Overview
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Founded Date November 12, 1915
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Specializations Leadership
Company Description
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 employment the shift at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
As part of a group of about 30 job hunters, she attended a hiring fair Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career 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 offer, simply to make certain I’m as prepared as possible,” she stated.
The focus of the job fair on state employment, instead of work in different markets, made it various than others on the setup. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, employment WorkSource and the TAP, it started with a panel of veterans from state companies, who shared their experiences and answered concerns. Following the panel, employment employers from state agencies were offered to answer working with questions, employment said Frank Handoe, deputy shift services supervisor for the TAP.
Informational tables represented organizations including VERG, employment 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 find out what kind of opportunities exist here outside your back entrance,” said 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 said.
An elevator pitch is a “quick introduction of yourself, who you are and what you’re wanting to do,” Handoe stated, discussing that the ability is taught as part of the TAP.
One of the job fair’s goals was to help individuals find out about career opportunities and how their abilities line up with them, Gentz said.
Education is a key advantage of going to a task reasonable, as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP discover they’re “not all set to make that jump yet,” or they have seen the available chances and choose to continue serving, Gentz said.
“We see that basically every year,” he stated. “We want them to make an educated choice about their career.”
Part of the education piece is finding out about finances, including credit reports, employment budget plans and “developing a nest egg so you have something to deal with when it’s time to get out,” Handoe stated.
“Everybody’s going to get out of the Army one day,” he said, “however while you’re in, are you doing everything you can to prepare to go out?”
Job fairs also exist to help people with networking, seeing what individuals in the outdoors world are looking for – consisting of accreditations, employment accreditations and and discovering their hiring practices, Handoe stated.
“You need to be doing prep work now for what it is you desire to do later on down the road,” he said.
That preparation work consists of getting ready for job fairs.
“You need to enter into a hiring fair with a strategy of what you’re going to do and not just meander around,” Handoe said.
He explained that participants must determine the companies they wish to speak to and research them ahead of time, to enable educated conversations with employers.
Nolan took pleasure in the Jan. 30 task reasonable and spoke with some recruiters. A senior information technology professional with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has found she wishes to serve those who serve in her upcoming civilian role.