TANF Employment Specialist - Goodwill of Colorado

Applications due by July 12, 2024

Hybrid Remote Opportunity!

Pay: $24 per hour

This position is eligible for Daily Pay!  Work today, get paid today! We’ve partnered with DailyPay, a voluntary benefit to offer employees access to their pay on their own schedule.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am-4:30pm - Hybrid Remote Work Schedule 

This full-time position is eligible for Medical, Dental, Vision, Short Term Disability, Life/Accidental Death and Dismemberment, Flexible Spending Accounts, Long Term Disability, and several voluntary supplemental benefit offerings.  In addition, these positions are eligible for paid time off in the form of vacation, sick, holiday, floating holiday, jury duty and bereavement leave. All employees may also make pre-tax or post-tax (Roth) contributions to our retirement plan – must be 18 years of age to participate.

OBJECTIVE:

The Employment Specialist/Job Developer will assist in the Community Work Experience Program (CWEP) non-profit sites, Alternative Work Experience Program (AWEP) for profit sites, subsidized, and unsubsidized employment placement and oversight of Colorado Works program participants entering work experience programs in order that program participants gain employment experience.  To monitor the delivery of services and the progress of the participant through the program.  To develop work program sites and maintain them to provide optimal employment experience opportunities in varied job fields that will benefit participants. The Liaison/Job Developer will assist clients one on one with resume building and mock interviewing and work with case managers and the TANF Instructor to provide tailored job leads to clients. 

QUALIFICATIONS:

Minimum Qualifications:  High school diploma or equivalent. Minimum two years work experience in the same or related field.  Must have significant experience working in a social work atmosphere, understand the culture of poverty, and successfully navigating community, government and corporate programs with complex rules and regulations.

• Must have excellent written, digital, and verbal communication skills.  

• Must be able to communicate respectfully, effectively both one-on-one and able to create materials to be understood by and appeal to a wide audience.

• Must have demonstrated success maintaining relationships with key contacts and groups for the purpose of referrals to programs, knowledge sharing about opportunities available through those relationships to gain inside information about best practices for navigating various bureaucracies.

• Must have the ability to work independently, cooperatively and exercise effective planning while remaining flexible and deal with the pressure of deadlines effectively

• Organizational skills required 

• Experience maintaining positive relationships with key internal stakeholders and identifying key success criteria in conjunction with leadership and stakeholders, implementation of initiatives and maintaining tracking of statistical information to demonstrate success of program.

• Demonstrated success in the provision of customer delight through active listening, expectation setting and timely, consistent follow up.

• Must have demonstrated experience with successfully maintain confidentiality.

• The incumbent must have current experience working 1 on 1 with persons faced with disadvantages such as: TANF, Food Assistance, Medicaid, Medicare, Disabilities (diagnosed and undiagnosed), justice involved, Mental Health homelessness, and food insecurity.

• The incumbent must have business networking experience within the city of Denver and outlying areas The incumbent must be personable, present self in a business  professional manner and have the ability to interact with diverse customers (participants, employees, referral sources and business to business) in order to build sound working relationships. 

• The incumbent must also develop amicable and productive relationship with referred families and a variety of CWEP participant sites, the Department of Human Services and Goodwill staff

• The incumbent must be a self-starter, demonstrating the ability to stay focused and disciplined while being flexible to the demands of the job

• The Job Developer must have experience speaking effectively to various small groups in a presenting/informative role

• The incumbent will be expected to maintain confidentiality regarding agency and client records and information.

A valid Colorado driver’s license without a history of violations is also required.  Overtime and/or weekend hours may be required when necessary as well as some travel to attend meetings and required training.   

Per contract requirements with vehicle insurance provider: Qualified candidates must be 21 years of age and have no major traffic violations for previous 3 years (for driving/insurance purposes). Must have reliable transportation; must also be able to operate company vehicle.

KEY RESPONSIBILITY AREAS:

Site Development/Maintenance

• The Job Developer will assist in developing and managing a variety of not-for-profit and for-profit work sites for participants to complete their required work hours and gain employment experience. 

• The incumbent will work cross functionally with transitional jobs and other work programs to develop and evolve stable and suitable sites for all work programs for TANF participants.  

• In addition, the incumbent will complete and maintain all paperwork for sites and monitor clients’ progress/attendance to provide data and feedback to Case Managers on a timely basis.

• Will meet all deadlines of data submission 

Client/Program Tracking and Reporting

• The Job Developer will maintain complete and accurate records and statistical data as required, will monitor individual client participation, and keep all workers informed of their clients’ progress as well as any changes.  

• The incumbent will keep complete and accurate records and statistics on all participants for outcomes to be completed monthly.  

• The incumbent will keep up to date on all Federal State rules and regulations for work programs, County policies and procedures, directives, systems, forms, and available professional material pertaining to and applicable to this position.  

• The incumbent will also compile and report statistical and various outcomes to the Manager, maintain operational proficiency on automated data processing system, make appropriate entries in a timely manner and extract data, as necessary.  

• Keep accurate records of jobs obtained, utilizing direct contacts, collateral contacts, and other means to obtain information.  

Relationship Management 

• The Job Developer is responsible for establishing and maintaining a positive and professional relationship with all work sites, customers, vendors, clients, and Goodwill’s corporate staff; presenting a positive image of the company to the customer, demonstrating courtesy and professionalism in every task and communication.  

• The incumbent is responsible for working successfully with the Goodwill management team, Case Management, and DHS staff to work effectively across internal organizational and functional boundaries to provide integrated solutions while leveraging cross-disciplinary knowledge.

• The Job Developer will deal effectively and calmly with non-routine situations following accepted guidelines and perform other duties as required by the Manager. 

• The incumbent will assist with special projects and serve on committees as needed and attend all pertinent staff and other meetings as required.

• Serves as a primary source of information and resources for participants about programs and job opportunities in the community

Research and Industry Involvement

• The Job Developer is required to research in order to keep skills and knowledge updated by reading trade journals, various appropriate Intranet and Internet sources as well as print media as needed to be aware of trends, theories or initiatives within Case Management, Work Experience, Job Placement and other applicable programs and services. 

• The incumbent will maintain a working and current knowledge of all laws, regulations, policies, directives, systems forms and available professional material pertaining to and applicable to this position.  

• Maintains detailed information of key community resources, Housing, transportation, Child Care, Employment Opportunities  

• The incumbent will seek out seminars and symposiums for ideas and stay current with trends in new software, tools, and resources available.  

• The Job Developer must also maintain a working and current knowledge of Goodwill Industries’ policies and procedures as well as community resources, services available through Denver Department of Human Services and all classes offered through TANF. 

Direct Client Support 

• The Job Developer will work with clients one on one to provide resume assistance and mock interviewing practice 

• The Job Developer will provide tailored job leads to clients through collaboration with case managers and provide weekly job leads to the case management team 

• The Job Developer will assist the TANF Instructor by presenting on CWEP sites and through other job development efforts based on individual client goals

Communication

• Using the Platinum rule: Treating the participants in a manner the participant would like to be treated

• Clear, transparent, and collaborative manner of speaking 

• Confidentiality is of the utmost importance.  Keeping confidentiality regarding the agency, client records and all information.

• Focusing on long- and short-term goals using motivational interviewing to support each participant to successfully move in a self-sufficient pathway.

• Treating others with the utmost respect; including respectful verbiage, tone of voice and body language.

Goodwill is an Equal Opportunity Employer dedicated to employing qualified individuals including those with disabilities, protected veterans and military spouses. 

Goodwill participates in E-Verify.  For more information on E-Verify, please contact DHS:  888-897-7781 or www.dhs.gov/E-Verify

We promote a Safe & Drug-free Workplace.

Physical Requirements

Attachment to Job Description

Position:  Liaison I, TANF Dept Number: 5062

(This information is required to ensure compliance with various workplace regulations.  Please identify each physical activity required in the performance of this position using the guide below)  

Guide to Physical Requirements:

• Continuously (5-8 hours)

• Frequently (3-4 hours)

• Occasionally (1-2 hours)

• Never

LIFTING: (as defined by ADA)

   Heavy: 45 lbs & over - OCCASIONALLY

   Moderate: 15-44 lbs - OCCASIONALLY

   Light: 14 lbs & under - OCCASIONALLY

CARRYING:

   Heavy: 45 lbs & over - OCCASIONALLY

   Moderate: 15-44 lbs - OCCASIONALLY

   Light: 14 lbs & under - OCCASIONALLY

PUSHING/PULLING - OCCASIONALLY

REACHING:

   Above Shoulder - OCCASIONALLY

   At Shoulder - OCCASIONALLY

   Below Shoulder - OCCASIONALLY

TWISTING - OCCASIONALLY

BENDING - OCCASIONALLY

KNEELING/CRAWLING - OCCASIONALLY

SQUAT - OCCASIONALLY

CLIMBING:

   Use of legs only (stairs) - OCCASIONALLY

   Use of arms & legs (ladders) - OCCASIONALLY

HEARING - CONTINUOUSLY

VISION:

   Visual, close - FREQUENTLY

   Visual, distant - FREQUENTLY

   Visual, depth perception - FREQUENTLY

HANDS/FINGERS:

   Simple grasping - FREQUENTLY

   Fine Manipulation - FREQUENTLY

   Repetitive Movements - FREQUENTLY

WALKING - FREQUENTLY

STANDING - FREQUENTLY

SITTING - FREQUENTLY

SPEAKING - FREQUENTLY

OTHER, please describe - 

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)