PowerTrain offers the solution of the virtual hiring fair (VHF), fitting in nicely with the modern cultural shift to more remote opportunities born from the restrictions on government travel and limitations on real-world hiring or career fair attendance during the pandemic. Our custom VHFs enable attendees to interact with hiring officials and HR representatives from their desktops at the office or from home.

Standard components and features we offer

RSVPs & surveys

Reach out to your attendees with RSVPs and after-action surveys. We create virtual registration websites that can be easily customized for you. Participants can RSVP to the event, and the RSVP can be customized to fit your event’s specific needs (e.g., asking participants if they need assistance with a reasonable accommodation request). In addition, we can deploy follow-up surveys to gather valuable data points from event participants (e.g., how many attendees were offered a job). RSVP and after-action survey data can be viewed and sorted online, and even exported to Excel for recordkeeping.

Calendars & catalogs

We can create a customized event calendar and catalog of live or pre-recorded virtual events. PowerTrain is experienced in creating calendars and catalogs specifically for virtual platforms. We provide technical support for the conference advertising, preparing communication materials and documents, registration, configuration, set-up, loading, Adobe Connect room preparation, captioning, and production of associated graphic material.

Screenshot of a landing page from the HR Training Conference catalog with some information, a video, and links to the Agenda, Registration, and FAQs.

Specifically, in 2015, PowerTrain supported OPM’s 2-day 2015 Federal Benefits Webinar with 8 sessions, including managing the conference webinars. With OPM, we also created the 2016 Virtual Human Resources Training Conference catalog of sessions (agenda).

We also supported the OPM Chief Human Capital Officers Council (CHCOC) 2016 Virtual Human Resources Training Conference. PowerTrain created, manages, and hosts the online communication center with the agenda, registration, and FAQs about the upcoming conference.

Plenary & other sessions

We can help you host a Plenary Session and other virtual events. PowerTrain is experienced in creating pre-recorded and live sessions for a virtual event. Fair attendees sign into the registration site, and on the live day (or any days you choose), attendees have access to the Hiring Fair pages. For example, a Welcome page can provide attendees with an overview of the hiring fair.

We can even include an on-screen avatar to serve as the hiring fair host. The host can welcome the fair participants, explain how to navigate the fair, present highlights from the fair agenda, facilitate the plenary session, and provide links to prerecorded videos from your managers and other personnel. The avatar can also make participants feel excited to go to the booths for job opportunities and other information.

Why choose a VHF over an in-person event?

The VHF is an economical alternative to costly in-person events. Avoid renting space, chairs, and tables. Don’t worry about traffic or travel. In an environment where the spending of government dollars is under increasing scrutiny, the VHF offers an economical and effective alternative to the traditional in-person career fair. With a VHF, session recording and archiving are available as well, which extend the life of your event and allow absent attendees to catch up on the information that was presented at the live event.

VHFs have no expiration date

The lifespan of the virtual event extends beyond the actual delivery dates. This is possible because all of the conference presentations, PowerPoint shows, and transcripts are recorded and available on an archived site. The videos are supported with synchronized transcripts as well as standalone text-based documents to ensure accessibility. In the case of OPM’s HR Training Conference, the material was available not only to the 2,400 paid participants, but also to over 4,800 HR professionals post-event, which adds a potential additional revenue stream.

VHFs can streamline your processes

Engage participants and conduct virtual interviews on the spot. We’ll get you set up with the virtual conferencing medium of your choice (e.g., Adobe Connect, Skype) so that your representatives can directly engage with participants with group or private presentations. Most often, agencies use Adobe Connect, which allows booth representatives to answer questions and schedule interviews for a later date or immediately interview participants in a private chat room.

Examples of PowerTrain’s VHF support work

Screenshot of an Adobe Connect meeting with 6 sections of information displayed including: a PowerPoint presentation, notes, a list of files, a list of the attendees, a general chat, and a Q&A chat.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) opted to display a PowerPoint overview and include other materials available for download.

Their Adobe Connect booth also included notes on how to apply for a job, a Q&A space, and an open chat for everyone who visited the booth. They scheduled virtual interviews and conducted them privately within the Adobe Connect breakout rooms.

Screenshot of an adobe connect meeting with 5 sections of information displayed including: two PowerPoint presentations, a list of the attendees, a generic chat, and a Q&A chat.

The Department of State prominently displayed contact information and highlighted the training offered to employees within their agency.

Use your virtual booth space to highlight what’s special about your organization, and use the Chat feature to engage with candidates. Schedule and conduct one-on-one or group interviews.