I Turned a Temp Project Into a Career – I’ve Already Been Promoted

By Jezabel Southard

Posted on November 10, 2017

Clark Hamby is a skilled sales professional with experience doing group sales for ski resorts. More recently, he did event/ sales management for elementary school fundraisers.

While he enjoyed the work he was doing, he felt that his employer was not the right fit for him.

He decided that it was time to find something new.

An online job search led him to TERRA, a top temp agency in Kirkland.

Clark had never worked with a staffing firm and was not really sure what to expect. He had only heard of pay-for services.  Discovering that working with TERRA was completely free was a nice surprise.

Though he was primarily interested in sales work, he kept an open mind to other opportunities, just to make some money.

Yevon Yoo, Kirkland Recruiter, shared, “He successfully completed several short-term, light industrial projects for us, while we tried to find him a long-term role in line with his needs. He proved to be incredibly reliable and never called out of work once.”

“TERRA kept me steadily employed, even if I was doing temp work. I never went a week without work,” Clark said.

When one of her clients had an opening for a Corporate Customer Account Representative, Yevon immediately thought of Clark. “He had solid customer service experience working in fast-paced, somewhat chaotic environments. He had a strong work ethic and had the strong computer skills the client was looking for. Clark also had some leadership experience, which meant that he could problem-solve and think independently.”

The client brought Clark on board for a temp project, to help support their busy season.

This temp project allowed him to see how this employer handled pressure – and he was impressed. “The company really held itself together,” he said.  “No one got mad. This is not a team that lets stress get to them. Everyone stays smiling and remains friendly.”

During this time, the client also began to appreciate Clark.  They saw the value he brought to the company.

That’s why, despite hiring him for a two-week temp assignment, the client decided to offer him full-time, regular employment!

Wait. The story gets better. Three week after being hired on, his manager told him about an opening in the logistics department.

“Clark was promoted, not one, but two levels! He went from customer service to logistics and received a significant bump in pay, too!” exclaimed Yevon.

“They absolutely love Clark,” she stated. “They think he is a great find and love his go-getter attitude, his friendly nature and the fact that he is incredibly customer-centric.”

We asked Clark to share the secret to his success in turning a temp project into a career.

“I know my value and I know I work hard. I observed how much work people were putting in and stepped up to help out whenever I could.

If you are looking for a new job, keep your options open. I wasn’t looking for a logistics job, but here I am. I love the team and people I work with. This is huge for me. I like what my company stands for and I like the work that I am doing – making sure that the product gets from point A to point B. Making sure we succeed.

Keep your work ethic strong, no matter how short the job is. And always keep smiling.”

Great advice, Clark! You are proof that temporary jobs can open the door for new career opportunities!.

How TERRA Can Help You

Need help finding your next job?

TERRA Staffing is a leading temp agency that works with companies large and small, across a variety of industries. We can help you take your career to the next level.

Getting started with us is easy. Just check out our current job openings.

We have offices in the Seattle-Puget Sound, Portland-Metro, and Phoenix-Metro areas and our expert recruiters are waiting to speak with you!

Categories: Success Stories

Tags: Kirkland, Success Story, temp project, turn a temp project into a career

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