Employment Training Works!
- April 2010
By Jim Rundlett, Guest ContributorShare:  
April 19, 2010 —
Employment Resource Services - A reliable haven in an uncertain job market
Note from the publisher: "Employment Training Works!" is a new monthly feature in the Latter-day Sentinel focusing on programs offered by the local office of LDS Employment Services. This month's installment provides an overview of the organization by Jim Rundlett, a volunteer at the agency.
For over three decades and through a variety of economic climates, Spokane LDS Employment Resource Services has been assisting church members and non-members in the Spokane area.
In addition to providing job referrals, the office provides resume writing assistance, counseling, career workshops, self-employment training, career fairs, and entrepreneurial seminars - all with a staff of two professionals and a rotating staff of employment missionaries.
Ron Buchanan and Sherrie Hibberd are the glue that holds this operation together. Ron spends a great deal of time on the road. In addition to nine local stakes in Northern Idaho and Eastern Washington, his territory also includes additional stakes in Alaska, Western Montana, Central Washington and the Hermiston Stake in Oregon. He also oversees volunteer offices, staffed by employment missionaries, in Anchorage, Coeur d'Alene, Kennewick, Moses Lake, Missoula, Moscow, Sandpoint and Yakima. With Ron's schedule, vehicles and suitcases don't last long.
Sherrie does much more than "just mind the store" at the main office in the Spokane Valley while Ron is on the road. The job of training missionaries is a constant task, as are duties like counseling, teaching career workshops, problem solving, cajoling and recruiting new employment missionaries. In her spare time, Sherrie is the driving force behind the BYU Management scholarship program which provides college funds for return missionaries and LDS students.
The most enduring endorsements of Ron and Sherrie's work are the missionaries who continue to volunteer in the employment program long after their mission has been completed.
The office at 200 North Mullan Road in Spokane Valley is a hub of activity. Each Monday the Professional Networking Group, currently hosted by John Thomfohrd, meets in the classroom. Networking is the key to a good job search. While enjoying a "bring your own brown bag" lunch, professionals from many fields catch up on business trends and share information on job openings. When available, human resource professionals and business executives provide insight on how their companies operate and recruit.
Career Workshop, which is presented twice each month, is the class that should be a required part of every high school and college curriculum. Knowing how to do the job is fine - knowing how to convince an interviewer that you can do the job is better. Imparting the ability to present your job skills and the added value that you will bring to an employer is the emphasis of Career Workshop. This two-day class will help you change your answer to the question of "Tell me about yourself" from a hesitant reply to a concise statement of your value to the organization. You will also be able to present your accomplishments from a "How I can add value to your business" perspective.
Most of us suffer from stage fright. In addition, we are unsure as to how we come across in an interview. Do we have annoying mannerisms; do we know how to conduct ourselves or how to dress for an interview? These are all points that we never think about until we actually view ourselves. The opportunity to be critiqued on your interview skills in a nonthreatening atmosphere is beyond price.
Speaking of price, an executive, whose employer provided an outplacement service as part of his termination package, reported that the class which they provided was not nearly as good as Career Workshop and, in addition, cost the employer $5000.
Your employment counselor, either your ward employment specialist or one of the office's employment missionaries, may recommend that you attend Carol Janiga and Barbara Thomfohrd's Resume Workshop. Resumes are like cars; we think that the old car is just fine until we start kicking tires. The old resume still looks fine and we really do not have any way to kick the tires - unless we consider a lack of interviews. The smart candidate gets their resume tuned up before putting it on the road. Resume Workshop is held every Thursday, but only if there are enough candidates signed up. As with Career Workshop you must call to reserve a seat.
This only covers the tip of the iceberg. Self-employment workshops, job fairs, entrepreneurial training, portfolio presentations, educational funding seminars and many other activities will be covered in detail as part of a continuing series of "Employment Training Works!" columns to be featured in future editions of Latter-day Sentinel.
To contact the Employment Resource Services office, call 509-928-2534.
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