Jobs Pipeline Success Stories

Shown above: Don Hoke (right), Ohio City Power Jobs Coach assists Ohio City Power Friend Adrian Whitmore (left) with resume building and preparing for an employment interview process at St. Paul's Community Church & Outreach, 4427 Franklin Blvd. in Cleveland, Ohio. Photo: Image: Resume Discussion. © Alice Merkel.

Ohio City Power Jobs Pipeline Connects People To Jobs

Lisa Braun, Executive Director, Ohio City Power, builds active partnerships with large regional workforce development organizations. 

One such partnership connects Lisa Braun, Executive Director of Ohio City Power, Gayle Thompkins Agahi, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Talent Acquisition and Human Resources at the Cleveland Clinic and Stephanie Rychel, Business Services Assistant Manager at Employment Connection to form a team that helps the homeless and jobless in the neighborhoods of the City of Cleveland, Ohio gain employment.

Shown above: Stephanie Rychel, Business Services Assistant Manager, Employment Connection; Lisa Braun, Exec. Dir., Ohio City Power; and Gayle T. Agahi, Director, Strategic Partnerships, Talent Acquisition and Human Resources, Cleveland Clinic.
Image: Natural Light. © Alice Merkel.

It is because of this team's strong spirit of collaboration to share resources and skills, that Ohio City Power programs and services are able to successfully facilitate and support real connections between Cleveland's labor force and employment opportunities.

One Case Of Willingness And Initiative

A new member of the Ohio City Power workforce program, Tyrone Hennessee, began to take advantage of the collaboration with Employment Connection to get back on the path to employment! A path that can lead to a future position at the Cleveland Clinic. 

Tyrone describes his experiences beginning with Ohio City Power's Job Coaching Services led by Don Hoke, Member, Federated Church Elderlife, at St. Paul's Community Church on the city's near west side, to attending the Employment Connection Workshop in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. 

Tyrone offered to share the e-mail excerpts below detailing his journey in the Ohio City Power jobs "pipeline" - a pathway of action steps that support and affirm individual initiative to secure employment. 

"I met with Don on the 16 of November. We talked about my resume and completed the employment connection online work sheet. The next step required an introduction to the program. I met with staff to talk about the different services that Employment Connection has to offer. The only thing the staff wanted from the group, a resume and the online work sheet. I log on to find my resume, but could not remember the pass word. The staff ask for my name and found my resume." - Tyrone, from email

"The first day of class we discuss interview questions. The Employment Connection provided each member in the work shop class, with a book that contain different resume formats and mock interview questions." - Tyrone, from email

"Tuesday, the class was given a homework assignment on a thirty second mock interview. The mock interview question was so tell me about yourself. While keeping your statements under thirty seconds, and providing the right information for the job/career of choice. Each individual in the class was out of time and embarrassed. I started talking about sports and how nice the weather is. The correct way to answer the question "tell me about yourself", is to show how my experience relates to the job that i am interviewing for. My time was not good, my time over one minute."- Tyrone, from email

Ohio City Power Programs Helps People With Needs
 

Shown above: Jessica Montgomery (left) stands with Stephanie Rychel, Business Services Consultant (center), and Lisa Braun Founder & Exec. Dir., Ohio City Power (right). Jessica participated in a week-long Career Advancement Skills Workshop hosted by Employment Connection.

Ohio City Power provides support to applicants by helping participants meet sometimes strict clothing requirements when attending workshop sessions, offering a small stipend to pay for public transportation or providing lunch coupons for the week. 

Visit the Ohio City Power website to donate here.

Most people gratefully accept; Tyrone, however, was one who turned down Ohio City Power's offer to provide lunch and bus fare assistance choosing instead to walk everyday to class, paying it forward for the next participant in the Pipeline. (See Cleveland Bus Transit Map below)

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End Of Story For Tyrone?

Tyrone went on to successfully complete the Ohio City Power and Employment Connection requirements and apply online for several job openings. An interview was scheduled for December 5, 2012.

April 2013 update: Tyrone continues to apply to open job positions at the Cleveland Clinic.

- Written by Albert Wagner, Operations Manager, Ohio City Power; Edited and Published by Betsey Merkel

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