Chief Community Engagement Officer

Agency Description

The Department of Small Business Services (SBS) helps unlock economic potential and create economic security for all New Yorkers by connecting New Yorkers to good jobs, creating stronger businesses, and building a fairer economy in neighborhoods across the five boroughs.

Job Description

The Division of Citywide Workforce Opportunity (CWO) of the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) is responsible for connecting nearly 100,000 New Yorkers each year to good jobs and training opportunities that empower them to lead successful lives. Much of this work is conducted through a network of 18 Workforce1 (WF1) career centers, operated in all five boroughs by workforce development providers under contract with SBS, that provide career services such as resume help, interviewing workshops, and one-on-one career counseling, as well as direct connections to employment.

CWO likewise oversees more than a dozen occupational training programs, in such areas as technology, health care, and construction, that are offered in collaboration with higher education institutions and non-profit training providers. At the core of CWO’s mission is reaching and serving jobseekers who have traditionally been underserved and have not had ready access to employment and training opportunities.

To better meet the needs of jobseekers and neighborhoods we serve, CWO recently created the Neighborhood and Community Engagement Team (NACE). Led by the Chief Community Engagement Officer (CCEO), NACE is responsible for CWO’s efforts to reduce unemployment and increase job opportunities on a community and neighborhood level.

Reporting to the Deputy Commissioner for Citywide Workforce Opportunity, the CCEO will:

- Oversee the day-to-day operations of NACE; mentor managers and other staff; provide professional development opportunities to team members and ensure that annual team goals developed with the Deputy Commissioner are met.

- Develop a strategy for enhancing existing and developing new partnerships with government agencies, as well as community-based and nonprofit organizations across the City, including those that provide workforce development services, work-adjacent services such as GED and ESL classes, and supportive services in areas such as housing, childcare, and mental health. Ensure that such strategy goes beyond mutual referrals of clients so that the involvement of these agencies and organizations is infused throughout SBS’ career services and training programs, including the provision of work-adjacent programs at WF1 career centers.

- Working in close collaboration with the Mayor’s Office and senior SBS leadership, oversee the JobsNYC initiative. Plan and execute a series of monthly hiring halls and other events, in partnership with other city agencies and community-based organizations, to help connect jobseekers in neighborhoods with high rates of unemployment to employment opportunities and career development services.

- Working in close collaboration with the WF1 career centers, plan and execute job fairs and other large-scale workforce development events on behalf of the Division and SBS.

- Support and amplify other community-based mayoral and agency events as requested, working in partnership with SBS’ Assistant Commissioner for Outreach.

- Serve as Division lead on matters related to serving new New Yorkers, working closely with the CWO Deputy Commissioner and leadership team to ensure that new New Yorkers’ employment and training needs are met.

- Serve as Division lead and manage neighborhood and other place-based workforce projects, programs, and/or engagement strategies that benefit communities.

- Research and stay abreast of neighborhood and community-based data and trends related to unemployment, in-demand jobs, and high growth sectors/industries. Share such information with fellow CWO leadership team members and make recommendations regarding improving and enhancing the provision of workforce development services on a neighborhood level, especially as it relates to neighborhood-based WF1 centers.

- Track partnerships with organizations and agencies through the establishment of a CRM or similar system.

- Oversee coordination of translation and interpretation for CWO events.

- Serve as a member of CWO’s senior leadership team; regularly liaise with other senior leadership team members within CWO and SBS; represent Division at meetings and conferences.

- Perform other duties as assigned.

Preferred Skills

•    Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; ability to effectively speak and make presentations in front of large groups and ability to tailor messages to different audiences.

•    Strong customer service and interpersonal skills; ability to work in a team environment.

•    Strategic mindset, entrepreneurial spirit, and can-do approach; excellent research, analytical, and problem-solving skills; ability to predict opportunities and challenges and make recommendations regarding how to address them.

•    Familiarity with city government and the workforce development landscape in NYC.

•    Meticulous attention to detail.
•    Ability to work efficiently under pressure against tight deadlines, as well as to prioritize and manage an array of projects through to completion.

•    Ability to actively listen and synthesize information; proficient in utilizing quantitative and qualitative data to manage and enhance the effectiveness of projects and programs. 

•    Ability to handle sensitive and confidential matters with discretion and tact.

All Applicants:  Apply through NYC JOBS at www.cityjobs.nyc.gov and search for Job ID: # 646907  
  
Current SBS Employees: Please email your resume and cover letter including the following subject line: Chief Community Engagement Officer and send to careers@sbs.nyc.gov  
    
Note: We appreciate the interest and thank all applicants who apply, but only those candidates under consideration will be contacted. Also, please provide a cover letter. 
  
If you are unable to apply via Jobs NYC or ESS, you can email your cover letter and resume to careers@sbs.nyc.gov with the following in the subject line: Chief Community Engagement Officer.  
  
If you do not have access to email, mail your cover letter & resume to:  

NYC Department of Small Business Services  
Human Resources Unit  
1 Liberty Plaza, 11th Floor 
New York, New York 10006 
     
The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy. 
 
NOTE: This position is open to qualified persons with a disability who are eligible for the 55-a Program. Please indicate in your cover letter that you would like to be considered for the position under the 55-a.

A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and at least 5 years of full-time experience in any of the following: community or labor organizing; managing community-based economic development programs or projects; serving in a senior leadership role in a neighborhood or community-based organization; managing community outreach and engagement for a private or non-profit organization, or a public agency; or related experience.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.