Director of Industry Partnerships

Director Of Industry Partnerships

The Center for Workforce Initiatives (CWI) at CCD serves as a strategic hub for noncredit education, work-based learning, and community workforce development. CWI delivers programs in Adult Education, Career Connected Learning, and Workforce Education—connecting students, job seekers, and workers with upskilling and employment opportunities in high-demand industries. CWI supports employer training partnerships, career exploration activities, and customized education solutions that meet the evolving needs of our regional talent pipeline development system.

The Director of Industry Partnerships provides leadership and operational support to foster the development and implementation of industry-aligned corporate upskilling and broad industry engagement aligned college wide. This position works closely with the Director of Adult and Workforce Education, and the Director of Career Connected Learning to support growth of employers in career and workforce education services and leads the tracking and facilitation of strong industry partnerships for new education and training initiatives across campus. This position leads expanded and improved services to business and industry in close collaboration with Academic Affairs and Student Services representatives.

Primary Duties

• Foster a culture and environment where local and regional employers will look to the College as an exceptional source of responsive, nimble, and flexible training for employees including non-credit, for-credit and work-based learning opportunities, student hiring, and new curriculum development.
• In partnership with college senior leadership, consider and execute education offerings for industry specific programming to support incumbent worker upskilling
• In partnership with CWI's Director of Adult Education, industry, and department chairs, identify, research and implement new workforce and continuing education non-credit program development opportunities that increase economic mobility opportunities for incumbent workers, students, and job seekers.
• Develop and maintain corporate training offerings for local employers to include both CCD non-credit and for-credit training, as well as training vendors specialized in upskilling workers
• Lead outreach efforts with industry for corporate custom upskilling and state training grants that may include CWI training, contracted training vendors, and/or Academic Affairs department-led training.
• Facilitate professional development and communication of trends and strategies impacting industry outlooks and effective employer engagement; this includes assisting Academic Affairs in its program vitality review to ensure college programs and services are aligned to industry workforce needs.
• Share industry engagement efforts and referrals with CWI division Directors for career and adult education activities
• Build and maintain employer engagement tracking and metrics college wide
• Build templates, tools, processes to grow industry partnerships and corporate training offerings

Division Operations

• Adhere to the Fiscal Service teams, including Purchasing, Grants, Budget, and Contracts on processes and required documentations for budget and fee development, MOU and partner contracts, grant spend down, and invoicing.
• Build and monitor budgets for corporate training in support of the growth of fee-based workforce training opportunities for CCD, and state grant opportunities for upskilling employees. Collaborate with CWI division leadership to ensure efficient cross-functional services including non-credit registration tools, marketing/recruitment, and outcomes tracking
• Supervise team of industry relationship managers aligned to CCD pathways
• Represent CCD in regional or state workforce or industry partnership entities that create new college relationships
• Participate in industry or community activities that promote the college vision, mission and goals.

Other duties

• Build and maintain positive, productive and professional relationships with colleagues, clients, industry partners and vendors.
• Perform other duties as assigned by senior college leadership

Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

Minimum Qualifications: Any equivalent combination of education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Education: (Minimum/Required)

Bachelor's degree in Business, Workforce Training, or Higher Education

Experience: :(Minimum/Required)

• Two (2) years' experience in sales or administration of industry custom training, or business services and business development
• Two (2) years' experience building and/or overseeing program design and delivery, preferably in areas of career development or leadership programs with industry engagement.
• Two (2) years project management or grant management experience.
• Prior supervision experience

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities: (Minimum/Required)

• Understanding the role of community colleges in advancing the region's talent development, short-term industry credential training, and economic mobility.
• Knowledge of how to develop and maintain thriving relationships with key stakeholders and a wide range of business and industry partners
• Strength in establishing and maintaining relationships through effective collaboration techniques and methods as well as the ability to resolve conflict in a team-oriented environment.
• Proven ability to design and implement complex projects within critical deadlines.
• Proven ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing, and to make effective presentations to a variety of audiences.
• Prior supervision experience and ability to lead a team to identify and achieve outcomes and success measures
• Experience in building and monitoring program development and operations budgets
• Proven ability to engage and select employers, instructors or vendors to develop, sustain, and improve non-credit-bearing programs
• Understanding of a standard sales cycle and customer success roles, and how to adapt those into a community college setting to support industry relationship development.
• Understanding of and experience with local workforce development boards, and local economic development agencies.
• Experience leading grant design implementation, closeout and sustainability efforts.
• Strong entrepreneurial attitude is essential with an ability to think creatively and put ideas into action.
• Ability to align services to policies and procedures in fiscal, human resources, academic affairs, and student services.

• Proficiency in a variety of computer software and project management applications, including Microsoft Office Suite, including Sharepoint and Teams, CRM software, and email marketing software.

Education: (Preferred)

Master's Degree in higher education, adult education, workforce development, or business administration.

Licensure/Certification : Project Management Professional (PMP) certification

Equipment Used: General Office Equipment including phone and computers.