Where Will Your Packing Job Take Your Career?
Working in distribution centers and warehouses all over the country, packers play a vital role in the production and shipment of goods, pulling merchandise from shelves and preparing them for delivery. It’s a balancing act of teamwork and beating deadlines, and skill to locate, pack, and ship items in large facilities.
While no two career journeys will be alike, there are few milestones you can expect to reach when forging a warehouse/logistics career as a packer.
Get Training and Certification
For many areas in the warehousing and logistics industry, it’s always a good idea to have training or a relevant certification. While many jobs in the warehouse and logistics industry require a college background, you can always go for certifications.
For example, the American Moving and Storage Association offers an AMSA’s Certified Packer Loader (CPL) Program offers onsite training for packers and loaders. You can also look for other certifications in fields such as management, interpersonal relationships, and logistics.
Remember, the more training and certificates you have under your belt, the more valuable you are as a jobseeker.
Building Your Skillset
While education is certainly important in the warehouse and logistics industry, most employers ultimately care more about skills and experience. When you get your start as a packer, do your best to gather as much insight into how the industry works. Looking at how teams function, understanding the importance of time management, and talking to your supervisors are all good ways to absorb as many things as you can.
If you want to start a career in food manufacturing, you can even work part-time on weekends at a local bakery to understand how food production works. If consumer electronics is more your thing, it’s a good idea to take short courses on computer hardware assembly.
If you want your packer job to be a stepping stone to bigger things in the near future, take the initiative to learn as much as you can about your target career path.
Working with Recruitment Firms
Once you’ve developed your skills and experience, you need to find the best opportunities to grow your career. While you can always scour the Internet for open positions and make cold calls to potential employers, the easier and more efficient way of staying in the loop is to work with recruitment specialists who do all the work of finding opportunities that match your experience and skills. Their success depends on matching you with the right opportunity, so it’s in their best interest to help you find your dream job.
If you need more career advice and assistance in your job search, talk to the staffing services experts of The Reserves Network. Schedule a consultation with our team to learn more about how our recruitment solutions can help you.
