Career Advancement Specialist/salem

Career Advancement Specialist

Triangle has an immediate opening for a Career Advancement Specialist at our Salem Day Program. The qualified candidate will equip adults with disabilities to achieve their career and personal goals by maximizing their participation in supported employment and progressing towards competitive employment in the community.

Triangle's Expectation of Employee:

• Adheres to Triangle policy and procedures
• Fosters a positive, solution-oriented culture consistent with Triangle's mission
• Promotes employment, self-advocacy, and independence across programs and participants
• Acts as a role model within and outside of Triangle
• Maintains a positive and respectful attitude towards participants, staff, and community partners
• Communicates regularly with supervisor
• Demonstrates flexible and efficient time management and ability to prioritize workload
• Consistently reports to work on time prepared to perform duties of position, with a willingness to flex hours as needed

Primary Responsibilities:

• Equips individuals with disabilities with job readiness skills to secure potential employment or collegiate pathways
• Creates an inviting, exciting, innovative, learning environment
• Takes lead in developing and implementing activities and employment/collegiate opportunities focused on personal and professional development
• Aids in the development & implementation of new and engaging career and social experiences to meet program/participant driven goals
• Produces weekly supported employment schedule/monitors utilization of contracts
• Consistently connects with community employers in order to identify or create employment opportunities/collegiate supports for individuals
• Facilitates and implements after hours social opportunities and community engagement
• Establishes opportunities for training and job shadowing with local community businesses
• Develops job leads and cultivates employer relationships to enhance community partnerships
• Monitors individual job performance, attitude, and behavior for appropriateness
• Implements independent living, self-advocacy, and soft skills into daily activities and programmatic offerings
• Provides individualized support to participants, when necessary, both during programming and 1:1 job/collegiate pathway coaching
• Conducts initial/ongoing assessments for personal growth
• Proactively communicates with families over employment/collegiate progress and needs
• Provides supports to participants and assists in developing natural supports to ensure integration and increased or maintained independence in the community
• Trains and develops independent skills related to employment and collegiate pathways, such as travel training, hygiene, self-advocacy, etc.
• Provides transportation for groups or individual career seekers to interviews, employment assessments, job searching, and other employment activities in the community
• Communicates in a professional manner with employers/collegiate stakeholders and trouble shoots issues at supported sites with all relevant parties
• Works with Case Management team to ensure individual's ISP/Life Plan goals are being met
• Participates in ISP/Life Plan meetings with Department of Developmental Services, participants, and their families or other members of their support team as needed
• Takes direction from Site Manager/Assistant to collect accurate data as needed for ISP/Life Plans, behavior plans, monthly progress notes, etc.
• Submits billing and related progress notes on a daily basis utilizing Penelope software
• Contributes to monthly ISP/Life Plan goal tracking notes
• Other duties as assigned

Daily:

• Performs 1:1 job development with or on behalf of participant and complete documenting/billing in database
• Adjusts supported employment schedule as needed
• Provides direct care/group site supervision when necessary
• Prepares and executes lessons to foster personal and professional growth
• Knows and adheres to all safety policies and emergency procedures. Know basic emergency facts regarding participation
• Maintains up to date case notes, data collection, employment records, schedules, etc.

Weekly:

• Provides services and bills necessary contract hours on a weekly basis
• Plans and facilitates job clubs/events for groups of participants and bills accordingly
• Checks in with appropriate parties on a weekly basis to share applicable progress, challenges, and ISP/plan progress and behavior data

Yearly:

• Reaches department placement/annual goals set by Site Manager and Department
• Participates in progress meetings (ISP, behavioral etc.) as requested

As Needed:

• Meets 1:1 with caseload
• Completes reports, observations, career readiness assessments, and job coaching as requested
• Develops 10 employer relationships/leads per month
• Places 10 participants in competitive, integrated employment (not in supported group sites)
• Participates in team meetings
• Meets with Site Manager/Assistant Site Manager on a monthly basis for supervision and as needed
• Communicates with employers and proposes implementation/production goals; fields questions in a professional manner
• Flexes work week as required by employment sites and job coaching schedules; informs Site Manager of any changes

Qualifications:

• High School Diploma required; additional Education preferred
• One to Three years of Human Services experience preferred
• Some Marketing and/or Sales experience preferred
• First Aid/CPR and Safety Care or willingness to become certified
• Massachusetts Driver's License and clean driving record required
• Personal vehicle required
• Must clear state and federal background check

Language Skills:

• Ability to verbally communicate
• Ability to read, analyze, interpret, and write documents
• Ability to respond and navigate common inquiries or complaints from regulatory agencies, or family members

Americans with Disability Specifications:

Physical Demands:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, talk or hear; taste or smell
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds
• Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus

Work Environment:

• The noise level in the work environment should be adapted to meet the sensory needs of a neurodiverse population