From Temporary Jobs to Enduring Skills: Building a Better Career

Rodney Bey II has always been good with numbers, a skill he flashed in high school and continued to develop in college. Although he didn't complete his degree, he parlayed his acumen into a series of accounting jobs. 

The roles were temporary, but they created an enduring foundation of experiential learning. Bey became well versed in accounts receivable, accounts payable, reconciliation, and collections.

But with his nine years of accounting experience accruing via a series of temporary assignments, Bey wasn’t able to secure a rewarding career pathway. Build Better Careers changed that.

Build Better Careers is made possible by a $15.7 million grant from Truist Foundation. The national project is dedicated to helping workers without a college degree access rewarding career pathways in high-growth sectors. Program partners include workforce training providers, community-based organizations, institutions of higher education, and employers. Build Better Careers is active in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Northern Virginia; Memphis; South Florida; and Charlotte, where Bey lives.

Bey heard about Build Better Careers from a trustworthy source: his mother. "She was telling me about the program the whole time," said Bey. "From what I was hearing, it sounded like something that was right up my alley to do."

Bey's mother had completed the BankWork$ program through CareerWork$, which helped her secure a banking job. CareerWork$, a Build Better Career partner, offers an eight-week program that adult learners complete at no cost to them. In addition to covering core banking skills, the classes offer job hunting and networking support. 

Bey wasn't able to land a spot in the cohort immediately after his mother's, but he persisted. "I really felt like the program was an opportunity to change my career path, so I tried to get into the cohort after the one I was denied for and I got in."

"All the subjects were very beneficial because I had never been in banking before," said Bey. "I gained a strong banking foundation being in the Bankwork$/Build Better Careers program."

Bey completed his classes, which were hosted at Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, another Build Better Careers partner, last November. Their supplemental skills building took the training to the next level, he said. "Being able to network with actual professionals in the industry was extremely beneficial to getting noticed in the industry. Hunting for a job was a lot different because Goodwill provided a team of people to help you get prepared for interviews and to tell you about job opportunities."

For Bey, Build Better Careers' greatest impact came from the opportunity to network and complete mock interview practice with real banking professionals. "I made sure to take advantage of the opportunity to network by networking with every speaker we had come to speak," he said.

It was through such interaction that Bey landed a job with Fifth Third Bank as a personal banker less than two weeks after completing the program. "Fifth Third was one of the banks that came to our job fair after the graduation, and one of their representatives had also helped with the mock interviews we did during class," said Bey. "They encouraged us all to apply to Fifth Third because they were hiring and were really interested in hiring people from the Bankwork$/Build Better Careers program. I made sure to apply and reference the program."

The job has afforded him an opportunity to work with two of his favorite things: numbers and people. "I like talking to people and being able to help them reach their financial goals by educating them on their options and things they should generally know about finance," he said.

He also has some educational advice for fellow adult learners who may not be sure about taking the next step in their own education and employment pathways.

"I sat in the back of the class and I was one of the most noticeable people in the class. I made sure I stood out by asking questions and networking. I say that to say that what you get out of the program all depends on what you put into it. It doesn't matter where you are in the room or in life. I was at a point where a change in the right direction had to happen, so I was determined to get the most out of the class and turn it into a new career. If I can do it, anyone can do it. You just have to believe in yourself and the process. Take it seriously and put your all into it and positive results can happen."