Training Seminar
Employment & Disability Forum
Overview
In this amazing two-day training event, Denise collaborates with her long-time friend and mentor Richard Pimentel of Milt Wright & Associates to deliver a truly unparalleled and one-of-a-kind learning experience. The Employment & Disability Forum is highly informative and deeply inspiring for those charged with assisting people with disabilities to find their place in the work world and engaging employers in the process of recruiting, hiring and retaining employees with disabilities. The combined talent of this dynamic duo guarantees a coupling of the philosophical with the practical, offering a reservoir of time-tested tools and hands-on methods for achieving placement results.
Topics Covered
With Day One devoted to preparing and working with the applicant, and Day Two devoted to working with the employer, the Forum is organized into four half-day sessions with designated themes in which Richard and Denise will each take an hour to present best practices and advice on that theme, followed by 30 minutes of dialogue and lively Q & A between the trainers and the Forum attendees.
Day One - Moving the Applicant Beyond Barriers to Possibility
Morning: Paradigm Shifts Regarding Ability and Disability
- Changing our questions to go beyond barriers to possibility
- Differentiating between job development and job placement
- Uncovering a person’s gifts, assets, and strengths
- A fresh philosophy of job placement for persons with disabilities.
- Focusing on the person rather than the disability
Afternoon: Empowering the Applicant in the Job Search
- Cultivating the spirit to work – issues of client motivation
- Differentiating between counseling and coaching
- Preparing the applicant and the employer for the interview
- The art of disclosing disability in the interview
- Identifying and asking for a reasonable accommodation
Day Two - Employer Engagement and Staying the Course
Morning: Getting Business on Board
- Developing partnerships with employers
- Assessing employer needs
- Developing effective communication
- The “New Hidden Job Market” for persons with disabilities
- New laws and implications for job development
- Disability language and etiquette for employers
Afternoon: Shifting of Mindsets – Employers’ and Our Own
- Resolving employer concerns about hiring people with disabilities
- Changing employer attitudes about people with disabilities
- How to keep on keepin' on when the going gets tough
- Thriving rather than surviving in the midst of challenges
- Strategizing next steps and bringing it all home!
Materials
Each Forum Attendee will receive a variety of handout materials relevant to the topics covered. (Customers will receive electronic documents from which to make printed copies for each attendee.) As an option, Customers can purchase copies of Beyond Traditional Job Development by Denise Bissonnette and Working With People With Disabilities in a Job Placement / Job Retention Environment by Richard Pimentel at a reduced rate.
Who Should Attend
This event will address the needs and challenges of anyone involved in the work of employment and disability including:
- Job developers
- Vocational rehab counselors
- Special education teachers
- Transition specialists
- Managers and supervisors of employment programs
- Workforce Development professionals
For More Information ...
Interested in having Denise and Richard conduct an Employment & Disability Forum for your organization? Or as a hosted event for your community? Please contact us for details at info@denisebissonnette.com.
Participant Comments
“This training has been completely invigorating. It has brought me back to the excitement and zeal I felt as a grad student and new counselor in the field. These speakers are truly gifted and attending this training will provide you with a new, overdue perspective on the work we do, the people we serve and why.”“Be ready to laugh, to cry, to look at everything differently.”
“It’s a must do for all job developers, especially for those who work in disability.”
“You will leave feeling empowered and inspired to help not only others but yourself.”
“Leave your own preconceived notions at home and be ready to be renewed, refreshed and refitted!”
“This training will impact your life, make a difference in the work you do and not only re-energize your passion, but provide concrete tools to use with clients.”
