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 job hunters, she attended a Jan. 30 that showcased Washington State profession opportunities at JBLM’s Hawk Career Center.

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

The focus of the job fair on state work, rather than work in different markets, made it various than others on the setup. Sponsored by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, WorkSource and the TAP, it started with a panel of veterans from state agencies, who shared their experiences and responded to questions. Following the panel, employers from state firms were available to answer working with concerns, said Frank Handoe, deputy shift services supervisor for the TAP.

Informational tables represented companies 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 event, the task fair is “a low-stress, low-pressure opportunity to discover what type of chances exist here outside 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 practice your elevator pitch, Gentz stated.

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

One of the task fair’s goals was to help individuals discover about profession chances and how their skills line up with them, Gentz stated.

Education is an essential benefit of participating in a task reasonable, referall.us as about 40% of those who begin with the TAP learn they’re “not all set to make that dive yet,” or they have actually seen the available opportunities 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 discovering finances, including credit reports, spending plans and “building 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 help people with networking, seeing what people in the outside world are searching for – consisting of accreditations, accreditations and schooling – and finding out about their hiring practices, Handoe stated.

“You ought to be doing prep work now for what it is you desire to do in the future down the roadway,” he said.

That prep work consists of preparing for task fairs.

“You need to go into an employing fair with a strategy of what you’re going to do and not just meander around,” Handoe said.

He described that participants ought to pinpoint the business they desire to speak to and research study them ahead of time, to enable informed discussions with recruiters.

Nolan enjoyed the Jan. 30 job fair and spoke with some employers. A senior infotech professional with the 16th Combat Aviation Unit, she has actually discovered she wishes to serve those who serve in her upcoming civilian role.