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 hunters, she participated in a working with reasonable Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career chances at JBLM’s Hawk .

„I simply attempt to make the most 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 stated.

The focus of the task fair on state employment, instead of employment in different industries, made it various than others on the installation. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, employment WorkSource and the TAP, it began with a panel of veterans from state companies, who shared their experiences and answered concerns. Following the panel, employers from state firms were readily available to answer employing concerns, said Frank Handoe, deputy shift services manager for the TAP.

Informational tables represented companies 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, employment the job fair is „a low-stress, low-pressure opportunity to discover out what type of opportunities exist here outside your back door,“ stated Christopher Gentz, shift services manager for the Directorate of Human Resources.

Additional job fairs like the Jan. 30 event 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 „fast introduction of yourself, who you are and what you’re seeking to do,“ Handoe stated, discussing that the ability is taught as part of the TAP.

Among the job fair’s goals was to assist people learn about career chances and how their abilities line up with them, Gentz said.

Education is a crucial benefit of participating in a task reasonable, as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP learn they’re „not prepared to make that dive 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 desire them to make an educated decision about their career.“

Part of the education piece is finding out about financial resources, consisting of credit reports, budget plans and „building a nest egg 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 someday,“ he stated, „but while you remain in, are you doing everything you can to prepare to go out?“

Job fairs also exist to help individuals with networking, seeing what individuals in the outside world are looking for – consisting of accreditations, accreditations and employment schooling – and discovering about their working with practices, Handoe stated.

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

That prep work includes preparing for task fairs.

„You require to enter into a hiring reasonable with a strategy of what you’re going to do and not just meander around,“ Handoe stated.

He explained that guests ought to determine the business they wish to talk to and research them ahead of time, to permit for educated conversations with recruiters.

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