Job Success Specialist

The Organization:  Merit America

The American economy is broken. Today 53 million working adults–nearly half of the U.S. workforce–do not earn a living wage. And these talented workers have few options to advance: college is too long and expensive, full-time bootcamp programs don’t offer enough flexibility, and online courses don’t have the structure or support to translate learning into a new career. The result? Talented workers, disproportionately people of color and women, get stuck in low-wage roles with no way to build a better life for themselves and their families.

Merit America is a national nonprofit that creates pathways to family-sustaining careers for Americans without college degrees, stuck in low-wage work. Our fast, flexible solutions are built for working adults: we start by analyzing tens of millions of job postings to identify in-demand, high-paying tech careers, and then work with industry-recognized partners to train for these roles with part-time programs that combine flexible online learning with best-in-class coaching. Finally, we work with a broad constellation of local and national employers like JPMorgan Chase and Infosys to place learners into higher-earning, family-sustaining jobs, driving an average wage gain of $19k. Merit America is on a mission to build a scalable pathway for workers to join the middle class through merit, not money. We’re on track to generate $1B in wage gains by 2024.

About the Role:

The primary mission of the Job Success Specialist is to drive quality job success outcomes for job seekers upon completion of their professional and technical coursework. The Job Success Specialist will report directly to the Senior Job Success Specialist and works primarily with Program teams and Learners across Merit America.

What You’ll be Doing

The responsibilities of the Job Success Specialist will include, but are not limited to, the following:

Career Readiness & Coaching:

• Provide career advising and coaching, facilitate job search planning, and lead small group programming to engage and support learners in the Job Success phase of the program
• Partner with Program Success Managers to ensure participants are job-ready
• Monitor learner progress through Huntr.co,  regular check-ins, 1:1 meetings, group sessions, and related job-sourcing tools, strategically following up with learners to maximize placement outcomes  
• Provide ongoing job search support for Merit America alumni in need of additional interview preparation, tailored resume reviews, etc.

Track Management & Program Insights:

• Source, share, and promote quality entry-level jobs across IT Support, Java Development,  Data Analytics, or other Merit America career tracks
• Identify and share job seeker support resources and tools including sourcing local and national events that help job seekers enhance their skills, networks, and job prospects
• Partner with the Manager of Job Success to network and source professional speakers to provide relevant insight and strategies in weekly developmental webinars
• Serve as a key thought partner with the Manager of Job Success to capture insights and learnings to implement adjustments to improve the program and learner experience
• Collaborate cross-functionally with the Employer Revenue Team to source learners for job partnerships, prepare learners for interviews, track of job-seekers in various interview processes and stages, and document progress and job success 
• Verify job success outcomes and document success stories in Salesforce and Tableau

What Makes a Successful Candidate:

We know that  women and people of color are often less likely to apply to a position if they don’t match 100% of the job qualifications.  Don’t let that be the reason you miss out on this opportunity!  We encourage you to apply if you can demonstrate many of these skills and competencies.   Below are the skills that are relevant for thriving in this role:

Must Haves:

• Outstanding ability to understand, empathize with, and a desire to serve people of diverse backgrounds, particularly those identified in Merit's mission
• Dedication to driving job outcomes through various support structures and strategies
• Strong knowledge of caseload management, motivational strategies, and professional skill development including resume & cover letter writing, interviewing, communicating professionally
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Able to step up and run autonomously in ambiguous, quickly changing environments
• Exceptional operational and organizational skills, and the ability to manage your own schedule and balance multiple demands

Nice to Haves:

• Experience with Salesforce or other CRM platforms
• Proficient with Google workspace (Google sheets, docs, etc)
• Previous experience with recruitment, job success, and/or career coaching
• Commitment to lifelong learning and ongoing personal and professional development
• Be energized by our organizational mission - to provide a pathway to family-sustaining careers for Americans without college degrees
• Proven history of living within our values
• Sense of deep personal responsibility for our collective success
• Commitment to DEIJ

Other Logistics:

• This position is full time: 4 days/week
• Location:  Remote
• Salary:  $61,300-$61,300

Our goal is to have competitive and equitable compensation.  We have a market-based compensation approach which means that we benchmark each role from reputable data sources. We compare our benchmarks against similarly sized non-profit organizations with comparable annual budgets and geographical areas. We pay the same rate for the same roles and adjust to comply with statutory mandates.

We take care of our employees by providing the following perks and benefits: 

• 4-day work week (Fridays are an operating day if there is a holiday closure during the week)
• Medical, Dental and Vision insurance (100% Paid Employee Only Coverage)
• Flexible Spending Account and Health Savings Account
• Dependent care Flexible Spending Account
• Health Reimbursement Account fully funded by Merit
• Education reimbursement & personal development stipend
• Short and long-term disability
• Unlimited vacation (after a 90-day introductory period)
• Paid Parental Leave and Adoption benefits (after 1 year of employment)
• 10 federally recognized holidays
• 1 week office closure in July (week of July 4th)
• 2 week holiday office closure in December/January
• 401(k) retirement plan with automatic Merit contribution
• Employee Assistance Program | Talkspace | Sanvello
• Discount perks at work program
• Phone/technology stipend
• Home office setup stipend

Remote Work & Sponsorship

Candidates must reside within the 50 states or District of Columbia and have full authorization to work in the U.S. In addition, Merit America doesn't offer employment visa sponsorship. 

Equal Opportunity Statement

Building an inclusive, high-performing team that is diverse across lines of personal identity is integral to our success and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

This means we do not discriminate against any job applicant or employee because of their race, ethnicity, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This applies to all terms and conditions of employment.

We actively strive and evolve to develop and maintain workspaces that are fully inclusive. We encourage candidates from underrepresented groups to apply.

Still excited about our work?  You can learn more about our work in this video we made with our founding partner, Google.

E-Verify Statement

This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. If E-Verify cannot confirm that you are authorized to work, this employer is required to give you written instructions and an opportunity to contact Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or Social Security Administration (SSA) so you can begin to resolve the issue before the employer can take any action against you, including terminating your employment. Employers can only use E-Verify once you have accepted a job offer and completed the I-9 Form.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Building an inclusive, high-performing team that is diverse across lines of personal identity is integral to our success and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

This means we do not discriminate against any job applicant or employee because of their race, ethnicity, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This applies to all terms and conditions of employment.

We actively strive and evolve to develop and maintain workspaces that are fully inclusive. We encourage candidates from underrepresented groups to apply.

Still excited about our work?  You can learn more about our work in this video we made with our founding partner, Google.

E-Verify Statement

This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. If E-Verify cannot confirm that you are authorized to work, this employer is required to give you written instructions and an opportunity to contact Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or Social Security Administration (SSA) so you can begin to resolve the issue before the employer can take any action against you, including terminating your employment. Employers can only use E-Verify once you have accepted a job offer and completed the I-9 Form.