Employment Specialist

Imagine LA is a dynamic and growing nonprofit organization dedicated to ending the cycle of family homelessness and intergenerational poverty. Through a holistic combination of clinical case management, economic mobility programming, and whole-family mentorship, we prevent first-time and repeat homelessness and equip families to maintain housing stability and thrive long-term.

Imagine LA is a smart, collaborative, and passionate environment that combines the best practices of social services and business. Our culture is passionate, joyful, encouraging, and collaborative, and our humanity always comes first. We love coffee and food (no, really) and are committed to the holistic well-being of our staff. Everything we do is in the service of our families, we are actively advancing our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion work, and we intentionally invest in staff. We value relationships, empowerment, collaboration, diversity, efficiency, innovation, and communication.

The Employment Specialist is responsible for supporting the Economic Mobility Program (EMP) and working directly with families as part of Imagine LA’s Partnership Model. The Employment Specialists’ key projects will include supporting the development and enhancement of livable wage employment opportunities and resources within the Pathways component of the program, engaging referred participants in employability training and preparation, and connecting families to livable wage careers by creating a network of employer and workforce development partnerships.

For a complete job description, visit www.imaginela.org/careers

Responsibilities:

• Work with Program team, external referring staff, and families interested in Living Wage Career Pathways to ensure understanding, enrollment, and successful completion. Help to troubleshoot any issues presented as they engage in programming.
• Assist in developing Pathway’s procedures and programming related to employability and job placement.
• Identify workforce employers, create a network of living wage opportunity partnerships for program participants within the designated pathways industries, and foster standing relationships with a workforce development partners.
• Maintain updated information about each partner’s workforce development programs and family's enrollment to share accurate and updated information.
• Work in partnership with referring staff to identify supportive services needed to ensure families are equipped to engage and succeed in Pathways.
• Work with the EMP Sr. Manager to assess the efficacy of the referral and support procedures related to successful pathways outcomes.
• Engage EMP families in other components of EMP Program (Financial Fitness, Child Care Support, Social Benefit Navigation)
• Promote workforce readiness through vocation assessment, goal setting and progress tracking, professional development and work-readiness training, and other supportive resources.

Qualifications & Skills:

• The ideal candidate has 3+ years of workforce development and/or social service case management experience. (Such as job developer or Employment Specialist roles, experience serving individuals and families)
• Authentically and empathetically build strong working relationships with people of diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds; using a trauma informed approach to meet our families where they are at.
• Ability to multitask and prioritize in a deadline-driven environment while maintaining very high attention to detail
• Self-starter with ability to identify problems and propose solutions; comfortable having difficult progress informed conversations
• Ability to effectively communicate needs and desires while maintaining professionalism & communicating priorities
• Takes initiative and can work independently while remaining engaged in a strong, mutually respectful team
• Can hold individuals accountable to meet goals and objectives
• Understands the importance of delivering service through a social justice lens & willingness to educate others on issues of systemic oppression, implicit bias, racial microaggressions, etc.
• Knowledge of WIOA, Cal Jobs, and local resources; AJCC’s, WorkSource/ Youth Source centers
• Comfortable with Microsoft suite

Ideal Attributes

• Displays detailed working knowledge of Salesforce functionality and reporting requirements and aids with ongoing improvements around data collection, storage, and reporting
• Experience with developing training curriculum and facilitation skills
• Prominent levels of integrity, flexibility, and strategic thinking, along with the creativity and persistence to elicit new thinking and change
• Reliable transportation: valid CA driver’s license
• Bilingual (Spanish preferred)

If you are passionate about helping families find meaningful employment opportunities, we encourage you to apply. Join our team and make a positive impact on the LA community!

Imagine LA is an equal opportunity employer that actively seeks to create a diverse work culture that reflects the community that we serve and ensures our team continues to do what we do best. Research shows that women and people of color are less likely to apply for a role unless they meet 100% of the qualifications; however, we encourage you to apply even if you do not check all the boxes above, and we look forward to reviewing your application holistically.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $50,000.00 - $55,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Flexible schedule
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Mileage reimbursement
• On-the-job training
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift

Ability to Relocate:

• Los Angeles, CA 90012: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Los Angeles, CA 90012