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Transformation

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Introducing the Workforce Transformation Corps

Part of creating future readiness in workforce development boards is discovering a more empathetic organizational posture, centering the experience of people as they navigate the public workforce system. Jobs for the Future (JFF) launched the Workforce Transformation Corps (WTC) as part of its workforce transformation strategy, emphasizing community-driven approaches to innovative solutions that elevate equity in workforce ecosystems.

The WTC aims to foster equitable change in the public workforce system by collaborating with future-focused workforce development boards committed to integrating human-centered design (HCD) principles into their services. The WTC utilizes a fellowship model where workforce development boards host and work collaboratively with a “workforce transformation fellow” trained in human-centered design thinking. Fellows work with workforce development board staff members to identify pain points, needs, and place-based considerations that inform a focused and strategic approach to more customer-centered services. 

The fellowship puts ideas into action through activities that include writing or updating organizational policy, reorganizing process workflow with frontline staff, and building asset maps of potential partner organizations.

 

The Fellows

Embedding full-time design-thinking fellows into workforce development boards for a period of 12 months will activate and operationalize JFF’s human-centered design maturity model. The fellows are using their backgrounds and experiences to help catalyze lasting shifts in behaviors, practices, and operations within regional workforce systems. At the end of the fellowship, each fellow will complete a capstone project highlighting the ways in which they helped guide their site toward a specific transformation and the progress or outcomes of that effort.

Teil Samuels
“My hope in this project is to contribute to a future that is more equitable for all. My life’s work, this far, has focused on that goal, and I believe the fellowship presents an amazing opportunity to make an impact in which my reach and capacity are expanded.”
Teil Samuels
Fellow, City of Los Angeles Workforce Development Board
 

The Friends

The support and collaboration of future-focused workforce development boards is crucial to evoke systemic change within the public workforce system. Fellows are paired with a staff member at their matched workforce development board, who is referred to as “the friend.” Each friend participating in the WTC fellowship provides a breadth of experience and knowledge within the field. More importantly, they’re committed to discovering and embracing new ways of thinking to catalyze equitable advancement for their communities.

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“I would like to see a wholesale rethinking/reimagining of our approach to connecting people with employment. This includes updating policies, modernizing our customer-facing resources, and experiencing synergy with new and existing partners."
Marco Lucero
Workforce Development Manager, Anaheim Workforce Development Board

The Challenges

Each of the five fellowship pairs are working toward solving a particular challenge related to human-centered design as determined by the workforce development board.

Workforce Investment Board of Tulare County

Tom Price - fellow (1)
Jennie Bautista - friend

Tom Price and Jennie Bautista are working to ensure customers receive the highest quality services. Learn more about their partnership and challenge here. 

 

City of Los Angeles Workforce Development Board

Teil Samuels - fellow
Tammy Ortuno - friend

Teil Samuels and Tammy Ortuno are on a mission to better connect potential participants to services. Read more about their work and story here.

 

Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board

Dorea Crowell - Fellow
Alma Janabajab - Friend

 Dorea Crowell and Alma Janabajab are on a mission to better integrate workforce development into the county’s ecosystem of services. Dive into what makes them tick here.

 

Anaheim Workforce Development Board

James Shirvell - fellow
Marco Lucero - friend

James Shirvell and Marco Lucero are on a mission to find the human stories behind the data. Find out what drives them to find solutions here.

 

Workforce Development Board of Ventura County

Boglarka Kiss - fellow
Donald Frick - friend-1

Boglarka Kiss and Donald Frick are on a mission to expand training programs for both staff and customers. Get a deeper feel for their dedication to centering the human experience here.

 

How We Got Here

Starting in early 2021, a group of partners that included Make Fast Studio, Aspen Labs, JFF, Turning Basin Labs, and CivicMakers set out to explore the degree to which HCD principles were present in workforce development boards across California and the country, resulting in the creation of a maturity model to identify the level at which HCD impacts their work. With this new understanding, we wanted to explore innovative approaches to broaden workforce development board's understanding and application of HCD. 

With support from The James Irvine Foundation, we set out to find five local workforce development boards in California to participate in a first-of-its-kind pilot program seeking to identify promising approaches for adopting human-centered design principles within their organizations. This work evolved into the inaugural fellowship for the WTC.

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