,“ or they have actually seen the offered chances and choose to continue serving, Gentz said.

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

Part of the education piece is learning more about finances, of credit reports, budgets and „developing a savings so you have something to deal with when it’s time to get out,“ Handoe said.

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

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

„You need to be doing prep work now for what it is you desire to do in the future down the roadway,“ he stated.

That prep work includes getting ready for employment job fairs.

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

He described that guests must pinpoint the companies they want to consult with and research study them ahead of time, to enable educated discussions with recruiters.

Nolan enjoyed the Jan. 30 job reasonable and spoke to some recruiters. A senior employment infotech expert with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has actually found she wants to serve those who serve in her approaching civilian function.