Yadira Ocon is a Case Manager at the San Diego Workforce Partnership. Here she tells us about herself, both personally and professionally.
What is a typical day like for you? 
My day begins with an early wake-up bark from my 7 month old Siberian Husky named Sampson. After my husband and I play rock, paper, scissors to figure out who will get up first with Sampson, he is then walked and fed.
Coffee is made and my day begins with reaching out to job seekers who are actively looking for internship or employment opportunities to showcase their skills in our TechHire program. Meeting virtually with TechHire participants is my favorite part of my day. Building relationships with other departments in our organization along with community partners is an important part of my day as well.
Besides connecting with job seekers, my day includes connecting with my co-workers on impromptu video conferencing, executing recruitment efforts for TechHire and learning different strategies to improve the trajectory of information, communications and technology careers. My day ends with facetiming my children who live in Buffalo, NY and Anaheim, CA.
How has your work changed during the pandemic?
Working from home has changed my perspective on how I can continue to be productive and successful in TechHire. One of the things I enjoyed the most
about my program was the face-to-face meetings I had as part of the enrollment process. At that time, I was able to assess the participant’s technical skills, job readiness abilities and understand some of their personality traits by observing body language. The shift to virtual meetings has compelled me to find small new ways to engage and connect with participants where I can still achieve the objectives of the original face to face meetings.
One of my goals is to make participants feel connected and engaged, despite meeting on screen so they can feel supported and hopeful during their time with TechHire. Getting over my shyness over video conferencing was my first step to make things better. By feeling confident in my virtual engagement skills, I can create a safe environment to foster open communication and connection.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working? Any new hobbies since we started working from home?
When I am not working I enjoy spending time with my husband, visiting family, teaching my puppy new tricks and discovering new places to hike or go eat that are pet-friendly. I also enjoy watching movies and any historical romance dramas. My husband and I are huge Outlander fans.