About the Department
This opportunity is currently open to internal Employment Security Department employees. At this time, we’re not able to consider external candidates.
The ideal candidate is a supportive and collaborative leader who’s passionate about helping people build new opportunities as they transition from federal incarceration. They enjoy guiding teams, solving problems with a human-centered approach, and creating a positive, learning-focused work environment. They’re comfortable navigating program requirements, coordinating daily operations, and building strong relationships with partners in the community. This person brings experience leading teams through change, setting clear goals, and ensuring services are delivered with consistency, quality, and equity. Most importantly, they’re committed to helping individuals gain the skills and confidence they need to find meaningful employment while strengthening connections between job seekers and local businesses.
The Workforce Services PROWD Supervisor plays a key role in advancing the agency’s mission of promoting economic security by ensuring equitable access to workforce resources. This position leads the PROWD program’s direct services team, providing guidance, operational oversight, and support to ensure high-quality services for individuals transitioning from federal incarceration. The role is responsible for maintaining program compliance, driving performance, and leading teams through organizational and operational change while fostering a collaborative, learning-focused environment grounded in shared leadership, human-centered problem solving, Integrated Service Delivery, and EDIA principles. By overseeing staff and service delivery at WorkSource North Seattle and Pierce, the supervisor ensures consistent, equity-aligned workforce services that help individuals gain the skills and support needed for meaningful employment and help businesses connect with job-ready talent. If this opportunity aligns with your experience and interests, we encourage you to review the full posting prior to submitting your application.
Position Duties
Your day-to-day work will involve, but is not limited to:
Lead, supervise, develop, and support staff to build high-performance teams; ensure effective daily operations and high-quality service delivery; foster consensus-based decision making and continuous quality improvement.
- Plan, schedule, assign and direct daily work activities; guide, coach, mentor, and support staff across various programs and services; provide and/or authorize staff training, professional development, and career growth opportunities.
- Establish measurable staff performance expectations; conduct monitoring & evaluations; provide ongoing feedback; document performance; apply corrective or disciplinary actions as needed.
- Follow collective bargaining agreements and manage personnel functions in accordance with agency policies.
- Communicate policy and procedural changes, ensure staff readiness; Set expectations, reinforce established processes, and ensure staff understand and carry out organizational direction with consistency and professionalism; design and deliver related training.
- Address personnel issues, complaints, and disputes; negotiate and resolve conflicts; provide reasonable accommodation.
- Lead and participate in recruitment and hiring processes; make hiring recommendations; maintain accurate position descriptions.
- Oversee time and attendance reporting; review and approve or deny leave requests; monitor leave balances.
- Support a healthy, safe, and secure work environment; follow and enforce security and confidentiality policies.
Oversee department contracts, programs, and services to ensure they meet or exceed performance measures; set clear goals, expectations, and indicators that align with the agency’s mission, vision, business objectives, workforce priorities, and the WorkSource system.
- Manage and monitor established performance measures; review and reconcile reports from multiple data sources; compare program results against regulatory requirements to ensure compliance, accuracy, and accountability; present performance information; identify best practices and/or strategies for improvements and training; recommend and initiate improvements; make data driven decisions.
- Plan, schedule, and deliver program services and activities; apply continuous quality improvement processes to meet evolving customer, agency, and system needs; adjust service delivery based on customer feedback and performance data; resolve customer issues and complaints.
- Manage financial program budgets and safeguard agency resources and assets; manage allowable/accurate purchases and expenditures; perform financial transactions and/or commit fiscal resources; approve vouchers; negotiate contracts.
- Interpret and implement applicable federal and state laws, regulations, policies and/or program and service delivery changes; understand and follow all employment and training directives, expectations, and performance measurement standards.
Build and sustain strong relationships with internal and external partners to leverage resources and support high-quality service delivery, collaboration, and system visibility within the community.
- Participate in WorkSource activities and maintain strong communication with customers, staff, leadership, and partner agencies regarding program directives, training, workshops, and coordinated service delivery; meet regularly with partner organizations to promote integration, resolve operational issues, and ensure high quality service for customers. Collaborate with area teams to establish or refine processes and support consistent, customer centered operations.
- Other duties may be assigned based on business needs.
To request a detailed position description, click here.
Minimum Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
Option 1:
One (1) year experience as a WorkSource Specialist 5 or equivalent class within the Employment Security Department or another state’s Employment Security agency.
Option 2:
A Bachelor's degree and five (5) years of relevant experience in workforce development, social or human resource services, public relations, or public contact work, such as: unemployment insurance, social services, human resource services, education, public relations, benefits programs, insurance claims, law enforcement and banking.
Option 3:
A combination of education and relevant experience totaling at least nine (9) years, including at least one (1) year as a designated team lead.
A Master's degree will substitute for one (1) year of the required experience, OR A combination of education and/or relevant experience.
Required equity competencies:
- The ability to take action to learn and grow.
- The ability to take action to meet the needs of others.
The required experience includes:
- Staff Supervision, Leadership, and Professional Development: Ability to manage workforce personnel, set direction, build trust, motivate staff, and elevate overall team performance through effective supervision and ongoing professional development.
- Operational Oversight Expertise: Ability to manage day-to-day workforce services.
- Regulatory Compliance Expertise: Ability to assess and enforce workforce policies.
- Performance Management Expertise: Ability to establish and track workforce program goals.
- Interagency Collaboration Expertise: Ability to foster partnerships across workforce programs.
- Process Improvement Knowledge: Proficiency in enhancing employment service delivery.
- Budget Oversight and Financial Management Expertise: Ability to track workforce expenses and approve purchases.
Preferred/Desired Qualifications:
- Performed duties aligned with the required qualifications in a reentry program setting.
- Demonstrated lived experience with the justice system.
Additional Requirements of Employment:
- Must be able to pass Unemployment Insurance (UI) & Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) claim and fraud check.
Please submit only the required documents as noted below and ensure all Personal Identifying Information (PII) such as Social Security numbers etc. are edited out of your materials for privacy.
Additionally, we ask that you not include photographs or external links within your documents. Any documents uploaded through this platform will be securely transmitted electronically to support application review.
Please submit your Resume and Cover Letter with your Online Application through the "Add Attachments" field. A resume will not substitute for the "work experience" section of the application or vice versa. Applications with blank fields, or supplemental question responses with comments such as "see attachments" may be considered incomplete.
Other Qualifications
Our agency's mission and values drive every decision that we make, determine how we interact with others and are at the core of who we are. We value Access, Love, Belonging, Equity, and Stewardship. We understand that a work environment that respects your work/life balance is key; that's why many of our positions are eligible for flexible work schedules and teleworking opportunities. Through support, value, and trust, our employees are empowered to grow and develop into their best self.
Opportunity for All
We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, ethnic, racial, religious, sexual orientation, and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, people over 40 years of age, people with religious beliefs, veterans or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.
The Employment Security Department is an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities.
If you are a person needing assistance in the application process, if you need this job announcement in an alternate format, or if you have general questions about this opportunity, please contact Cheyenne Pernites or 253-593-7327 or the Talent Acquisition Team, or Washington Relay Service 711, prior to the recruitment closing. If you are having technical difficulties creating, accessing, or completing your application, please contact careershelp@des.wa.gov or (360) 664-1960 or toll free (877) 664-1960, Washington Relay 711.
