2022-2023 Wise Webinar Series

  Building Professional Rapport and Relationships in the Field

As Employment Services staff, you are the front lines not only for your organization, but for an entire social movement. Your day-to-day interactions with families, participants, employers, coworkers and even your own agency leadership define whether you are seen and respected as a “Professional”. No pressure! Whether you are new staff or “seasoned”, join us for learning and discussion to enhance professionalism so that more than ever we all will be seen as the committed, trained and supported people that are changing the face of inclusion in our community – one supported employee at a time!

Learning Objectives

• Ways to quickly establish professional communication in your day-to-day interactions
• Techniques to showcase your expertise and training (especially when you’re new)
• How you can use appearance, body language and non-verbal communication skills to get instant respect
• Follow-up strategies that will increase your chances of being heard

 Anee-Marie Lake

Anne-Marie Lake came to the field of Supported Employment in 2012 with a varied background in fundraising, marketing/communications, vocal performance, teaching and direct support/management. Anne-Marie holds a B.A. in Interpersonal Communication from Seattle Pacific University and is a Certified Employment Specialist through Highline College. Working in one of Washington state’s top providers of customized, integrated employment and transition services, she learned job development and job coaching, positive behavior support and person-centered approaches. Working successively as an Employment Consultant, Program Manager, Recruiter and finally Training Manager, she gained in-depth knowledge of the systems and processes that contribute to agency-wide success in the field.  Her passion lies in training and developing staff so they can achieve best outcomes, promoting the career opportunities this field offers and bringing different groups together to work on joint projects that benefit those we serve.

When not at work, you might find Anne-Marie hiking in the woods with her husband, doing science projects with her grandson, leading the church choir or coaxing flowers and veggies to grow big in small spaces.