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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 job hunters, she attended a hiring reasonable Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State career chances at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

“I just attempt to make the most of all the resources and services that the (Transition Assistance Program) Center has to provide, just to make sure I’m as prepared as possible,” she stated.

The focus of the task fair on state employment, instead of employment in numerous markets, made it different than others on the installation. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, WorkSource and the TAP, it started with a panel of veterans from state firms, who shared their experiences and addressed questions. Following the panel, recruiters from state companies were offered to answer hiring concerns, stated Frank Handoe, employment deputy transition services supervisor 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 employment 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 kind of chances exist here outdoors your back door,” said Christopher Gentz, shift services manager for the Directorate of Human Resources.

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

To get ready for them, “dress for success,” bring your resume and employment practice your elevator pitch, Gentz said.

An elevator pitch is a “fast introduction of yourself, who you are and what you’re wanting to do,” Handoe stated, employment discussing that the ability is taught as part of the TAP.

Among the task fair’s objectives was to help people find out about career chances and how their skills line up with them, Gentz said.

Education is a crucial benefit of attending a job fair, as about 40% of those who start with the TAP learn they’re “not ready to make that jump yet,” or they have seen the offered chances and choose to continue serving, Gentz stated.

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

Part of the education piece is learning about financial resources, consisting of credit reports, budgets and “constructing a nest egg so you have something to work with when it’s time to get out,” Handoe said.

“Everybody’s going to get out of the Army one day,” he stated, “however while you’re in, are you doing whatever you can to prepare to get out?”

Job fairs also exist to assist individuals with networking, seeing what people in the outside world are searching for – including certifications, accreditations and education – and discovering their employing practices, Handoe stated.

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

That prep work includes getting ready for job fairs.

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

He described that attendees ought to determine the companies they wish to speak to and research them ahead of time, to permit informed discussions with .

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