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DECEMBER 2007 ISSUE
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Hello!
Welcome to the DECEMBER 2007 edition of
Inclusion@Work
- the eMagazine of the Oregon Business Leadership
Network.
Please be sure to share
this issue with your friends and colleagues!
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In This Issue:
OBLN's 2007 Career Fair Draws a
Strong Crowd and is a Resounding Success!
PCC Structurals, Inc. Finds Students
Well-Prepared
Nike
Does Some "Employer Branding"
Kaiser
Permanente Experiences Strong and Consistent Turnout
Hillsboro School District -
Increasing Student's Comfort Level with the World of
Work
Portland Public Schools -
Appreciation for the Variety of Companies and Jobs
For Your Calendar:
January 31, 2007
OBLN Employer Breakfast: Business Perspective on
Internships and Summer Hires
More on the OBLN
Calendar of Events... |
Lead Story:
OBLN's 2007
Career Fair - Draws a Strong Crowd and is a
Resounding Success |
"Bringing the students in for some practical “magic”
about how to look for jobs and how you need to prepare
was especially helpful. I found the job fair
participants were
much more prepared that those at many
other job fairs."- Janice
Chandler,
PCC Structurals, Inc. |
"Just exposing these students to Nike and the
possibility of employment here was so rewarding to us.
There were some great conversations there! It was a full
very full day - right through to the final
presentation."
- Cathy Redmond,
Nike |
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"From
a sourcing, recruiting, and retention standpoint, there
is tremendous opportunity for employers who establish
the infrastructure to employ people with disabilities." |
Debbie Alsop
Kaiser Permanente |
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OBLN's 2007
Career Fair Draws a Strong Crowd and is a Resounding
Success!
 On
November 13, 2007, sixteen visionary Oregon companies
and 400 eager students with disabilities were introduced
to each other through the Oregon Business Leadership
Network's first annual Career Exploration and Career
Fair - "Tapping Fresh Talent".
With the strong support and Involvement of several
other government, non-profit and business organizations
(See:
Partners), the OBLN designed the event to offer a
well-rounded experience for both the job seekers and the
exhibitors. The Fair included these five special
features:
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Student Central:
Incight organized 2 one-hour receptions for High
School Juniors and Seniors attending the Fair where
an employer panel responded to their questions, and
where they could participate in role playing on Do’s
and Don’t for presenting yourself at the Fair.
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Disability Ettiquette 101
Training: Oregon VR Services and OR Commission
for the Blind provided 10 tips on disability
etiquette for recruiters during set up in Exhibitor
Hall.
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Adaptive Tech & Universal
Design Center: The NW DBTAC/ADA Center, OR
Commission for the Blind, and PSU’s Assistive
Technology Center hosted technology and design
demonstrations throughout the Fair.
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I-Match Skills
demonstrations: The Oregon Employment
Department provided on-site demonstrations and
assistance for putting resumes into the I-Match job
matching system.
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The Affair After the
Fair: Steve Hanamura presented on “Diversity,
Disability, and the Bottom Line” for business.
The Exhibit Hall featured
recruiting and information booths from sixteen employers
and two colleges. (See:
Exhibitors)
The business sectors included retail, power, banking,
manufacturing, health care, government and services. Of
the businesses who attended:
-
50% were Sponsors of
the Fair
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100% ranked the Fair as well
organized
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100% expect to return in
future years
The 400 job seekers, of all
ages, who attended
the fair were enthusiastic and well-prepared:
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22% had a college degree or
credential
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33% were high school
students
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44% had worked 5+ years
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15% were looking for their
first jobs or internships
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47% of high school students
attending were currently working
The OBLN thanks the many
Sponsors,
Partners,
and
Exhibitors whose support and involvement contributed
so much to the success of this event.
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Our thanks to Incight for
making the Fair's Student Central so
well-organized and successful! |
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PCC Structurals, Inc. Finds Students
Well-Prepared
David
Coates is the Senior HR Manager for PCC Structurals,
Inc. His company was a Platinum level Sponsor of the Career Fair
and David explained why:
“We have been a supporter of the
OBLN for quite a while. One of the OBLN Directors, a
gentleman by the name of Bill Kemp, is a PCC employee.
Bill was injured in an accident and we made
accommodations for him to continue his employment here.
Bill continues to add value to our organization. It is
proof that the accommodation process works and it works
well. One of the staff who attended the Career Fair on
behalf of PCC Structurals is Ron Hyde. Ron was also
involved in an accident and uses a wheelchair. Both Ron
and Bill are in key roles for us. They both add value to
our organization. So, why wouldn’t we consider other
people with disabilities as employees? When we were
invited to attend the Career Fair, it was a very easy
decision to make.”
 Janice
Chandler is the Human Resources Manager at the Deer
Creek Facility of PCC Structurals Inc. Janice was
instrumental in pulling her company’s team together to
attend the career fair and staff the Exhibit Booth.
“Just like we do so at other job
Fairs, we collected resumes and talked with people about
potential jobs with PCC here in Portland. We always need
good people. One of our employees, William Kemp, is on
the OBLN Board of Directors and we were especially
honored to help Sponsor and develop this event.
I have been in Human Resources
for almost twenty years and I have been to a lot of job
fairs in a lot of different places. This one was
extremely well done. Bringing the students in for some
practical “magic” about how to look for jobs and how you
need to prepare was especially helpful. I found the job
fair participants were much more prepared that those at
many other job fairs.
There were a lot of high school
students. In our particular business, we can’t hire
people younger than 18 tears old. But even those younger
students still had a really valuable experience. They
were well-prepared, well-spoken, well-versed in how to
conduct themselves, and they asked us good questions.
There were three of us from PCC
Structurals at our exhibit booth. We had hundreds of
folks come to see us. It was all we could do just to
handle the numbers of people that showed up. My two
confederates had never worked a job fair and they were
stunned at how busy and how active it was.
No seasoned Human Resources
person would have surmised that this was a first-time
event. Things were handled very well, done very well,
and presented very well – and we couldn’t have asked for
a better attendance.”
Visit the website of
PCC Structurals Inc.
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Nike Does Some "Employer Branding"
Cathy
Redmond is the Staffing Director – Diversity Programs
for Nike. Nike was a Platinum level Sponsor of the Fair
and Cathy participated in the Career Fair from start
to finish – from the Employer Panel in the morning to
the presentation and reception in the evening.
“Our main reason for being
involved with the OBLN’s Career Fair was do some
employer branding with people with disabilities – to let
them know that they should think about Nike as a place
to work and to let them know what our process is, so
they will be more knowledgeable about how to apply for
positions here. Our involvement really evolved through
our employee affinity group - the Disabled Employees
Network (DEN). They began the relationship with the OBLN
and they brought the Career Fair to our attention in
Diversity Staffing. We decided to partner with DEN to
sponsor and participate in the event.
 I
sat in on the first panel discussion, I worked our booth
at the Career Fair and came back later for Steve
Hanamura’s presentation. I met some great partners that
I can do some professional networking with and discuss
some best practices. I anticipate that, going forward,
we will have an even more enhanced relationship with the
OBLN.
The Career Fair was such a great
exposure for my team. Our booth had a good flow of
students and they asked good questions. The students had
varied levels of abilities. Those with hearing
impairments came with interpreters. Others came with
counselors or family members to assist them in speaking
with the employers. They were well-prepared. While we
only gathered a few resumes, the flow was good and the
people were interested.
While we brought information
about job opportunities, we also brought information
about Nike as a place that current students might
eventually want to work. In response to their questions,
we let them know the many different kinds of jobs,
besides marketing and retail, which are part of our
everyday business. Just exposing these students to Nike
and the possibility of employment here was so rewarding
to us. There were some great conversations there!
We had such a great time. For a
first-time around, the OBLN did a great job. The Fair
was well-attended. There was something special for both
the attendees and the participants. It was casual enough
that all who attended felt comfortable. It was very
informative. It was a full very full day - right through
to the final presentation by Steve Hanamura and the
reception afterwards.”
Visit the website of
Nike
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Kaiser Permanente Experiences
Strong and Consistent Turnout
Debbie
Alsop is a Health Care Recruiter with Kaiser Permanente.
Her company was a Silver level Sponsor of the Career Fair and
Debbie both staffed the Exhibit
Booth and presented on one of the Employer Panels.
 “We
fielded questions from the group of students who are
soon going to be out seeking jobs – giving them our
advice on what is going to make them successful in their
endeavors. I was able to share what I did as I built my
career some of the important things I learned along the
way. One of the hardest things for students is to know
is just how many employment opportunities are out there
in the workforce. Once you get into the workplace you
encounter opportunities you never expected and you can
begin to mold your career and education around the job
opportunities that you want to pursue.
All of us on the panel had a
different experience in building our careers. I think it
was helpful for the students to hear the message that
everybody is different, that whatever you want is
achievable, and that even if your career goal changes,
it is also achievable.
Other than questions about
accessibility in the workplace, we didn’t have to temper
our comments in any way in the context of the students’
disabilities. For the most part, I was giving the same
advice that I would give to any student who was asking
the same questions. I think this is indicative of the
“seamlessness” that there should be for students with
disabilities entering the workforce. If they are
applying for a position and able to perform the assigned
tasks, it should be just a matter of putting in an
accommodation here or there and enabling them to be just
as successful as anyone else.
In my opinion, people with
disabilities are a largely untapped piece of our
workforce. It is sad that so many employable people are
unemployed right now. There is so much talent there and
in a time
 when
we are essentially in a talent war. From a sourcing,
recruiting, and retention standpoint, there is
tremendous opportunity for employers who establish the
infrastructure to employ people with disabilities. This
Career Fair helps to build that awareness for employers
as it helps young people with disabilities who are just
starting out on their career paths.
I also staffed our Exhibit
Booth. It was phenomenal. We had a strong and consistent
turnout. It was exciting to have such a response. Often
we will go to a job fair and have a poor turnout, but
this one kept us very busy. There were three of us at
the Kaiser booth and we were all constantly in
conversations. In addition to speaking directly with
students, we were able to build networks with
organizations that represent people with disabilities.
It was fabulous. I was so impressed by all the thought
and effort that went into the entire event. It was
really exciting to be able to participate in it. The
closing presentation, by Steve Hanamura, was a really
nice conclusion to a very special day.”
 Barbara
Dirks is a Diversity Consultant with Kaiser Permanente.
She is also one of the co-chairs of Kaiser Permanente’s
People with Disabilities Staff Association and has a
keen interest in employment for people with disabilities
within Kaiser. She learned about the Career Fair from
the OBLN eMagazine and saw the Career Fair as a way for
Kaiser to get more involved with this issue. Along with
two other Kaiser Permanente employees, she staffed
Kaiser’s exhibit booth.
“I thought it was very
well-attended and exciting. While I was at our both,
there was a constant flow of students and other
interested people coming to our table. It was a great
way for the students to see what kinds of employers are
out there and what kind of job needs they have. It would
be wonderful to see this event spur them on to further
their education.”
Visit the website of
Kaiser Permanente
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Hillsboro School District
- Increasing Student's Comfort Level with the World of
Work
Sally
Pettitt and Marcie Zinger are Youth Transition
Specialists with the Hillsboro School District. As part
of Oregon’s Youth Transition Program they work with
students with disabilities from four different high
schools. Sally and Marcie accompanied two students to
the event. Both students have graduated from high school
but have yet to find jobs.
Sally
Pettitt : “I enjoyed the Employer Panel the
most. The employers talked about the importance of
employment skills – issues like being persistent and
showing up on time. A
 lot
of what was said was what we have already told our
students, but it is always good for them to get the same
message from another source. Also, when they spoke about
their individual career journeys and how they got to
where they are, the students learned that you don’t just
get your dream job right out of high school. You have to
work at it.
Our students enjoyed going
around and talking with the employers. The employers
took their time and showed real interest in the
students. Any time one of our kids can speak directly to
an employer it increases their comfort level about the
world of work. “
Marcie
Zinger: “What the panelists had to say about
internships, work experiences, and what they look for in
an employee was very beneficial for our students. The
employers’ attitudes showed that they were really
interested in hiring students with disabilities and very
willing to help with accommodations.
Seeing the various kinds of
companies that were at the booths and the variety of
jobs that are available was also valuable. The
experience of watching students with similar or even
more severe disabilities and interacting and responding
to employers was really helpful to our students. We
encouraged them to interact with the employers – to ask
them for their business cards, to ask questions about
their companies and the kinds of entry level jobs that
they have available. Any communication they can have now
with employers will help them feel more comfortable when
they later go for interviews or have to speak with their
bosses on the job.
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Portland Public Schools -
Appreciation for the Variety of Companies and Jobs
Rachael
Hermans is a Transition Teacher with Portland Public
Schools. She took about twelve transition-aged students
to the Career Fair.
“I accompanied our students
through the fair and, if I was needed, helped facilitate
conversations with the employers. I really appreciated
the variety of companies and jobs that were represented
at the fair. All of our students found at least one
employer that they were interested in and were able to
get information about. I also really appreciated how the
employers in the booths spoke directly to the students
and provided them with so much information. We came back
with a lot of materials that we could then follow up
with by researching those employers on the Internet."
Read more about the transition program of
Portland Public Schools
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The Oregon Business Leadership Network
Oregon's business forum on inclusion of people with
disabilities
in the competitive workplace and as consumers.
www.obln.org
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