InvestUP is Hiring: Director of Talent Initiatives

InvestUP is a private sector-led economic development organization strategically focused on driving economic growth across Michigan’s beautiful Upper Peninsula, which is paradise for those longing for experiential living, with a natural, stunning, rugged landscape to thrill the adventurer in you, but the safety, sense of community and excellent education that your more sensible side seeks. 

Founded by leading private sector businesses across the region, as well as the region’s three universities, InvestUP’s mission is to deliver business and job growth across the Peninsula. The organization is seeking a motivated, passionate, and professional individual to partner with private sector businesses, issue experts, local stakeholders and organizations to bring about the development of new initiatives for workforce development and talent attraction. 

The Director of Talent Initiatives will work closely with businesses and the workforce stakeholder community in the region to create programs and initiatives to address the workforce development challenges that the business community in the Upper Peninsula is experiencing. The ideal candidate is a results-driven, strategic thinker with a commitment to detail and with strong interpersonal and communication skills. 

To be successful in this role, it will be critical to communicate and build relationships with businesses, job seekers, and local and state stakeholders, as well as have the creativity and vision to build tools and processes that provide support to align workforce needs with available resources to attract and retain job seekers.  The Director of Talent Initiatives must possess a strong sense of commitment and teamwork, passion, and the desire to help change and impact the region’s economic prosperity through attracting and retaining talent. 

This position reports to the InvestUP Chief Executive Officer.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The key responsibilities for the Director of Talent Initiatives shall include:

Developing and implementing a process that provides rapid hiring solutions for Upper Peninsula companies most impacted by the region’s talent challenges

Developing and implementing a strategy to increase diversity in Upper Peninsula business leadership, including creating a platform for female professionals to grow and advance;

Developing regular, direct, automated, recurring, and customized communication to companies and job seekers with an appropriate emphasis on talent populations, such as trailing spouses, college students and boomerangs;

Working with the organization’s marketing team to create a resume jobs portal that, among others purposes, serves as a resume bank with strategic focus on the region’s talent needs;

Working with the organization’s marketing team to host jobs fairs and events across the Upper Peninsula that promote talent attraction and retention;

Developing a mechanism so that Upper Peninsula talent stakeholders have access to, or can generate, relevant labor market information and other research-based data that proves an accurate picture of talent issues facing the region and its workforce, which may then be used to develop strategic action steps;

Leading policy makers, the higher education community, and talent stakeholders, like Michigan Works and the Department for Talent and Economic Development, to create a sustainable, responsive strategic plan to address the talent challenges facing the region

Leading the development and implementation of a structured program that connects interns from all levels of education to the business community; and

Developing metrics to measure the success of these talent initiatives;

COMPENSATION/BENEFITS:

The annual salary is based on the knowledge, experience and abilities the candidate possesses.  However, the salary is targeted to range between $45,000 to $90,000.  In addition, the successful candidate can expect a comprehensive benefit package that includes medical insurance, retirement benefits, paid holidays, paid vacation, a travel budget, and a cell phone.

QUALIFICATIONS:

The successful candidate will possess:

A Bachelor’s degree or higher, or equivalent experience

A proven track record of understanding private sector business needs and practices

Work experience in leadership and management

Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving skills, and strong desire to achieve results

The vision, ability, and resourcefulness to build tools and processes that create ways to strategically address systematic needs and challenges

A proven ability to open doors, network, and build relationships within both the public and private sector, as well as with community partners

Excellent listening, communication, presentation, problem solving and time management skills

A  willingness and ability to travel.  Applicants can live and work from essentially anywhere in the Upper Peninsula. This job will require regular travel across the Upper Peninsula, including some regular (minimum weekly) travel to Marquette, which is where the InvestUP office is located.

To learn more about InvestUP, visit: www.investupmi.com.

No calls or walk-ins please.  To apply, please email a cover letter, resume and references to Marty Fittante, CEO, InvestUP in care of: invest@investupmi.com

Deadline to apply:  April 22, 2019.

As a part of our commitment to the Upper Peninsula, we collaborate with partners to share some of the most compelling stories about business and job growth across the region. Our goal through these stories is to get at the heart of what makes the U.P. unique — and to ensure these stories travel beyond our peninsula and broadly illustrate why the UP is the place to live and work.

If you have an idea for an article, please contact a staff or board member at InvestUP.

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