The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce held a Job / Business Fair yesterday, (Nov. 12, 2009) in the vacated Robinsons May store of Westfield Plaza Camino Real Mall in Carlsbad (which closed in 2005). It was a disappointment, on many levels and a pleasure on a few.
“The fair will feature dozens of employers who are actively hiring,” said Tone Padron, Executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Carlsbad Chamber. “We’re doing this event so people who have been laid off and are in transition can find out what their options are.”
That sounds rather promising and full of hope, doesn’t it? I printed 50 resumes, as the map of the expo featured over 100 booths of potential employers.
The Good
To be fair, we are in the midst of a deep recession, which I fully understand and gave allowances for. I was thrilled to see some use of the old Robinson May store. The stains on the carpet could have been covered with runners, but the Chamber probably doesn’t have money for that right now (cleaning the carpet would have been less costly, but still an output that can’t be expected).
The floor plan was good. There were tables for registration (they only asked for my zip code & source of advertising that brought me there), where I received a plastic bag advertising Mira Costa Junior College. The bag appeared to represent an ambition that I would fill it with lots of employer’s flyers, pens and business cards.
Decorations were sparse, but well placed. A clothing store had decorated manikins in stylish and casual business apparel. There were round tables, which allowed for one to sit down and chat with other job seekers. Mira Costa was offering Resume Workshops, Critique and Advice.
All of that was good, in fact, grand. However, I could not escape the sense of hopelessness among my fellow jobseekers. I saw men who were very uncomfortable and lost, women who brought their small children. One person even brought their dog. The dog was one of the highlights of the day.
The Bad
The smell of burnt rubber permeated the air; the ventilation wasn’t working – not to be expected. The odor was caused by the laying of tar on the roof of the mall. This was not addressed or excused for, except by some vendors who recognized the odor. I know that anyone with a high sensitivity to asthma attacks was exposed to an irritant, which would either cut their visit short or dismiss their stay all together. There was an absence of fans, which would have been noisy, but would have provided healthier air to breathe.
The Ugly
Subway Sandwiches provided lunch to the vendors. The sandwiches contained onions, so speaking to any of the vendors after 12:30 was an odorous event. Some of the vendors were aware of this and made a point to retain some distance between them and guests. There was water available for the vendors, but not the job seekers. Expecting to be quite a bit of talking, I felt that water should have been provided for the job seekers. “Some of the mall’s food vendors will offer free samples at the event.” I didn’t see that, though there were vendors with candy. I had one piece of strawberry hard candy, to moisten my mouth.
Vendors
Some vendors left before the end of the event. Wells Fargo abandoned their booth around 2:30.
AT&T had a day filled with listening to customer complaints. The two guys working the booth couldn’t wait for the day to “be over”.
Break It Down
Sales – 7 companies: Aflac Insurance, H&R Block, North County Times, Northwest Mutual Financial Network, Time Warner Cable and Wells Fargo.
Education – (Not jobs!) 4 entities: California State University, Mira Costa College, National University, USCD.
Law Enforcement – 3 entities: California Highway Patrol, National Guard, San Diego Police Department.
Retail – 2 companies: Macys, Sears.
Entertainment – 1 company: Harrah’s Rincon Casino.
Real help: 2 entities: Mira Costa College (providing workshops and resume critique) and North County Career Center (longest line of job seekers).
Oh, the one employment agency that was there was represented by a young girl who had no experience – she couldn’t answer the basic questions being asked of her. She was just collecting names and email addresses. Folks were leaving her booth with a look of disgust on their face, while they were shaking their heads.
Word
Privacy risks: There were several clip boards on which names and contact information was being collected. Most of these were on vendor’s desks, as if they intend to contact you for a job in the future. My QC mind was not pleased with this. I read it as a huge risk of potential identity theft. I could have very easily walked around, pretending to read the text messages on my telephone while taking snapshots of all the data that was out in the open.
Fact: In order to steal your identity, I simply need your name and the city you reside in. Modern technology will provide me the rest of the information; your social security number, your telephone number and where you live. It will cost me $6.00 per identity…the price of the cheapest credit report available. I don’t have to input your social security number; the software will provide it to me.
I’m out – this is a bust for me. I’m not a Sales Person, I’m not physically fit enough to be in Law Enforcement, Retail and Entertainment has nothing for me. I got a good list of jobs from Tri-City Hospital. It’s time for me to wander the aisle of the Business section of this fair.
Brass Tacks
The number of vendors that were there were primarily there for the Business aspect of the exhibit. They outnumbered the Job Fair participants by 4 to 1. Very disheartening for job seekers, but an opportunity for people like me, who look at the entire event as an opportunity. In fact, I had better communication with the Business end of the event than the Job seekers end of the event.
I enjoyed a lively conversation with three business men, on the philosophy of business and the lack of understanding the importance of genuine customer service and how that naturally leads to customer retention (the best advertising your money can buy)…“Do you ever wonder why you get those phone calls, that were placed at midnight or when you’d be in church, screaming profanities about your business? Do you ever wonder why they can’t tell you that directly?” It was a lively conversation. I was happy to hear my personal opinion resonate with other business professionals.
Business owners were quick to tell me that they didn’t have any available positions. By 2:00 in the afternoon, they had answered enough of those questions that they were able to distinguish between a Business Client and a Job Seeker by sight.
I did sit down and talked with the gentleman from SCORE. SCORE is a group of retired, successful business men who volunteer their time helping new businesses get off the ground. I had a chance to rest my feet while gathering useful information for my neighbor, who is in the process of opening a business. While the gentleman didn’t have to engage in any real conversation with me, he did. That’s the caliber of SCORE men. After I answered a few pin-pointed questions, he took me by the arm and said “I don’t need to hear anything more. You need to go talk to these guys at Wells Fargo.”
Old School
Wow – a genuine job lead. The way it used to be – the way it should be – Networking. Wells Fargo wasn’t manning their booth – they bailed out. Their table was empty, nothing hiding under the table’s skirt. The gentleman then gave me his name and the name of the individual he wanted me to talk with. He put his hand on the center of my back and pressed me in forward movement. “Go!” he instructed me, “go see them NOW!”
I left the job fair, feeling much better than I had less an hour earlier. I gave thought to the dysfunction of the fair. I thought it must have been the first year this event was sponsored. While the advertising said “Back by popular demand”, this morning I spoke to a fellow at the North County Times newspaper who said that it was “their first year.”
I’m not going to bother figuring that out – I still have all the 50 resumes I had when I arrived at the job fair. I think I’m going to walk the streets of the town I live in. All the new “techy” avenues haven’t worked, maybe Old School will.
To be continued…
Music: Working Nine To Five – Dolly Parton
