Executive Director, Workforce Council SW Ohio

Workforce Council of Southwest Ohio is an independent, nonpartisan organization focused on workforce development and innovation in Cincinnati and Hamilton County. Their diverse Board of Directors are comprised of regional leaders from business, education, organized labor, non-profit, and government. They oversee and implement the local area’s Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and collaborate with regional workforce partners to help strengthen the Tristate’s workforce ecosystem. The Executive Director is responsible for providing strategic leadership to a team of five employees and to the Board of Directors of Southwest Council of Southwest Ohio, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit work board serving the Cincinnati tristate region. This is your chance to lead the way in public workforce innovation by providing outstanding service to the Cincinnati region’s diverse customer base, community, and region.

THE OPPORTUNITY 

• Our community thrives when we have a sustainable economy fueled by a prepared workforce. Are you passionate about giving workers and employers access to training and to the necessary resources to make this happen?
• Can you inspire and energize the team and other stakeholders who are motivated by the mission of building a resilient community through workforce development?
• Does the prospect of creating, innovating and connecting the dots for employers and individuals through networking, training, and resource allocation excite you?

ABOUT THE COMPANY

Workforce Council of Southwest Ohio is an independent, nonpartisan organization focused on workforce development and innovation in Cincinnati and Hamilton County. Their diverse Board of Directors are comprised of regional leaders from business, education, organized labor, non-profit, and government. They oversee and implement the local area’s Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and collaborate with regional workforce partners to help strengthen the Tristate’s workforce ecosystem.

With a national reputation, they lead this work by setting the vision, policy, and performance expectations for the OhioMeansJobs (OMJ) regional workforce development system. The OMJ system and partners serve employers, job seekers, dislocated workers, veterans, youth & young adults, individuals with disabilities, returning citizens, and more. They are there to give workers and employers access to training and to the necessary resources to make this happen.

WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

The Executive Director is responsible for providing strategic leadership to a team of five employees and to the Board of Directors of Southwest Council of Southwest Ohio, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit work board serving the Cincinnati tristate region. The Board is responsible for establishing short and long-term goals, strategies, plans, and policies. The Executive Director and Board Members, through multiple Committees, also lead all performance measurement, approval of eligible training providers, obtaining other resources through federal, state and local grants and awards and frequently is engaged in other parties’ applications as expected by federal, state and local requirements. The Executive Director will communicate and work collaboratively with the Mayor and Cincinnati City Counci, Hamilton County leadership and the Board of County Commissioners. The Executive Director will oversee the team through fiscal audits, grant audits, annual reports, monthly newsletters and the website.

• Establishes credibility throughout the organization, community and with the Board of Directors as an effective developer of solutions to the community’s workforce development challenges.
• Provides leadership and management to ensure the mission of the organization is achieved.
• Responsible for innovative sourcing of grants and grant writing activities.
• Responsible for driving the organization, committees and procured service providers to achieve or exceed goals and objectives.
• Motivates and leads the organization and service providers through high-performance team expectation and delivery.
• Recruits, trains and supports all committees, board activities, contractors and all their related activities and obligations.
• Oversees all financial operations from accounts payable & receivables, investments, invoicing for Hamilton County reimbursement and all budgeting and purchasing.
• Attracts, recruits and retains the talent required to achieve organizational objectives.
• Collaborates with partners, contractors, service providers, City and County departments to develop and implement operational plans, programs, processes and systems necessary to meet the goals and objectives of the organization.
• Manages all state, federal and local policy implementation or adjustment to serve local area operations and results.
• Ensures that an annual service plan and budget are prepared and presented to the Board of Directors with regular review throughout the year. Expands the financial resources to serve the community through grant partnerships and applications.
• Organizes and supports all Board related activities, subcommittees, planning functions, meetings, nominations and records of attendance and all other Board related functions and actions.
• Maintains the necessary contacts to keep abreast of emerging issues and trends of significance to the organization.
• Selects and oversees monitoring activities from the State of Ohio, U.S. Department of Labor, and Workforce Council of Southwest Ohio required fiscal and programmatic independent monitoring annually.
• Assures conduct of Workforce Council’s annual audits, maintenance of nonprofit obligations for filing the annual IRS-990, maintaining tax exempt status and satisfying any other audits or monitoring reviews.
• Provides a website presence for WORKFORCE COUNCIL OF SOUTHWEST OHIO information and activities, including an Annual Report, Monthly Newsletters known as NewsWIB’s, special topic and research reports, inclusion in national projects reports, podcasts and other information.

IDEAL CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Management, Finance, Education or other related area with a Master’s Degree preferred.
• Experience in leading a complex interrelated organizational structure of elected, governmental, educational, programmatic, employment/employers and others with a standard budget for the local area of $7-10 million dollars.
• Evidence of a strong tie to the mission of Workforce Council of Southwest Ohio.
• Significant grant writing experience.
• Able to communicate effectively on all levels.
• Public sector experience at the county, state, or federal level would be beneficial.
• Demonstrate high ethical standards.

KEY PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

• Managing Vision and Purpose: Communicates a compelling and inspired vision or sense of core purpose.
• Ethics and Values: Adheres and promotes an effective set of core values and beliefs during both good and bad times.
• Strategic Agility: Sees ahead clearly; Can create, lead and build support for competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans.
• Business Acumen: Knows how businesses work. Stays abreast of current news and emerging trends in the business community.
• Builds Effective Teams: Defines success in terms of the whole team.
• Integrity and Trust: Is widely trusted to be forthcoming in response to requests for feedback, improvement, pitfalls and possibilities. Is seen as a direct, truthful individual. Can present the unvarnished truth in a helpful manner. Keeps confidences; admits mistakes. Doesn’t misrepresent for personal gain.
• Leadership Skills: Leads by example while engaging stakeholders and empowering staff. Is an innovative, energetic and empathetic leader.
• Political Savvy: Can maneuver through complex political situations effectively. Is sensitive to how people and organization’s function; anticipates where the land mines are and the plans the approach accordingly
• Intellectual Horsepower: Is bright and intelligent; deals with concepts and complexity comfortably.
• Energetic and Commitment Strength: Exhibits high levels of energy to fuel tough workloads, long hours and with high commitment to workforce development and assisting individuals and employers to be well-serviced by the WORKFORCE COUNCIL OF SOUTHWEST OHIO and its contractors

THE PAYOFF

This is your chance to lead the way in public workforce innovation by providing outstanding service to the Cincinnati region’s diverse customer base, community, and region.

DIVERSITY/INCLUSION STATEMENT

Workforce Council drives an inclusive workforce that embraces diversity and champions equal opportunities.

Gilman Partners is committed to strengthening leadership teams and elevating the talent in our communities – and that means all qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, ability, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, or national origin. You don’t have to meet every qualification in this job description to apply. If you’re drawn to the position and believe your experience makes you a good fit, we encourage you to reach out.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Having and cultivating relationships within the Cincinnati region is a primary focus of this role. This will mean the occasional evening and weekend meetings, events, and networking is one key component of the Executive Directors schedule.