Job: Strategic Advisor on Business Engagement and Workforce Advancement

Job Description

Job Type: Full time, Salaried

Wage: $100,000-$110,000/yr. 

Location: Denver, CO.

Job Description

Department Information The Office of Economic Development and International Trade (“OEDIT”) was created to foster a positive business climate that encourages quality economic development through the support of local and regional economic development activities throughout the State of Colorado. A comprehensive slate of programs within OEDIT’s divisions work together to offer economic development services for all Colorado businesses – new and expanding, traditional and emerging, small and large – including retention programs to ensure continued competitiveness of Colorado’s economic base, job training to keep Colorado’s workforce the best in the nation and several new and innovative housing finance initiatives.

Description of Job

Under the supervision of the OEDIT Executive Director, The Strategic Advisor on Business Engagement and Workforce Advancement will provide strategic direction and business engagement in support of advancing the Governor’s goals in meeting the workforce needs of Colorado employers and advancing opportunities for Coloradans to grow within their careers through various career pathways to ensure our State’s competitiveness into the future. The position will support OEDIT’s ongoing initiatives in this area, including Opportunity Now and the development of a pilot scholarship program to increase the number of high school students pursuing postsecondary education.

Specific duties include:

Strategic Direction and Program Implementation

• Provide strategic oversight to the ongoing implementation of industry and in-demand, high growth, and state prioritized workforce and career development programs at OEDIT, including:
• The Opportunity Now Grant Program, a $85 million grant program to create or expand innovative talent development initiatives across the state of Colorado.
• The development of a $25 million scholarship pilot program to support high school students in pursuing education and training during and after high school with scholarships for higher education, apprenticeship, and other forms of postsecondary education and training.
• Connect OEDIT’s workforce initiatives to the agency’s broader economic development vision and engagement in supporting greater economic and inclusive growth for the state.
• Expand partnerships to foster OEDIT’s ongoing engagement in furthering industry and demand-focused workforce and career development programs, strengthening ties between institutions and industry partners.

Business and Industry Engagement

• Expand upon existing State efforts, including recent grant programs such as Opportunity Now, to develop a sustainable partnership of business, training and education entities, and academic institutions to develop the talent pipeline for the jobs of today and tomorrow.
• Develop an ongoing structure for advancing the Governor’s workforce goals and for engaging major employers in Colorado and in critical growth industries and state priorities to strengthen the State’s talent pipeline efforts.

Regional Partnership Development

• Support the development of regional partnerships around industry and demand-driven workforce and career development programs.
• Direct existing technical assistance providers through the Opportunity Now grant program in supporting the sustainable development of regional partnerships that are necessary to create ecosystems of talent that meet industry needs.

Intra and Inter-Agency Coordination and Alignment

• Work closely with the Governor's Advisor on workforce and partners from CDLE, CDE, and CDHE to align efforts across agencies to meet the Governor’s workforce development goals
• Collaborate with OEDIT Divisions that intersect with workforce issues including the Global Business Development Division which has business focused market sensing activity stemming from their recruiting efforts and a strategy and analytics team, the Business Funding and Incentives Division, which has several higher education facing incentive programs and housing related programs with workforce needs, and other Divisions in OEDIT as appropriate.

Disclaimer: This job requisition provides a high-level job definition. It is not intended to provide a comprehensive or exclusive list of job duties. As such, job duties and/or responsibilities within the context of this job requisition may change at the discretion of the employee’s direct supervisor.

Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• At least 7 years of demonstrated leadership experience and success in Workforce Experience developing and implementing strategic plans.
• Skilled at navigating complex and diverse partnerships, forging relationships, and managing through influence rather than direct authority
• Existing relationships with Colorado employers, employer associations, and higher ed institutions
• Experience successfully navigating local and state government
• Critical thinking and analysis skills, including ability to research, analyze and formulate recommendations.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree preferred in fields related to Business OR commensurate experience.
• An equivalent combination of education and proven experience in comparable fields will be considered.

Conditions of Employment

Applicants must pass a thorough background check prior to employment.

Supplemental Information

Salary Range: $100,000 - $110,000 Annually

Flexible Working Arrangements: Role is eligible for optional flexible working location and hours arrangements.

Benefits

The State of Colorado/Office of the Governor offers generous benefits to full-time employees including:

• Annual leave accrued at 13.33 hours per month
• Sick leave accrued at 6.66 hours a month
• 11 paid holidays per year
• Medical plans - choice of Cigna or Kaiser; several plan options (including High Deductible Health Plan with HSA); most plans offered with significant state contribution towards premium
• Dental and vision plans
• Flexible spending accounts
• State-paid life insurance policy of $50,000
• Choice of retirement plans (defined contribution or defined benefit) with generous state contribution
• Optional 401(k) and 457 plans for additional retirement savings
• State-paid short-term disability coverage
• Additional optional life and disability plans
• Access to the Colorado State Employee Assistance Program
• Membership opportunity with the Credit Union of Colorado
• RTD (transit) EcoPass Training and professional development

To learn more about State of Colorado benefits, please visit: https://www.colorado.gov/dhr/benefits

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law. To learn more about the “State of Colorado For All”, visit our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion website.

ADAAA Accommodations

The Office of the Governor is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Staffing Coordinator, the Director of Human Resources: [email protected]

Application

A cover letter and resume must be submitted with the application for consideration. Your cover letter and resume must provide sufficient detail about your background and experience to allow the screening panel to properly assess your experience in the required elements, including your experience and achievements. Due to the large volume of resumes we receive, we do not acknowledge receipt of each resume and are unable to give status updates. If a strong match is found between your qualifications and the requirements of the position, a member of the recruiting staff will contact you to further discuss the career opportunity.

**Disclaimer: The duties and responsibilities described above are not a comprehensive list and additional tasks may be assigned to the employee, time to time; the scope of the job may change as necessitated by business demands. Click “Visit” below for more detail on this specific job.