Over 1,000 candidates attended the 3rd annual Chicago LatPro / NSHP bilingual professional job fair at Navy Pier on March 2009. Despite the cold weather, many professional bilingual candidates lined up eager to meet with potential employers including First Northern Credit Union, Boy Scouts of America, SPX Cooling Technologies, State Farm, BP, AXA Advisors, U.S. Department of State and many more. Furthermore, we had the participation of other professional organizations such as SHPE that encourage networking amongst the Hispanic professional community.
This is our 3rd consecutive show in Chicago, and it just keeps on improving every year. This year we had almost 50% more candidates than in 2008, and most importantly their professionalism has also increased. Every crisis brings opportunity, and during our first two job fairs of 2009 I’ve noticed how the preparation level and eagerness of candidates has increased. Job seekers are doing research on the exhibitors before attending the shows, bringing plenty of resumes, dressing professionally and pitching an introductory speech to the recruiters to try to stand out from other job seekers.
Another motivating factor is the recognition that LatPro / NSHP job fairs is gaining amongst recruiters. Most if not all are very pleased with the quantity and quality of applicants, which is why they continue to recruit at our job fairs. In addition, we had live broadcasts and news clips from FOX News Channel 5, Channel 7 and WGN Chicago. All of these details add up and create even more awareness for the Hispanic and bilingual professional community, and helps us get together to network to obtain better positions. I also enjoy being able to meet some of our 5,000+ members in person, and sharing a few words with each one of you.
