Age: 25
Position: Sales & Customer Service Rep
Employer: Acquirent
Employed since: January 2018
Nathan Soto was referred to Youth Job Center through a few of his friends. Nathan previously lived in California, where he pursued his college education, but due to personal reasons he had to drop out his last year. After moving back to Evanston, he came in to receive services so he could get back on the path to a career.
Nathan came to YJC for our January Job-readiness training, where he attended orientation and successfully committed to and completed the process. After speaking and spending time with Nathan, YJC staff recognized a certain spark and realized just how ready he was to commit to his success. Upon discovering his interest and work history, we found that Nathan was very interested in marketing and sales, and has future goals to start a career in coding so that one day he can become a computer programmer.
Nathan is twenty-five years old, so he qualifies for the CORE services here at YJC. YJC’s CORE services consist of training in soft skills such as, but not limited to: communication styles, conflict resolution, work place etiquette and expectations, as well as resume development, and interview prep and practice. Nathan, already very bright, educated, and very well spoken, showed signs of advancement and YJC staff recognized his talents and skills very quickly. Our staff gave him that extra positive, encouraging support he needed to get on his way and we are proud to say that Nathan has found employment.
Upon completing the JRT sessions, YJC staff connected with Acquirent, a sales and marketing company here in Evanston, and found they had a full-time sales position open. Being that Nathan has experience in sales and marketing and lives in Evanston, that made him a great candidate. YJC staff connected the dots and encouraged Nathan to apply while we mailed Nathan’s name and resume to Acquirent. He quickly received a call and secured his interview, and then came back to YJC to practice interview prep. YJC also provided him with appropriate clothing to ensure he would be presentable and successful at his interview. Due to Nathan’s dedication and determination to become stable and successful in his life, and with our assistance, he experienced a remarkably quick turnaround and was able to find employment in a field that interested him and offers career advancement potential. He came in one week to start the process of seeking assistance and obtaining support for a career path, and exactly one week later he attended, and exceeded expectations at his interview, where he was offered the position full time Sales Associate starting in late January 2018. Way to go Nathan!
