L to R: David Dwyer, Lauren Watson, Chessa Smith
(Annapolis, MD) On August 29, 2024, Lauren Watson, Career Resource Specialist on the Greater Annapolis team, was presented with a Success at Work award during a team meeting. She was nominated for the award by Director Chessa Smith. Since the award’s inception in 2000, Work Opportunities Unlimited (WOU) has presented the Success at Work award to honor and recognize team members who have delivered outstanding service to our clients consistent with the company’s core values.
Chessa states, “Lauren has been with WOU for just over a year and in that time, she has proven her dedication to the mission, her clients, and her teams. She works hard to inspire team members and her clients in all the core values, but it’s her drive to continuously improve that stands out above the rest.” For example, Lauren’s work with workplace readiness training classes resulted in engaging lessons that encouraged class participation and energized clients to learn and grow. She excelled at making material relatable, giving great examples to show the “why” so clients could have the tools to do more on their own with continued success.
Lauren’s tenacity to help her clients succeed is exemplified by one of her first clients, whom she had placed at a grocery store near his home. His customer-facing role was not the best fit for him, so Lauren met with the individual’s managers to try different departments and tasks. It was clear that it was time to search for a different job for the individual. He felt defeated in his role and expectations, but Lauren helped him see it as a learning opportunity. Together they found a role at a different employer as a backroom associate where the individual would excel, and Lauren advocated for her client to ask for accommodations that made him feel secure and comfortable. With Lauren’s support, the individual was able to navigate the disappointment of leaving a job and celebrate the empowerment of beginning a new role he loved.
During the award presentation David Dwyer and Chessa Smith presented Lauren with a certificate which read:
For her commitment to our core value, “We are never satisfied.” As a Career Resource Specialist on the Greater Annapolis team, Lauren has proven her dedication to her clients, her team members, and all of the company’s core values, but it is her drive to continuously improve that truly stands out. She is always seeking out knowledge, a different approach, a refined training, a new way to overcome challenges, and soliciting innovative ways to excel each day. She shines at building relationships, growing business connections, and successful client placement with the Maryland team and beyond. Lauren has led in placements in Annapolis since joining the team thanks to her tenacity, determination, and full embrace of WOU’s best practices. Her hard work to always improve is an inspiration!
