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8/26/20 – Panels: Insurance and Financial Services

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Written by Susan Lamphiear

Experts. Who among us hasn’t heard a discussion or two lately about experts? Should we take advice about the Pandemic from anonymous or questionable Facebook comments or seek out and listen to reputable scientists and medical professionals?

If you’re in job transition, Career Connectors has a reputation for providing professional and timely advice to individuals during challenging times of career change. Experts help guide you through not only the job search, but job search during Covid-19 and all the extra changes and challenges that have resulted. You have free access to professionals in a number of industries to help guide the way.

In typical fashion, Career Connectors pulled together professionals from the Insurance and Finance Industries to present pertinent, timely panel discussions about the job search, along with information about their companies and how they’re adapting during the Pandemic.

Keynote Panels

Hosted by Jessica Pierce, CEO/Founder of Career Connectors.

Insurance Panel

Q1 Please give us a brief overview of your company and your role.

  • Sandy: State Farm Insurance helps customers protect the things that matter the most, including cars and homes. With 58,000 employees, State Farm ranks 36 on the Fortune 500 list. In April, 2022, State Farm will celebrate their 100th Year anniversary. The company is literally a family company, often with several members of the same family working for State Farm. The company believes in philanthropy and offers each employee one day a year to volunteer, with the option of earning a second volunteer day. The company offers lots of career development opportunities.
  • Ryan: RLI Insurance, a public company on the New York Stock Exchange, was founded 50 years ago. The company offers products to underserved specialty industries. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, they employ 900 workers in 50 states, including Arizona.
  • John: Liberty Mutual, always evolving, can be described as a tech company who happens to do insurance. On the leading edge of the industry, Liberty uses drones along with other cutting edge technology. My role is retail brokerage in Phoenix and Tucson. Liberty operates throughout the United States and worldwide.

Q2 What’s your advice to prospective employees? What is your company looking for?

  • Sandy: A lot of people come in without knowing about the company. Networking is so important so make use of resources like Career Connectors or LinkedIn. No time to be humble–put key words in your resume.
  • Ryan: Research and know the company you’re communicating with. This goes a long way.
  • John: Show me who are. Let me see who you are in the interview.

Q3 What are myths and assumptions about the industry that changed when you started working at your company?

  • Sandy: State Farm offers lots of opportunities in a variety of areas.
  • Ryan: I’ve become aware of all the good the insurance industry does in a community. In the recent Hurricane Laura, for example, people don’t always realize what happens right after a catastrophe like that–the insurance companies are there right away to help.
  • John: People often think insurance is 80-90% sales. It’s more like 10% sales. All job families are available unlike other industries–and the industry is constantly growing.

Q4 Could you explain how potential employees get their foot in the door and what career paths are available?

  • Sandy: Customer service and claims jobs are entry level and offer a foot in the door. You learn a lot about the company by working in these areas. Getting a mentor helps in your career path, too. You don’t need an insurance degree but education and growth and development are available once you start work at State Farm. I changed careers within the company.
  • Ryan: Most job families are available including Software Developer. Employees are always learning. You can stay within one division towards career growth or move into a different division. Networking is important within the company. I’ve been in five different divisions in my career. Building relationships is very important.
  • John: Communicate with your boss. Often the company will pay for a degree or for advanced learning to help an employee grow. Let the company know where you want to go in your career and they’ll guide you.

Q5 How has the Covid-19, the Pandemic, changed things?

  • Sandy: Moving the company and technology to 7600 homes has been the biggest pivot or challenge. We used technology to do things we didn’t know we could do. We customized to help customers. And we’ve also passed savings on to customers–since there’s less driving there are fewer accidents.
  • Ryan: I agree with everything Sandy said. Also, interviews are unique. We were and still are still hiring. One challenge is convincing hiring managers to hire a new employee without ever meeting them in person. Onboarding becomes a second challenge; we must be very intentional–for example, who is part of the onboarding and who is the buddy whose task becomes helping the new employee?
  • John: Liberty focuses on the employee including enhanced compensation. Recently 95-98% of employees approved of the way the company has handled the transition during Covid-19. Product innovation has stepped up since people aren’t driving as much. Liberty is giving back premiums. Expense management becomes important as people go back out. We’re starting to see the “boomerang” employee–referring to people who left and are coming back–which is awesome for the insurance industry.

Q6 What do you think is the future of the insurance industry?

  • Sandy: There’s an even bigger need for technology. Technology sells insurance. I’ve seen talk lately of flying vehicles! Cyber threats and data risk and AI Artificial Intelligence are hot. The industry will help customers navigate the technology.
  • Ryan: Success will look different in the next 50 years. We can’t count on what got us here the past 50 years. Product innovation will be necessary–for example, pay by mile, as people reduce their driving. Right now we have more data than we know what to do with. It’s important to know how to utilize all this data. Lots of exciting quick-paced change despite all the negativity that goes with the Pandemic.
  • John: Our top four goals are global including de-escalation which will be moving out of the Pandemic and into the new normal and its best practices. The company is realizing more positives about expanding remote work, for example. It allows for more growth and opportunity.

Q7 How is the world of work changing? What’s your position on hiring seasoned employees over 50? What if these individuals want an entry level job–is that an acceptable culture?

  • Sandy: Yes! We want your experience as long as you move into a suitable role. Bring your experience. If you’re willing to start at entry level and find a fit, that’s great. We love experienced people. You already know how to be a professional.
  • Ryan: Yes to experience. We don’t know what we do not know. What are other companies and industries doing? We can learn from your experience.
  • John: Yes we like experience. Who are you today? Are you coachable? Do you have a vision of where you’d like to go?

Q8 What are the hot jobs in your company?

  • Sandy: We have openings for lots of tech reps–software developers like JAVA and more. Go to the website for a complete list. Bilingual Spanish is a big need currently. You must pass a difficult test in speaking, writing, and reading. We also need entry level claims and customer service.
  • Ryan: IT–I support this area in Illinois. We landed in Phoenix where we have access to more candidates with different experiences and higher quality. In Tempe we have a need for both short and long term positions.
  • John: We’re always looking for rock stars at math and also actuarial and spreadsheets strengths. These skills remain in high demand.

Financial Panel

Q1 Please tell us about your company, your role, and what you like best.

  • Jerrelle: Silicon Valley Bank is the number one leader in technology banking. LinkedIn is one of their first clients. I love the culture, cliche though it sounds; it’s like family. Clients include healthcare and premium wine. Lots of opportunity. We’re an especially awesome company if you have a passion for technology. The company is worldwide and innovative.
  • Erin: We’re a family of a few companies. Freedom Financial Network was founded in 2002 by two students who were friends. The company values balance of the heart and dollar. Including Phoenix and San Mateo, California, we have 2200 employees. We do personal loans and consolidation and are dipping our toes in the mortgage area. The best part to me is helping customers. The company offers paid time off to volunteer. The company lives and breathes our core values–they’re not just on a coffee cup.
  • Olivia: One of the world’s largest investment management companies, but Vanguard has a family feel. Client owned, the company has great opportunities including IT or tech or analytics. Service oriented, the three pillars are client, crew, and community. Our generous benefits are listed on the website.

Q2 What skills are you looking for?

  • Jerrelle: We’re looking for expertise in IT or client facing or analyst. One of the main things we’re looking for is innovation. Also, the entrepreneurial spirit and a passion for technology, science or math. A passion for numbers, a passion to learn. Technology skills are in high demand. The company will teach you the finance part.
  • Erin: I echo what Jerrelle said. We’re a smaller company but have lots of roles. Entry level, right out of school or no degree and the company will train you. We’re looking for true leaders who put in a little extra something. People who are critical thinkers who think outside the box and love helping people.
  • Olivia: We’re looking for individuals with a teamwork mindset who are interested in learning and have a desire to be the point person to help others. Many career development opportunities are available. We look for employees who will be proactive to find out what avenues interest you towards your career path. I had a background in nonprofit but started out entry level in client relationships and progressed from there.

Q3 What do you like and why do you stay?

  • Jerrelle: I love a challenge and the focus on diversity–many populations in this field are underrepresented. There’s an opportunity to build relationships. I consider myself a professional friend maker. As a recruiter, I look for someone whose interest can be channeled into one of our divisions. An example might be someone who majored in biology. We have a life sciences group. A client might be interested in working or talking with someone with a similar interest in science. With technology, you can bring your expertise. This industry is not just about numbers but about building relationships.
  • Erin: One thing is constant–CHANGE. I personally love change. That came in handy because with Covid-19 created the need to go with the flow and be flexible as things change. Most roles require this flexibility. My story began as a supervisor but I helped build QA and I moved into a different area of the business. A BA in psychology, once I tried HR management I found my passion. The company provides lots of support from their leaders. The company has passion for career development. No experience in finance is needed.
  • Olivia: Often call centers get a bad rap–but I’m steering people away from that mindset. I enjoy client facing and enjoy feeling the impact the job has on clients. I also love the opportunity to pursue and learn in different areas. Relationship is a big part of the industry and something I really didn’t know before I joined.

Q4 How do potential employees get their foot in the door and do you have a career path for them?

  • Jerrelle: Ways to get a foot in the door include client services and operations and relationship management. Find someone from the company because they love to talk. Let them know you’re interested. Recent grads have access to the associate development program.
  • Erin: Customer service is a good way to get a foot in the door. Also, don’t forget about networking and LinkedIn. I started as a supervisor helping build QA and moved into a different area of the business.
  • Olivia: Networking is huge. The client relations associate is a good starting place. The company also hires insurance sales. Customer service is another area to start. A license is not required but once with the company you can expand your horizons.

Q5 What are some of the hot jobs in your company?

  • Jerrelle: We need a Senior Cloud Security Engineer in Tempe. Also Vice President to support our credit card team, Senior Manager of Operations, and People Management. And please check out our website.
  • Erin: Freedom has need for inside sales, debt relief, lending, and customer service, especially bilingual. Also the areas of operation risk, auditor and customer service in lending and loan services. For more hot jobs visit our website.
  • Olivia: Customer service to high level clients and client relationship associates are good entry level jobs. Also check out our website for other opportunities.

Resources

US Health Advisors

Joe Bourcier, Joe the Health Insurance Pro

US Health Advisors partners with Career Connectors.

US Health Advisors offers flexible health insurance coverage for individuals including Medicare supplements and can be competitive for anyone on COBRA insurance. For small businesses under two people, our company is often able to offer better coverage including creative ways to customize coverage for individual employees instead of one blanket policy.

By the time Joe meets with clients, he has done research first, which allows them to offer from one to three top plans that might work best for the customer. Many businesses need coverage and he’s able to cover 30 states in the US. The company works with several professional businesses including realtors, plumbers, doctors, dentists, and lawyers as well as individuals.

US Health Advisors works with America’s self-employed, small business owners, or individuals to help them access affordable benefits and services.

Joe can be reached via Facebook or LinkedIn so feel free to reach out to him with questions. He’s a free resource to all attendees or anyone who needs information.

Closing

CEO/Founder of Career Connectors Jessica Pierce thanked the volunteers and hiring companies, invited attendees to sign up for regular notifications, to take the DISC assessment free, and to use the resources outlined on the website.

Career Connectors, now being offered online, means they can serve even more people, so Jessica urges attendees to share this information with other people who may benefit from the free events and resources. The schedule may change later in September but for now visit the website for days and times for the online events.

DID YOU KNOW?
So far this year, Career Connectors has served more than 3,000 people in career transition. We are passionate about helping more, and need your help.

  • Can you spare just $5? How about $42? $42 is what it costs to help one person per month (90% of your donations go directly to serving people needing a new position- and is tax-deductable) Visit this page to make a donation!
  • Do you know someone who’s landed a new job after participating in our programs? We’d love to talk to them! Please email us at contact@careerconnectors.org or go send them to this page to tell us their story!

2/25/20 – Interview with Confidence

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Keynote Speaker

Carmen Payne Interviewing with Confidence

Carmen Payne, SOAR! Transformational Life Coach
Written by: Debbie Adkins, Pet and Home Care (Pet Sitting & Walking to Home Organizing)

The interview is a large part of your job search. It is the last step to you getting or not getting a job. The first part of the interview is “for you to know yourself”, “where you are in your career path” and “how hard you are willing to work” in getting that job you want.
There are steps to do some or all the above. Put together a career plan which includes researching all the career websites and social media (LinkedIn) that has to do with searching for open positions. Then list your strengths and weakness which you and/or an employer may use in interview questions. Lastly do anything that will help you during the interview/s.
When the interviews are set up and during the interview, look confident not like you are just there to get a job. Introduce yourself with your full name, a smile and a firm handshake…not a crushing one. Then answer all questions completely and honestly…with just the facts. Be sure to tell them about you, things that you have done career-wise and situations that have helped the company and maybe you. While they are asking you questions, you ask them questions about the company, about the position you are interested in and anything that is connected to them and the job.
Be sure during the interview you are positive and confident by not being negative toward your last boss or job. Watch your body motions, the way you talk and what you are telling them. Most importantly, you should practice the interview in the mirror, with a friend or coach. All of this will make you believe that you will get the job and show them that you can do it.
One thing you can do while you are in the “situation” part of the interview is use the “STAR” formula. Which you state a Situation… you had to solve or would help the company then the Task…you was required, when, where and who helped you then the Action…what you did, skills used and things that would bring you to the Result or outcome and what happened.
*Just remember…even the employer you interview with can have a bad day!
In closing, know this and remember over the years the way of interviewing has and will change. In the past there were both phone and “face to face” interviews. Now there is the computer and other ways of doing interviews. Stay aware of any changes in your job searching from the resume to getting that job you want.

Hiring Companies


APN Staffing & Employment Solutions, Nicholas Mazur, Recruiting Manager
APN Staffing and Employment Solutions is a national, boutique recruiting firm specialized in working with clients and candidates in the healthcare, automotive and government space. While finding the right talent for your team can be an extremely rewarding experience, it takes time and attention that companies don’t often have. We are here to help with that.

APN is looking for Healthcare, Automotive, Some Government Agencies. Openings include CAN/LNA, Clinical Liaison, Behavioral Health, LPN, Director of Medical Services, Office Manager, Service Advisor, School Counselor, Service Advisor and more.
The offer Direct Hire, Contract, Temp to Permanent
Open to call daily before 6pm, check career websites, Walk right in
P: 602-788-5890 F: 602-788-5954 Website: www.apnusa.com
20827 N. Cave Creek, Suite#103, Phoenix, AZ 85024

Freedom Financial Network, Heather Marcom, Director Talent Acquisition
When Freedom Financial Network started in 2002, their goal was to help people overcome debt so they could achieve financial freedom. Today, they’re helping people enjoy freedom in more ways than ever, with proven solutions for debt settlement, mortgage shopping, personal loans, and more.

Looking for people who care, collaborate and are driven. All basic benefits including Pet Insurance and Freedom Family Fund which helps employees and their families.
Openings include Operations, Sales, IT/Tech/Engineering, and Customer Service roles.

12/04/19 – Getting Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

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Written by Gary Matsuda
The U.S. Navy SEALs have a saying: “Get comfortable being uncomfortable.” While not as harrowing as preparing for combat, the thought of networking still gets our insides twisted up in knots.

Keynote

Cary Pfeffer spoke to Career Connectors and called on us to get out of our minds and out the door and ready to build new connections. Cary brings a cumulation of 15 years as communication consultant with Clearcom Consulting and 20 years as a news anchor and reporter delivering news worthy stories to the public. You’d think with a career in broadcasting and speaking publicly that he’s a natural at people skills. But that wasn’t always the case. Especially in his early career, Cary was uneasy about using a network to build his career. Yet recognizing this and intentionally working to improve his professional skills and continually moving forward enabled him to take his career to higher levels.

Get out and Expand your Pool of Contacts!
Woody Allen said, ”80 percent of success is showing up.” So here’s to those who show up at Career Connectors’ meetings! Go ahead and get out there. Don’t wait until you’re in the mood to mix it up a bit with new people. Cary says no one will ever know who you are if you don’t put in the effort to be seen and become known.

Get Out and Learn Something New!
We learn best when we experience something novel, out of the ordinary, even when we’re a bit uncomfortable. Who knows who you’ll meet, or what you’ll learn from other’s experiences? In addition, you could gain valuable insights about what’s going on in your field and how you might be able to contribute or where you’ll need to improve. In a networking meeting, this is perfect for doing that in a low-risk environment.

Expand on Who You Know!
As Cary mentioned, no one will know you if your professional and social circle is closed. The more people you know, the more likely you’ll find the right people who can introduce you to the next big opportunity. Cary stressed that if anything, this is could be your most important take-away. During his career Cary worked with 3 professional agencies and despite that their specialty was to find him clients, not even one provided him with new work. Yet 60% of his business came from just 3 personal contacts. Go figure.

Before You Go Have a Plan
You shouldn’t go to a networking event empty handed. But that doesn’t mean fill your plate with hors d’oeuvres. What you should bring is your crafted story that would be of interest or helpful to potential contacts. The best meetings may have a theme, niche or curation that will give you a better idea of what kind of people will be there and so you can adjust your story accordingly. Knowing who might be there will help you decide if this could be a potential gold mine of clients/employers or not a good use of your time.
The best way to find out if your story will really connect is to try it out on new people who don’t really know you. On occasion you’ll fall flat but with practice, these in-person encounters will get you closer to the right people. Observe people’s reactions so you’ll know what best gets your message across and if necessary, fine-tune it so you can be even better next time. Did your pitch seem too long or not long enough? Does it solve a problem? Do you even have the right audience? It may take a few tries to get it right, but a potential employer can expect any candidate worth his salt to be able to tell a story that will resonate. Just don’t wait to test it out during a high stakes job interview!

What’s in a Name?
While you are your own favorite person and the most important thoughts ever imaged run through your head, never assume people will remember you, let alone remember your name. Help them along so they can more easily associate you with that personal label that you call your name.

Time Yourself
Balance your time so you can not only provide your input but also give others time to speak. Remember showing up is 80% of success? Respect the effort of others who also made the effort to show up (just like you did). Appreciate that they may not want to spend the whole event with you when there are dozens of other potential connections in the room.

Don’t Be a Card Dispenser
You’re more than a resume or LinkedIn profile. Likewise, the personal impression you make is more important than the 3 ½” X 2” card stock you’ve got in your pocket. As important as these resources are, don’t rely on a great looking business card, LinkedIn profile or resume to do the relationship building for you. Listen more than you speak, ask how you can be helpful. As Cary puts it: ‘Don’t be a serial card dispenser’ which could project an insincere impression or that you might be even a bit pushy. Instead, when you meet someone who could be a valuable connection, turn the tables and ask for their card.

After the Meeting
Make notes on who you’ve met. Now that you have their card, you can make notes on that and follow up with them as promised.
Because of our dependence on electronic apps, you’ll stand out if you make quick follow ups with the people you want to continue a relationship with. Handwritten notes? Who does that anymore? Why now you do of course!
Resources for more help from Cary Pfeffer:
• NoAppBook.com
• @CaryPfeffer

Hiring Companies

Century Link, Lisa Allen, Sr. Recruiter
Careers at Century Link let you get more out of your sales career. At Century Link you get work/life balance – there’s no working late nights, no weekends. There’s paid vacation, holidays, tuition reimbursement and generous medical, dental, vision coverage for your family.
Open positions:
Account Manager II – Outbound Sales
The Account Manager II-Outbound Sales Representative is responsible for growing revenue in the Small Business Accounts sector. The right candidate will possess the ability to place outbound calls daily to new and our existing Small Business clients. Must be able to effectively present sales recommendations to new account prospects and cultivate new opportunities within existing accounts.
Center Sales and Service Associate – Small Business
The Center Sales & Service Associate responds to phone calls in a fast-paced inbound contact center promoting and selling CenturyLink products and services to our Small Business clients. Successful Center Sales & Service Associates must respond with a high sense of urgency while providing extraordinary customer service. This will include answering questions regarding client accounts, fulfilling orders as well as troubleshooting problems. Our goal is to assist our clients with a first call resolution.

U-Haul, Alex Taylor Corporate Recruiter
U-Haul vehicles are everywhere. You can find them in far off places and accessible all over the United States and Canada so that they have a central headquarters doesn’t easily come to mind. But they do and it’s right here in Phoenix!
Their job opportunities cover a wide range of professions too. There are openings in every field including IT, field work and at corporate headquarters. U-Haul opportunities don’t stop at transportation. They’re also affiliated with Repwest Insurance, Oxford Insurance and Amerco Real Estate so there could be a chance to cross industries as well.
Current openings include Software Engineer, Software Infrastructure, Retail Sales, Customer Service Agents, Accounting and Project Managers.

Freedom Financial Network, Heather Marcom, Head of Talent Acquisition
As a 9 time winner of ‘Best Places to Work in Phoenix’ this place has got to be on your list of employers to target. You’ll be taken care of as you work to care for others as they live by their core values of:
Care. Act with integrity. Get Better. Collaborate.
Freedom Financial helps those who have hit hard times by providing debt relief, help negotiating debt down to get them credit worthy and helping to consolidate personal loans, when no one else will.
You can find their open positions at the Sky Harbor Airport office or at the new Tempe location.
Among these are openings in:
Call Center, Sales and operations
IT/Engineering/Data
Accounting
Contact them at www.FFNJOBS.com

Resources

Goodwill of Central & Northern AZ, Ron Mack
If you haven’t found a job yet, you probably haven’t been to a Goodwill Career Center.
Not just a retail store but it’s an organization that provides opportunities which serve the needs of community, help the professional job seeker become self-sufficient and get people back to work.
The Goodwill Career Center offers free career coaching, resume critiquing, job leads from employers, mock interviews, and digital skills training classes from beginning to advanced at several locations in the Phoenix area. This is much more than place for entry level jobs- you could start a long term new career at places like Amazon, Target and Home Depot.
The average age of people taking refresher courses with Goodwill is 45 -50. These courses include computer basics in Word, Excel, Power Point, Mac and Windows operating systems and North Star certification.

Grand Canyon University, Bri Guthrie and Shelby Greer

Interested in Getting Your Master’s Degree?
Want to get started or get a leg up in the IT industry? Or Nursing, Business, Leadership, Communication, Teaching? GCU’s online and evening programs have the flexibility you need!
Right now, GCU is offering alumni $2,000 in tuition credit. If you’re not an alumni, you can still get a 20% discount on evening classes.
For more information visit the Graduate Programs Office in Cypress Hall or https://www.gcu.edu/degree-programs/masters-degree

“A dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your comfort zone and become familiar with the unfamiliar and unknown.”

Denis Waitley

8/1/19 – Career Advancement in the Culture of Contact Centers

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Written by Jim McBride

Contact Center Panel featured companies

Panel

The contact center – or call center, as the terms are interchangeable – is the critical hub for serving clients/customers across multiple channels for nearly every organization large and small. Live-agent, chat, email and social media links consumers through thousands and thousands of interactions with the contact center.

In the Phoenix metro region, the contact center “industry” converges with the tremendous growth of financial services companies in delivering a hotbed of potential careers for the active and passive job seeker. Contact center roles are often a gateway into career growth and do not necessarily require starting at the entry level.

In front of a full house, Jessica Pierce facilitated two panel discussions addressing careers, advancement opportunities and workplace culture with eight high profile, award-winning contact centers in the financial services sector. Each company represented on the panel has been recognized by employer branding firm Best Companies AZ for workplace excellence so, clearly, they know their stuff.

For those in career transition, this was an excellent opportunity to hear first-hand from senior leaders how to get your foot in the door and grow your career within these respected organizations. All eight companies are in growth mode and looking to hire hundreds of employees.

Panel 1 – Career Advancement & Opportunities

Q – What can you tell us about entry level positions in your contact center and the potential career opportunities?

Farmers: We currently have openings for entry level sales and service positions, but we also have many openings for individual contributors, including back office processing, reporting, analytics, IT and project management.

Voya Financial: Customer service roles are a launch point for many of the higher-level jobs which require licensing (i.e. Series 6). Right now, we’re looking to fill roles in workforce management and benefits administration, which are not entry level.

USAA: We are targeting customer service and claims roles, which do not require previous experience. Representatives handle inbound calls from members. We’ll help you get licensed once you’re on board.

Freedom Financial Network: All of our customer service is inbound. No outbound calling. We have openings for debt relief, negotiators, back office payment processing and call center sales.

Q – What career pathways have you established within your company?

Freedom Financial Network: We call it a career ladder. You can move from an entry level 1, 2 or 3 position into supervisor or even over to sales and lending, which pays more. From there, we’ve had employees move into IT, marketing and training positions.

USAA: The progression is typically from associate – as we call them – to specialist to senior associate. We challenge our leaders to have career advancement discussions and develop a career trajectory. There are internal programs for learning IT skills, such as coding. We’re developing your skills for life, not just for USAA.

Voya Financial: We expect our leaders to prepare development plans and have conversations about career progression with their team members. Employees are empowered to ask questions and get involved. The entry level position is your entry point.

Farmers: On a formal basis there are career path discussions between managers and their employees. Informally, we have peer resource groups focused on diversity and like-minded ideas and interests. Want to become a leader? Well, let’s show you how to run a huddle.

Q – Are there opportunities for the mature job seeker who doesn’t want an entry level position?

Voya Financial: We have many roles based on experience. You could start as a senior representative.

USAA: We’re willing to go externally to find certain skill sets and experience. We do try to promote from within but sometimes there’s a real need to find fresh blood.

Freedom Financial Network : It’s a combination. Some of our roles require experience, but in the call center experience is not necessarily needed. Sales experience can come from any industry. Roughly 50% of our roles are filled externally.

Farmers: Promoting from within is important. But we cast our hiring net externally, as well. I recently hired a director from the outside. We have an immediate need for analytics and reporting skills, which will likely come externally.

Q – What is your company’s policy on promoting from within?

Farmers: There are growth opportunities for everyone, regardless of tenure. We will help you prepare for that next job and fulfill your career potential.

Voya Financial: We have an 18-month requirement for eligibility due to the complexity of the entry level roles. We want you as an employee to be comfortable. However, there are times when the eligibility requirement is waived.

USAA: The timeframe is 12 to 18 months in the current job to be eligible for promotion. Many of those next roles will require licensing, so it can take some time to learn.

Freedom Financial Network: You must be in the role for three months. We know that people want to move up the career ladder. We do not have any license-required positions.

Q – With the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) how do you see technology impacting call center jobs? (from the audience)

Farmers: Technology, such as the bot, will have an impact on the most transactional of interactions with customers. However, there’s always going to be a need for critical thinking and emotional intelligence of the human being. We need empathy in the human contact. There will be a blend of technology and human interaction.

USAA: Our members want to talk with a human when they call in. The technology will make it easier to match the member with the representative that’s best equipped to assist a specific need or demographic.

Panel 2 – Culture & Employee Engagement

Drew Foster – American Express, Director of US Recruiting
Sherry McFadden – State Farm, Customer Care Center Director
Renee Brown – Vanguard, Senior Recruiter
Christine Sorensen – Charles Schwab, Team Manager Participant Services

Q – What does culture fit mean to you? What’s it like working for your company?

Vanguard: It’s a culture of empathy and communication. We all have to be mindful that the investment industry language can go over people’s head. We have a team environment focused on employee development.

Schwab: We’re here to help everyone grow and succeed. Someone’s always available to help, no matter what the situation. We conduct an assessment to determine ethics, teamwork and the type of work environment that would be the best fit for the candidate.

State Farm: We’re a relationship company steeped in integrity and tradition. We’re your neighbor. We’re there after a hurricane or an auto accident. That’s our culture, we care.

Q – How do you get your foot in the door? Do you have to start at entry level jobs?

AMEX: Some roles will require entry level experience at first, but not all. It depends on your skill set. I’m currently looking for workforce management skills, which does need entry level experience.

Vanguard: We’re regulated, so many roles require licensing and then you work your way up. You can pursue internal opportunities after one year. We have hired supervisors from the outside. About 85% of our hiring is from within.

Schwab: It really depends on your experience and license requirements of the role. We have lots of room for growth and it’s important to have those development discussions with your manager.

Q – What are the hot jobs at your company right now?

AMEX: Senior manager (supporting 18 cruise lines), director of workforce management, sales, fraud, team leaders.

State Farm: Enterprise technology, software development, coding, data scientist, frontline supervisors, bilingual supervisor, sales and service.

Vanguard: Data science, IT, senior financial planner.

Schwab: Always hiring in participant services and investor services. Our operation has 60 different departments and there are always openings.

Q – Describe the family friendliness of your call center. What support do you provide? (from the audience)

Vanguard: We have a 37.5-hour work week Monday through Friday. No weekends. All shifts end no later than 8:00 pm.

Schwab: Four 10-hour days are available. Paid four-week sabbatical every five years.

State Farm: H.O.P.E. – Helping Others Parent Effectively program.

AMEX: 20 weeks of maternity/paternity leave for parents.

Resource

Introducing – Career Connectors Academy Training Program

Landi Carfi, VP of Corporate Training – Brighton College

Brighton College is excited to announce its new partnership with Career Connectors that connects professionals in career transition to hiring companies and quality resources.

Career Connectors and Brighton College share similar values and focus on their clients, making both organizations stand out from the crowd. Brighton’s mission and goals ensure their students’ greatest success, and Career Connectors, as Arizona’s fastest growing job candidate program, strive to land people in the career of their dreams. They are working hand in hand to provide affordable online education certificate programs.

Based on Career Connectors’ partnership with Brighton College, a few of the best accredited online certificate programs are being offered to Career Connectors’ participants at a reduced rate. The online education certificate programs available include:

  • Cyber Security Institute
  • Business Institute
  • Allied Health Institute
  • Legal Medical Institute
  • Paralegal Institute
  • Professional Development

Event Sponsor

Optima Tax Relief

Ben Simpson – Vice President, Phoenix Operations

The Optima Tax Relief team has had one vision since inception – to help Americans nationwide deal with the aggressive collection policies of the State/IRS tax agencies.

  • Founded 2011
  • 80 employees in AZ; 100 by end of 2019
  • No tax knowledge required to get hired
  • Promote from within
  • Hiring leaders as operations grow
  • Team environment – “mischievous fun”

Open Positions
I/T Jr. Systems Administrator
Resolution Support Representative
Customer Service
Inside Sales

Resources and Closing

Jessica thanked the many partners and volunteers for their contributions to the Career Connectors event. Job seekers were encouraged to utilize the many transition resources – professional resume writers, career coaches, LinkedIn coaches and take the free DISC assessment. Next up on the calendar: Connecting with Top Staffing Firms to Find Your Next Career, Thursday August 15th in Scottsdale. Stay tuned for weekly emails and LinkedIn posts.