Community Partnerships Associate - Bilingual

Organization Profile
Skills for Chicagoland’s Future (Skills) is a nonprofit organization focused on increasing economic mobility of under and unemployed by connecting them to quality jobs through its deep partnership and understanding of the unique human capital needs of its network of engaged employers. Skills is driven to meet the talent demands of businesses, and to be a catalyst for systemic change and innovation. The force behind this drive is centered on our mission to get the unemployed and underemployed back to work. By focusing on the hiring demand of employers, Skills has created a paradigm shift in the general supply-driven approach to workforce development. The impact of this demand-driven approach can be seen through both the employers’ skilled and diverse workforce, and the economic mobility provided to the job seekers who are no longer unemployed/underemployed. Launched in 2012, Skills’ foundation is built on its strong employer partnerships, engaged Board of Directors, and funding support from both the City of Chicago and private donors. To date, Skills has directly impacted the lives of 11,000 job seekers who were connected to jobs and career pathways leveraging Skills’ network of over 120 employer partners.

For more information on Skills' impact on the local business and economic landscape, and national thought leadership, please visit www.skillsforchicagolandsfuture.com..

Position
The Community Partnerships Associate (CSP Associate) will partner with the Talent Acquisition and Community & Strategic Partnerships teams to anticipate and meet the evolving needs of the organization and deliver qualified talent for Skills jobs, focusing on our Gage Park and Southside locations. This role will be reporting to our Manager, Community Partnerships.

Responsibilities
We are seeking a self-motivated, hands-on full-time Community Partnerships Associate with a minimum of 1-2 years of work experience in a recruiting/staffing function with community based organization experience. It is also essential to have a passion for Skills' mission as well as the ability to cultivate relationships within Chicago's CBO Landscape.

• Contribute to eh continued growth of Skills "Neighborhood Link" with a focus on sourcing job-ready talent and working with stakeholders from the Southwest and South sides of Chicago.
• Assistance with maintaining a growing portfolio of 60 Community Based Organizations and ensure progress against referral projections and placements
• Support Skills commitment to authentically and responsibly engage the community to ensure identification and referral of local job-ready talent from key neighborhoods and neighborhood clusters
• Work within the organization to ensure qualified community referrals are continuously reviewed and matched to open opportunities
• Support increase in community-based referrals converting to placement in partnership with Skills Talent Acquisition team
• Attend community events and community-based meetings on behalf of the organization
• Assist with data collection, research and reporting for the CSP team
• Source, recruit, screen, interview and assess high volumes of candidates for exempt and non-exempt roles to exceed the client's needs and expectations.
• Develop strong relationships within the community and partner with hiring managers and business leaders.
• Track and report key metrics designed to measure and predict staffing activity.
• Perform regular follow-up with the respective candidates to ensure timeliness of the recruiting methods including passive sourcing.

Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate will demonstrate the following experience, skills, and personal attributes:

• 1-2 years of recent high-volume, fast-paced staffing/recruitment experience.
• 1-2 years experience engaging priority community partners (CBOs, Government, Private Sector, community partners) and driving viable outcomes.
• Bilingual in English/Spanish is highly preferred.
• Interpersonal and cultural competency skills facilitating collaboration and positive relationships with a wide spectrum of stakeholders
• Experience supporting the development, growth and maintenance of community or civic partnerships with external stakeholders such as community-based organizations, local community groups, businesses or anchor institutions
• Comfort utilizing data to make decisions or recommendations
• Excellent interpersonal skills, communication skills, and team-based project experience.
• Detail-oriented with a sense of urgency.
  
• Must possess excellent judgement to prioritize work, handle multiple projects at once and meet objectives.
• Must have experience mapping and sourcing resumes from all sources, including job boards.
• Proficient with MS Office and in-depth knowledge of data mining, internet research, and internet recruiting.
• Passion for Skills' Mission and enthusiasm for its success and impact on the Chicagoland communities.