Description

GENERAL SUMMARY
Under direction of the Call Center Manager, the Information & Referral Specialist (I&R Specialist) is responsible for delivering consistent and professional service to customers with health, human and social service needs via telephone, in person, e-mail or other forms of communication. The I&R Specialist will assess and refer customers to appropriate services. Customer needs range from requests for simple information to complex cases with multiple needs requiring research, advocacy and crisis intervention. The I&R Specialist will also perform data entry operations. This is full-time, non-exempt hourly position eligible for Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, 403(b) retirement plan, Sick, Vacation and Holiday pay. This position is employed by Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada, Inc., through Community Link Capital Region. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES
The following reflects management’s definition of essential functions for this job but does not restrict 
the tasks that may be assigned. Management may assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time due to reasonable accommodation or other reasons. 

• Complete phone-based assessments to provide high quality information, referral, advocacy and systems navigation for social and health services programs.
• Answer incoming calls on an assigned schedule, assessing caller’s needs and making accurate referrals to appropriate community resources.
• Develop working knowledge of health and human services network, with a focus on rent, housing, legal, financial and seasonal tax programs in order to help clients effectively access services.
• Obtain and maintain Certified Information & Referral (CIRS) certification when eligible.
• Assess and screen for benefits eligibility, offering application assistance as appropriate.
• Follow up with clients to determine if referrals resulted in needs being met.
• Input data collected by clients to provide community resource planning and needs assessments.
• Assess and respond to client needs using active listening skills, conversational intent and a high level of empathy.
• Support service delivery in instances of both local, and regional disaster/emergency services activation.

Other Duties/Responsibilities
• Ensure compliance with all Community Link and Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada policies, CARF standards, and safety and security regulations.
• Additional duties and/or responsibilities as may be assigned by Call Center Management.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required.

Basic Qualifications of the Role:
• Must be at least 18 years of age.
• Effective verbal & written communication skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively and tactfully with diverse and multi-cultural individuals, being non-judgmental and respectful of the confidential nature of the job.
• Reading Comprehension and Analytical skills.
• Must be familiar and comfortable operating multiple technology platforms, including but not limited to, MS Office, Google Docs and other web-based applications, in addition to being comfortable utilizing multiple computer screens and program simultaneously.
• Ability to work effectively and collaboratively in team environment.
• Must have access to reliable transportation that does not interfere with the duties of this position. 
• Ability to be responsive and available for shifts for as much as 12 hours in length during declared emergencies to perform duties as directed by the Emergency Manager. This position does require varied work hours including nights, weekends and holidays as needed.
• Must not present a direct threat to the safety and health of self, others or property.
• Must not have record or disclosure of criminal conviction that indicates an ongoing tendency toward theft, violence, dishonesty, deceit, drug manufacture or sale, moral turpitude, or predatory behavior.
• Must provide proof of identification and eligibility to work in the United States of America.
• Must pass a drug screening and maintain compliance of the organization’s drug and alcohol policy.
• Must pass a background screening and maintain compliance with the organization’s associated polices. 
• Must be able to perform essential functions of this job description with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Must immediately inform Goodwill of any arrests and/or convictions that occur while employed at Goodwill.

Preferred Qualifications of the Role:
• Experience in Information and Referral/Assistance or equivalent experience; or working experience with organizations that serve children & families, aging & independence services, or high vulnerability populations.

POSITIONS SUPERVISED
• None

PHYSICAL DEMANDS/WORK ENVIRONMENT
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of 
this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, walk, sit, use hands and fingers, reach with hands and arms, talk and hear. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and the ability to adjust focus. Work environment is 
usually hectic/fast paced with frequent short deadlines and instances of unusual situations. The position will temporarily be working remotely to comply with COVID-19 protocols but will be required to attend some in-person training(s).

This job description does not cover all the activities, duties or responsibilities required of this role. Omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar or related to the position. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice to accommodate the needs of the organization. 

The job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee and is subject to change by the employer as the needs of the employer and requirements of the job change.