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2010 IN REVIEW – A LOOK BACK!
Well, another year has come and gone and we find ourselves wondering where the time went! I'm sure you will agree that being busy and working hard certainly makes the days pass quickly – but where did 2010 go?
I have been busy looking for 2010 for a few days now and I have made some interesting discoveries. I found a bit of 2010 in South Carolina where four new Inverness trainers delivered our first TAP workshops there and continue to do a wonderful job. Then I got another glimpse of 2010 in, of all places, NSA Bahrain. There was Inverness facilitator, Katy Turnbaugh leading a workshop full of sailors and making all of us proud. I turned around and saw another piece of 2010 in GA and TN where we delivered our first ever stand alone TAP workshops specifically for our deserving National Guard and Reserve members! Out West we added two new workshop sites in CO and are gearing up to provide TAP Workshop support at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO. Marjorie Love moved to Naples, Italy and now manages the Overseas TAP program just a hop, skip and a jump from all of our exciting overseas locations! Inverness managers traveled throughout Germany, the UK, Italy, Bahrain, Turkey, Japan, and Korea this past year to observe our wonderfully multi-talented team of overseas TAP facilitators!
In 2010, we delivered nearly 1500 TAP Workshops in CONUS and overseas at more than 100 military installations. Approximately 38,000 participants attended an Inverness delivered TAP workshop this past year to outstanding reviews. These are remarkable numbers and we are very grateful for all the hard work that makes each of these events so successful.
As one year ends and another begins it is the perfect time to thank each and every one of you for all you have done for Inverness, and more importantly, for our TAP participants this past year. This also gives me the opportunity to look forward to the challenges each New Year brings. We expect 2011 to be interesting, eventful, rewarding and yes - challenging. We continue to increase our workload with more and more TAP workshops coming our way. This is wonderful news for us and, we believe, for the TAP participants! You, our facilitators do such a remarkable job with each workshop and we are excited to have the opportunity to deliver more of them to an even larger population. You really make a difference and it shows in the effort each of you puts forth in the classroom; and it's well documented in the critiques and evaluations we receive after each workshop.
We are blessed to have jobs that are meaningful and important. Further, the work you all do can be, and often is, life-changing for the people attending our workshops. What job could be better than one that allows us to share what we know and help others find success? We are indeed, fortunate.
In this newsletter we have featured the following which I know you will find very interesting:
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Hiring Military Spouses - It's Great Business! |
| v | America’s Heroes At Work – On-Line Toolkit |
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Photo Gallery from Around the World! |
Indeed, flashes of 2010 are all around me and will remain with me. Let's resolve to have an even better 2011!
Many thanks for a great year and best wishes for a wonderful, safe and fulfilling 2011! Happy New Year!
With warm regards,
Diane
In this issue:
Helpful Links:
INVERNESS GIVES BACK!
Thanks to those of you who gave such generous contributions to support these wonderful charities!
HIRING MILITARY SPOUSES – IT'S GREAT BUSINESS!
While Military Spouse Appreciation Day is not formally recognized until May, Inverness Technologies is delighted and thankful that work within the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) provides outstanding opportunities for military spouses to find or continue employment as TAP Facilitators as they travel around the world with their service member families.
Military and Federal employee spouses have been able to effectively leverage their education, vast work and life experiences, knowledge of local and international job markets and, perhaps most significantly, their understanding of and appreciation for the military lifestyle to make a real difference in the transition of our TAP participant population - which includes military spouses! 95% of our TAP facilitators and management team are either veterans or spouses of veterans. This has given Inverness a tremendous edge in the level of expertise, training capabilities, and hands-on transition experience we can share with our participants. So... let's take a look at the value proposition that military and federal employee spouses bring to the workplace.
Though this may be a "buyer's market" in terms of employment (more candidates than open positions, giving the edge to employers) the challenges many employers still face include finding the right fit, matching that fit with the required talent, and harnessing a work ethic that gives the organization a competitive advantage. Military spouses are especially well positioned to help employers satisfy their hiring needs. After all, military spouses tend to be, by virtue of their life experiences and choices, dedicated, flexible, dependable, mature and organized. As the Military Spouse Career Network (MSCN) put it several years ago, military spouses possess "...unique skills cultivated by the rigors of military family life." What employer isn't looking for these very traits when reviewing resumes, conducting interviews and making important hiring decisions?
Military spouses bring an unusual and varied array of talent, background and wisdom to the workplace. Many hold undergraduate, advanced, and professional degrees or possess critical certifications. Further, many military spouses offer a variety of language skills, often having served the nation all over the world. Military spouses form a unique candidate pool of potential employees that one would be hard pressed to duplicate with any other demographic in society.
When it comes to effectively dealing with change; the MSCN got it right when they suggested that Military Spouses are Change Masters. They go on to say:
"The unique nature of military family life demands that spouses remain ready to adapt and adjust to change. Accordingly, military spouses develop coping mechanisms for dealing with and adapting to change. These skills are an asset in the workplace. It is said that in business today, the only constant is change. Those who have developed within themselves the capacity to function in the midst of change are the employees on whom you can depend during turbulent times. Change, instability, ambiguity - they can turn an organization upside down and create chaos. But those who can continue to function, those who thrive on change - they produce and they can lead, as they adapt and adjust to accommodate the changing environment. Diverse experiences across multiple industries throughout the United States and around the world are just a few more attributes that the military spouse brings to the workplace."
According to a 2008 Department of Defense spouse survey, 77% of active duty service member spouses are either employed or seeking employment. A survey conducted by the National Military Family Association confirms these statistics and families tell us that they want more than a job to pay the bills; they also want to be able to continue their professional career development. With this type of awareness, many federal and private sector initiatives have been developed over the past few years that can impact military spouses’ abilities to start and maintain careers of their own and still be "married to the military."
The Military Spouse Preference (MSP) Program* is the DoD initiative created to reap the maximum benefit of hiring military spouses - the benefit is twofold, of course; helping the spouse and his or her family with additional employment while also benefiting the organization that hires the spouse. Through this program, the Federal Government, specifically the DoD, is formally recognizing the return of investment generated by the coupling of the military spouse and the Federal workplace... read more online.
KARI SCHAEFFLER Country and Principal TAP Training Site(s): Maryland, Naval Station Annapolis Brief Bio: Kari has more than 18 years experience in training and program development. Energizing and engaging audiences worldwide, her expertise lies in leadership, assertiveness, change management, conflict resolution, team solutions, customer care, and career transition. She has been a TAP facilitator for the past several years and remains honored to assist military personnel as they prepare to transition into new careers. Kari's passion for training was ignited when she served for three years as a member of the US Navy Return & Reunion training team. Meeting US fleets in Europe and crossing the Atlantic home with them, she presented more than 20 unique classes related to reintegration after six months at sea. Currently Kari serves as a senior trainer for numerous government agencies, the US military and organizations including Pitney Bowes, AAA Mid-Atlantic, the Hershey Company and the United Nations Population Fund. Kari is MBTI© certified, holds a masters degree in Human Resources Development, and is currently enrolled in George Washington University's Executive Leadership Doctoral program. She lives in Edgewater, MD with her husband Mark and has two grown children, Kate and Tommy. Interesting/Fun Fact: As a navy junior, I lived in Hawaii from third grade through my freshman year of high school. I attended Punahou for a year with our current President, Barack Obama (we moved to Japan in my sophomore year). President Obama was a year ahead of me in school and is in my yearbook as "Barry." |
KATHRYN (KATY) TURNBAUGH Country and Principal TAP Training Site(s): NSA Bahrain Brief Bio: Katy has been a TAP Facilitator with the Overseas TAP Program since April 2010 and holds the distinction of being Inverness' first TAP Facilitator in the Kingdom of Bahrain. She is originally from Dallas, TX and received a bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in 2005. Following college, she and her husband moved around quite a bit, allowing her to work as a teacher in Jacksonville, Florida and Brunswick, Maine. Katy's next destination was Bahrain, where she received her training as a TAP Facilitator for the Inverness team. Aside from her work with transition assistance, she is well-known at NSA Bahrain for her extensive volunteer efforts, contributing to MWR, the Department of Defense Dependents School, the NSA Library, Fleet and Family Support Center, and a number of social programs on and off base. Her husband is a Lieutenant in the United States Navy. Interesting/Fun Fact: Katy has traveled to five different continents, and hopes to add a sixth to her list as she plans on visiting Peru in 2012. Antarctica will be a tough one to add to the list, but nothing is impossible! |
NASHAWN TURNER Country and Principal TAP Training Site(s): Okinawa, Japan Brief Bio: Nashawn Turner has been a TAP Facilitator with the Overseas TAP Program since January 2010. She and her husband are both from Chicago, but are now enjoying their second tour in Okinawa, Japan where he serves as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. As a military wife of 21 years, she has served with various spouse organizations as a Key Volunteer and as a L.I.N.K.S. Mentor for the Marine Corps, mentoring and helping military spouses learn to live the military lifestyle successfully. She is a first time author of a book on marriage that has helped many military couples. She is also a freelance writer for the local newspaper here in Okinawa and she is proud to have been a contributing author for another book that assists military spouses in learning how to thrive and survive deployments. Nashawn is also a small business owner, providing personal and professional development and life coaching. Her experience as a Certified Life Coach/Consultant has allowed her to work with the military, government agencies, corporations, universities, and churches by designing unique programs and facilitating innovative workshops in areas such as career transition, leadership, team building, and work/life balance. She believes in accessing everything in her "tool box" including her experience as a recruiter at a hospital, which is helpful in training TAP participants. The Turners have three beautiful children who have fallen in love with Okinawa's culture and food. Interesting/Fun Fact: Although I am horrified of heights, this year I challenged myself regarding my greatest fear. I zip-lined through the forest at about 133 feet in the air. It was the scariest, yet one of the most exhilarating experiences that I have ever had. It truly was an adventure, never to be done again!!! |
MAURICE D. RADKE Country and Principal TAP Training Site(s): Hawaii Brief Bio: Maurice 'Mo' Radke has been a TAP Facilitator since 2007. Mo is from Mercer Island, Washington and served 30 years in the Navy before retiring as a Command Master Chief in 2006. After the military, Mo pursued his dream job as a professional golfer and earned his PGA "card" and obtained class 'A' status in the Professional Golfers Association of America. He currently serves as the PGA Director of Instruction for all golf programs at the Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course on Oahu. Mo's military after-life includes being a college instructor at the San Diego Golf Academy (Hawaii campus) helping students earn an Associate of Science in Applied Business in Golf Course Management. Mo is involved in the community as an active volunteer for Historic Hawaii Foundation, Bishop Museum, Rotary International, USMC Wounded Warrior Program and as a candidate for Hawaii's 2010 State House of Representatives. Mo holds a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Education with a concentration in Corporate Training and Development from Wayland Baptist University. He has lived in Hawaii since 1992 and currently resides in Kaneohe with his wife Jill, and two dogs, Macs and Brian. Interesting/Fun Fact: Mo was Guam's Navy Athlete of the Year for two consecutive years: 1988 and 1989. |
ERIN WALERKO Country and Principal TAP Training Site(s): Virginia and DC where needed, USCG sites and Newport, RI. Brief Bio: Erin Walerko has been with the TAP Program since 1994, beginning her career with the Navy in La Maddalena, Italy when her husband was transferred there. She was the TAMP Manager in La Maddalena and was afforded unique opportunities to go underway with the home-ported ship to conduct classes, plus provide classes on shore for both locally stationed Sailors and those from visiting vessels. When Erin's husband was transferred to Quantico, VA in 1999, she transferred to USMC Henderson Hall. In 2000, Erin was made the Program Director for the Marine Corps Office of Transition Assistance and Spouse Employment Programs. Erin's husband, Phil, received orders to Earle, NJ in 2002 and Erin decided to leave her full-time position and pursue facilitation, training and counseling for the government, academia and private sectors and she has been teaching for NAMS and Inverness ever since. Erin has a master's in Human Relations and a BA in Public Relations. She and her husband have 3 children. Their oldest, Stacey, is a Dr. of Physical Therapy. Their middle daughter, Meagan, is a 2nd LT in the Army stationed in Korea and their son, PJ, is a junior at Clemson University and in the Army ROTC Program. |
CONUS HIGHLIGHTS
 Kelly Pearson, Inverness TAP Facilitator in Norfolk, VA met the Honorable Ray Jefferson, Assistant Secretary for DOL VETS at the National SHRM conference in Washington, D.C. [top of page] |
 Inverness facilitators were welcomed at JB Charleston – NWS for OJT training the 1st week in October. With the exception of Melba Miles, all of the facilitators and Yolanda Rayford traveled to the location for the intensive train-the-trainer session. From left to right; Amy Rubin (MCAS Beaufort/Parris Island), Sandra Metzdorf (Ft. Jackson/Shaw AFB), Melba Miles (JB Charleston – NWS/AFB), Vince McNair (Ft. Jackson/Shaw AFB). The hands-on OJT gave our facilitators the opportunity to network and actually deliver a portion of the workshop. [top of page] |
 After 2 ½ days of on-the-job training, facilitators from Georgia had lunch with Yolanda Rayford (Eastern Region Project Manager – photographer). From left to right; April Torres (Ft. Stewart/Hunter Army Air Field), Robert Rhymes (MCLB Albany), Tracey Arrington (Ft. Stewart/Hunter Army Air Field) and Michele Lewis (Ft. Stewart/Hunter Army Air Field – employed with Inverness since December, 2009). The OJT provided trainers time to meet one another, visit the site and observe a workshop. [top of page] |
 Linda Swanson, long-time TAP Facilitator, who currently resides in Sedona, AZ was in the D.C. area facilitating a conference for the USCG and met with Diane Miller in Old Town, Alexandria. Linda is an outstanding and enthusiastic trainer and it was great to see her again. [top of page] |
 Michele Lewis, Ft. Stewart, Georgia facilitator was in the D.C. area and stopped into the McLean Headquarters office during the Thanksgiving holiday to say hello and meet the staff! From left to right are Dewyane Jackson, Diane Miller, Yolanda Rayford, and Michele Lewis. [top of page] |
OVERSEAS HIGHLIGHTS
New TAP Territory – Bahrain and Turkey!
Incirlik AFB Base Housing, Turkey – Photo courtesy of C. McCoy
Scenery in Bahrain – Photo courtesy of K. Turnbaugh
In May 2010, Dana Murguia, Project Manager, Europe Region, conducted the first classes in two new countries for Inverness: NSA Bahrain and Incirlik AFB, Turkey. This was an excellent opportunity to meet the newly hired trainers as they observed a full TAP workshop, and also to meet with the DoD site managers and help orient them to DOL and our contracted services.
Christene McCoy, a former Air Force member, was the first on-site Inverness trainer in Turkey. Incirlik AFB holds an average of one TAP workshop per quarter. Katy Turnbaugh, a prior educator, is the local trainer who carries the torch for us in Bahrain. Bahrain hosts one pre-separation TAP per month with additional pre-retirement workshops six times a year.
During Dana's start-up visits to these exotic locations, she was able to take a trip to the Bab el-Bahrain Souk district (souk means market in Arabic) of Manama, Bahrain which begins to bustle in the evening when the temperatures drop. There, one can see shops full of gold, or enjoy the beautiful spice displays.
The area surrounding the base at Incirlik is lively and unique with entire families riding at once on a single moped, and horses or donkeys being pulled along the highways by automobiles. The Muslim call to prayer could be heard from both sites at the end of each TAP class. It was a productive trip and a small window to the exotic locations sometimes experienced during military assignments.
A VISIT WITH TRAINERS AND SITES IN KOREA, THE LAND OF THE MORNING CALM
Inverness trainers based in South Korea took the opportunity to showcase their TAP skills and experience during the Overseas Project Director's visit in November. Chris Vaia, Crystal Christian, Mark Wade, and Corrie Blackshear were all on the podium the week of Marjorie Love’s travel to this beautiful country. Marjorie was able to visit the Yongsan, Kunsan, and Camp Mobile TAP workshops in progress as well as to pass through Camp Humphreys and Osan Air Base en route to these locations.
Just as the country itself has endured much, our Korea-based trainers overcome all obstacles—traffic, transportation, language barriers, weather, North/South tensions, and much more—to deliver caring and outstanding transition workshops with a smile to service members week in and week out. On the podium, Marjorie observed many wonderful trainer traits. From Chris being ever-friendly and highly seasoned, to Crystal's inclusion and poise, to Mark's professionalism and Corrie's hands-on experience as a Veteran, this team produces positive results! While Marjorie did enjoy cultural moments savoring kimchi and bibimbap and being awestruck at the mountainous views while traveling several hours to one of the sites via a city bus, the most rewarding part of this trip, hands down, was meeting and interacting with our amazing Korea trainers, visiting the TAP sites where they conduct the workshops, and meeting with our DoD partners there.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR ANNOUNCES NEW ON-LINE TOOL KIT FOR AMERICA'S HEROES AT WORK
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of a new online toolkit to guide employers through the process for hiring veterans. The free toolkit is designed to assist and educate employers who have made the proactive decision to include veterans and wounded warriors in their recruitment and hiring initiatives.
"Many employers have told us that they are interested in developing or enhancing a veterans hiring initiative for their company, but that they don't know where to begin," said Ray Jefferson, assistant secretary for the department's Veterans' Employment and Training Service. "This toolkit was created with these employers in mind. It's designed to simplify the process and put valuable, vetted resources at the employer's fingertips."
Developed as part of the department's "America's Heroes at Work" initiative, the Veterans Hiring Toolkit features a straightforward six-step process pinpointing helpful tools for a business to design a veterans hiring initiative. These steps include creating an educated and welcoming environment for veteran employees; actively recruiting veterans, wounded warriors and military spouses; learning how to accommodate qualified veterans and wounded warriors in the workplace; and promoting an inclusive workplace to help retain veteran employees. The toolkit also helps employers navigate the plethora of resources for hiring veterans available to them.
"The launch of this toolkit is especially timely given the October observance of National Disability Employment Awareness Month," said Kathleen Martinez, assistant secretary for the department's Office of Disability Employment Policy. "Disabled veterans, including those experiencing the 'invisible' wounds of war like traumatic brain injury and combat stress, are an important segment of the disability population that needs our support when transitioning to civilian employment."
The final section of the toolkit features a quick reference list of reputable online resources to help users find and welcome talented and skilled veterans into their companies. Examples include links to veteran’s employment service organizations, places to receive consultations on workplace accommodations and answers to common employer questions about hiring veterans and wounded warriors. Whether users are looking to create a veterans hiring program from scratch or retool existing efforts, the toolkit can help them design and implement a customized initiative. To access the toolkit, visit http://www.AmericasHeroesAtWork.gov/forEmployers/HiringToolkit.
©2011 Inverness Technologies, Inc.
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