Job Development Specialist

Every morning, millions of people hit “snooze” on their alarm clock. They frown, grumble, groan, and — eventually — roll out of bed. The reason for their reluctance: They have to go to work.

Although many people complain about work, others celebrate it. Those people, many of whom lack a job but desperately want one, are willing to go to great lengths to find employment when they need it — often with the assistance of a Job Development Specialist.

As a Job Development Specialist, you help underprivileged and disadvantaged people find and gain employment. To do that, you work with both employers and job applicants on behalf of government agencies, nonprofits, and service-based organizations.

When you work with employers — including Small Business Owners, CEOs, and Human Resource Managers, among others — it’s your job as a Job Development Specialist to collaborate on the placement of disadvantaged applicants by designing and executing inclusive recruitment programs, developing non-discriminatory employment policies, providing sensitivity training to Employment Managers, and promoting the benefits of hiring people from at-risk communities. When you work with applicants, meanwhile — including at-risk youth, homeless people, veterans, and the chronically unemployed, among others — your responsibilities include giving interests-and-abilities assessments, conducting job readiness workshops, teaching job-training classes, assisting with job applications and resumes, giving mock job interviews, and matching applicants with open positions.

Part Social Worker, part Career Counselor, you understand that a job is more than just a job. It’s also a way to provide for one’s family, develop self-confidence, and achieve the American dream. In other words: It’s social currency, and you’re the Banker!