On ThE JOb
What Employers Want

To Protect
The ToTAl PicTuRe
lieutenant raul munguia, who is in charge of and
recruiting for the austin police department, says
Serve
that the organization tries to get “a total picture”
of the people they hire. The department runs
extensive background checks on potential hires.
It looks at the kind of friends the applicants spend
time with, their finances, and whether they worked
hard to get through school and helped to earn their
way with part-time work.
“Job hopping is not a good sign,” he says, nor is
running up big credit card debt. “Being financially
stable is a sign of maturity,” he adds.
A cleAn RecoRd
danny grizzard is regional vice president of the
wackenhut corporation and in charge of the area
that includes Texas. The organization provides
security personnel to businesses and other ReWARdS ARe hiGh, boredom is low, and every
organizations. Because it gives extensive training to
day brings a new challenge—that’s life on the job in
its employees, grizzard says, the company prefers
to hire people who have a good work history, a law, Public Safety, corrections & Security careers.
clean credit record, and no criminal history. “we’re
looking for people with good customer service skills
and an understanding of basic business skills,”
he says. many of the company’s new hires have C
ommunication is a constant in law and writing, and researching. If practicing criminal
public safety careers. Reading, writing, law, they also rely on investigative skills and
and public speaking are integral parts of must dig through police and lab reports, view
military experience or have taken college classes in daily work in law enforcement, firefighting, videotapes, and interview witnesses.
criminal justice or business. and legal practice. Sergeant Jim Beck of the
Austin Police Department says police officers, Technology use
TeAm PlAyeRS for example, must be able to write well and Individuals in these professions use technology
carter crow, who cochairs the employment recall detailed facts when composing incident daily on the job. Beck says the speed at which
committee of the Houston office of the prominent reports. “You have to be able to articulate what technology is advancing adds excitement to
international law firm fulbright & Jaworski, happened, what you did, and why,” says Beck, his job. “You really are getting an opportunity
says he is “looking for people who have good a 12-year veteran. to work with some of the cutting-edge tools
communication skills and writing ability, who Police officers and firefighters often interact in order to help you fight crime.” A patrol
have good and engaging personalities, with the public, which requires good public car computer allows officers to research
and who are team players and hard and speaking and social skills. Routine duties in outstanding warrants and drivers’ licenses
diligent workers.” These traits are difficult both fields include giving presentations to in the field. Global Positioning System
to see in a resume, so the firm looks children and adults about fire prevention, software shows some officers where they
for people who are “consistently personal safety, and crime prevention. are being dispatched to and displays the
placed in leadership roles in the Presentation skills are essential for quickest route there.
organizations that they join.” lawyers presenting cases before a Firefighters in Beaumont who respond to
perhaps the most important judge or jury, but they aren’t a a hazardous material spill review a chemical
qualification, however, is requirement for all attorneys. inventory list online from their trucks to
the ability to write well, he “Some civil law attorneys never confirm how best to safely contain and clean
observes. law school exams end up in court,” says Cindy up the chemical, says Captain Patrick Grimes,
are given in an essay format, Greenleaf, a former attorney and a 27-year veteran firefighter.
he points out, so that a criminal justice instructor Attorneys have access to wireless Internet
success in classes that are for the Denton Independent and computerized projection/video/audio
oriented toward research School District. Greenleaf equipment in some courtrooms. This allows
and writing can be an adds that attorneys them to do on-the-spot research and give
important indicator of practicing civil, criminal, multimedia presentations. Research that once
potential success in a or administrative law was performed using a law library is now done
law firm. spend a lot of time reading, primarily online.
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