SBPA aims to host job fairs

Posted on by Don Perez

SBPA is exploring the idea of holding a small job fair at Cal State Dominguez Hills in Carson as well as El Camino College in Torrance in the near future.

Harold Salas, SBPA president, and Sadhna Singh, training chair, said the group would explore the idea with college officials in early March.

Salas and another member have already visited CSUDH to get the ball rolling and plan on dropping by at El Camino College soon.

If given the green light, the next step would be to round up as many job recruiters as possible to fill the tables, Salas, a CSUDH graduate, said.

The job fair would also help put the organization’s name out for professionals young and old.

SBPA will also meet with the Torrance Chamber of Commerce to get the word out and lure recruiters to participate in the event.

The organization is also planning to have a 15-minute exercise focusing on personal assessment and development, and hold mock interviews with members sometime this month.

“Over the years I have learned many things and one thing I learned is that if you want to make a sale, you need to do a pitch three times and on the fourth you will have a sale,” wrote Salas in an e-mail. “This holds true for cars, houses and getting a job. Why? Practice. The more interviews you are involved in each week, the fresher and more skilled you are at selling yourself.”

SBPA also plans to do more in-person meetings. For the time being, Zoom meetings will still be held for an hour every Monday.

In-person meetings allow for the organization to do more exercises and interactions, both Salas and Singh said. Physical meetings also allow for more time, Singh added.

Article image created by DALL-E 3.

SBPA Annual Holiday Party 2023 @ Panera Bread

Posted on by Tamiko Wakabayashi

We had our SBPA Annual Holiday Party @ Panera Bread in Torrance on December 4, 2023. Thank you so much for your participation!

SBPA Torrance Sets Plans After Holidays

By Don Perez — Special to SBPA

Coffee, bagels and career paths were on the table at the final South Bay Professional Association meet-up of 2023, the organization’s Holiday Party.

Several members, including interested attendees, met the Monday morning of Dec. 4 at Panera Bread in Torrance, discussing personal career issues as well as planning future SBPA workshops.

The next SBPA meeting will be held virtually at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 8.

Harold Salas, president of SBPA, said for the rest of December members were asked to focus on their family, holiday tasks and getting things in order before getting set to apply for potential new openings in the job market in January.

According to an article on job search engine website Indeed.com, companies tend to hire new employees in the months of January and February due to new hiring budgets.

While the SBPA is on break, both Salas and Leslie Freeman, coordinator for Experience Unlimited, noted there may be an – unfortunate – rise in attendance numbers coming in February as some companies may lay off workers with the start of the new fiscal year.

Freeman ended the meet-up with a short video and article about appropriate attire and other tips for working in the holiday office environment.

Sadhna Singh, SBPA training chair, and SBPA marketing chair Tamiko Wakabayashi will oversee and coordinate several workshops next year covering topics such as cutting bills to meet a fixed budget, credit issues, retirement planning adjustments and finding health care insurance and providers while unemployed.

Those in attendance brought up their financial concerns and brainstormed with Singh and Wakabayashi about other issues unemployed individuals will have.

Salas said now is the time to put in extra effort in finding aid, building up skills and being prepared for the job hunt before the employment market fills with more competitors for positions.

Guest Speaker: Jonathan Eckman

Posted on by Wayne A. Hastings

On Monday, February 4, 2019, at 9:00 am, Jonathan Eckman will be joining SBPA to speak about, “It’s the Link You Didn’t See.”

SBPA meetings are free and open to the public. Seating is limited to the first 45 people, so arrive early to secure your spot.

About Jonathan:

Like many, Jonathan found himself changing his career path, sometimes by choice and sometimes by necessity. While on his journey he found that many of the experiences and skills he had acquired were often less helpful than the assistance of the people in his life, often people he never would have expected to offer such assistance. This not only helped him to develop a “pay it forward” attitude, but to concentrate more on the people he came into contact with. In turn, this also led him to create situations where he could help others as he had been helped.

Recently retired after 34 years in Maintenance and Operations at Long Beach City College, Jonathan now spends much of his time working with an educational non-profit organization – Toastmasters International, where he currently serves as an Area Director working with several Toastmaster clubs. One benefit of retiring is that he can spend more time catching up on his reading, movies, and gardening.

Guest Speaker: Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2019

Posted on by Wayne A. Hastings

Join us on Wednesday, January 16 at 9:00 am for a special guest speaker.

Nadiah AlBadri, Senior Associate at Vaco Los Angeles, is a local recruiter who specializes in HR, customer service, operations, administrative and executive support experience.

At Wednesday’s session, she will share with SBPA the recent employment market, resumes and opportunities out there.

SBPA meetings are free and open to the public. Seating is limited to 47 attendees, so arrive early.

About Vaco

Vaco provides expert consulting, permanent placement, executive search and strategic staffing for companies around the world, in the areas of accounting, finance, technology, healthcare, operations, administration and more. As a premier talent solutions firm, Vaco connects people to their dream jobs and helps leading companies find talent to grow their business.