From the April - June 2022 Jersey Sierran
A few months into our Hiring Committee’s search for a new Chapter Director, I took part in a one-hour training webinar on recruitment that proved invaluable. In the webinar I was advised that it was perfectly fine to call potential job candidates and ask them to apply.
Using that incredibly helpful advice, I thought of individuals I had interacted with regarding the environment over the last several years and then reached out to a few and asked if they were interested in the position.
Among those was one who had volunteered with our Chapter for several months before the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) realized her value and snatched her away.
Trying to remember her name, I searched through previous issues of The Jersey Sierran until I found her.
As luck would have it, this individual had sent me her resume when seeking a volunteer position with our NJ Chapter.
At that time her resume listed a master’s degree in environmental chemistry, air pollution science and technology, as well as numerous skills including experimental design, research, statistical analysis, data visualization and manipulation, technical writing, and public speaking.
The resume also included a phone number.
Dialing that number, I found that it was still working; and when that previous Chapter volunteer picked up, I asked if she’d be interested in applying for Chapter Director.
The thing was that she held a secure job at the DEP and had been promoted twice since starting there five years earlier.
Nonetheless, Anjuli Ramos-Busot not only expressed interest, she applied!
By providing satisfactory answers to written questions, Anjuli qualified for a telephone screening and aced it. She then passed a virtual interview by our full Hiring Committee and became a finalist, receiving a second virtual interview and submitting a writing sample.
Of course, there were a number of other applicants—in fact, there were literally scores of them, some with strong backgrounds in politics or fundraising. No one could possibly have all the skills that could be helpful for a Chapter Director.
But Anjuli was unique not only because of her very strong environmental science background and ardent environmentalist nature, but also because even under challenging situations she could get along with a range of different people, from shy potential volunteers to strong-willed politicians and (perhaps the most difficult) other professional environmentalists.
Since coming on board, Anjuli has already demonstrated her interpersonal skills by developing effective synergy with her staff, our volunteers, national-level Club staff members, journalists, public officials—even her professional counterparts in other environmental groups!
After having worked with our new Chapter Director since November, I am delighted to state unequivocally that I am really glad we hired her and hope she stays with us for many years. And I am confident that she will only become better the longer she stays!