SECTION 503: Community of Practice Capacity Building & Sharing

1. SECTION 503: Community of PracticeCapacity Building & Sharing Operations Support ManagerTicket to Work program Pam Walker, CEO, Alliance Professional Services LLC May7, 2014

2. Learning Objectives How to develop and implement a successful 503 strategy by: • Determining the best outreach approaches for your organization. • Identifying Federal Contractors and designated contacts. • Reviewing the Federal Contractor’s business information. • Creating marketing materials and developing a marketing strategy. • Developing methods to match Federal Contractors’ open positions with qualified Ticket Holders. • Preparing Ticket Holders for Section 503 participation. • Establishing a solid job screening process. • Creating a standard process for making and tracking referrals.

3. Objective Number 1 Determine the best outreach approach for your organization: • What is your goal? • How many staff hours are available? • What is your budget? • Based on the goals, staff, and budget, what outreach approaches will work best? • Ideas

4. Objective Number 2 Identify Federal Contractors and designated contacts: • Finding the Federal Contractors who are the best fit for your organization will take time, patience, and some research. • Search for Federal Contractors who meet the requirements important to your organization. • Compare the number and types of jobs available to the typical skill set of the Ticket Holders served.

5. Objective Number 2Resource 2.A https://www.fpds.gov/fpdsng_cms/ The Federal Procurement Data System – Next Generation is a government website that provides Federal Procurement Reports. From this site you can obtain: • Federal Procurement Reports • List of the Top 100 Contractors by Fiscal Year • Small Business Contracting Report

6. Objective Number 2Resource 2.B http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/101195 The General Services Administration provides a list of large prime contractors who have received: • Non-construction federal contracts valued at over $650,000. • Federal contracts for construction valued at over $1.5 million.

7. Objective Number 2Resource 2.C https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/#1 Use the Federal System for Award Management to: • Perform a simple search to see if a company of interest is a federal contractor. • Use the advanced search option to locate federal contractors located within a city, state or zip code.

8. Objective Number 3 Review the Federal Contractors’ business information. • Select the Federal Contractors to be contacted. • Make the initial contact. • Provide information about services provided to both Ticket Holders and to employers. • Explain how the Federal Contractor could participate. • Describe the mutual benefit.

9. Objective Number 4 Create marketing materials and develop a marketing strategy: • Create a 3 - 5 minute introduction that includes: • A description of the Ticket to Work program • A description of your organization • Services provided and the value of the services • Specific resources available • Explanation of different ways Federal Contractors can partner with Ticket service providers.

10. Objective Number 4 (continued) • Use the Introduction developed to create additional marketing materials such as formal introductory letters, flyers or brochures. • Include the organization’s name, primary contact’s name, title, address, phone number and email address on all marketing material. • Include marketing information for employers on your organization’s website. • Consider providing an employer interest web form.

11. Objective Number 4 (continued) • Obtain the name and contact information for the Affirmative Action Officer or Human Resources Director/Manager for employers of interest. • Provide marketing materials and take steps to schedule a date/time to meet in person or by phone. • Learn as much as you can about the business prior to the meeting. • Be prepared with information and topics for discussion. • If mutually interested, plan for follow-up.

12. Objective Number 5 Develop methods to match Federal Contractors’ open positions with qualified Ticket Holders: • Agree on a process for sending/receiving job openings. • Agree on a process for submitting candidates who may or may not choose to disclose a disability prior to hire. • Determine if and how you will post job opportunities. • Plan methods for recruiting Ticket Holders to fill open positions.

13. Objective Number 5 (continued) Develop methods to match Federal Contractors’ open positions with qualified Ticket Holders: • Website opportunities • Announcements, interest forms, job postings • Marketing efforts • Mailings, robo-calls, community bulletin boards • Resources for information sharing • National Employment Network Association (NENA), blogs, groups, emails, websites • Partnerships, both formal and informal

14. Objective Number 6 Prepare Ticket Holders for Section 503 participation: • Identify key areas of interest and skill sets. • Provide information about Section 503 and standard Section 503 forms employers use. • Discuss voluntary disclosure vs. nondisclosure. • Share the importance of work-related soft skills. • Prepare for interviews.

15. Objective Number 6Resource 6.A Free sites for skills, abilities and interest assessments: Career One Stop Skill Profiler: http://www.careerinfonet.org/skills/default.aspx?nodeid=20 O’net Resource Center: http://www.onetcenter.org Getting Hired website: http://www.gettinghired.com/Career-Tools/Career-Assessment.aspx

16. Objective Number 6Resource 6.B Additional interview preparation assistance: Free Job Question-Interview App for iPhones, iPads, and Android phones: http://jobinterviewquestionsandanswersapp.com/

17. Objective Number 7 Establish a solid job screening process. • Develop good pre-screening processes. • Ask questions to find “hidden” issues that could disqualify a Ticket Holder for a specific position. • Request reference letters. • Use low-cost or free tools to confirm skills. • Refer only well-qualified, job-ready candidates to employers.

18. Objective Number 8 Create a standard process for making and tracking referrals and applicants: • Maintain an ongoing list to reflect: • Each Ticket Holder and the applications submitted. • The date and outcome of each application submitted. • Date hired, if applicable. • If not hired, feedback obtained from the potential employer.

19. Working Together • The opportunity to participate in recruitment and job placement for Federal Contractors is very exciting, but none of us have the capacity to fill every open position with a qualified Ticket Holder. • By developing tools, best practices, and processes that allow us to coordinate our efforts, we will be able to do a better job for Ticket Holders and the Federal Contractors that employ them.

20. Additional Resources • For additional information about participating in Section 503, visit: https://yourtickettowork.com/web/ttw/503-readiness-training

21. Thank you! Pam Walker Alliance Professional Services LLC P.O. Box 550 Collierville, TN 38027-0550 Email: pam@allianceprofessionalservices.com