JOB TITLE: Neighbor Services Outreach Advisor South Central Minnesota
DEPARTMENT: Neighbor Services
LED BY: Neighbor Services Strategic Partners Supervisor
HOURS: Full-Time; 40 Hours per week
PAY RANGE: $23.00-$26.00
LOCATION: HYBRID
POSITION SUMMARY
Responsible for creating and maintaining relationships between Second Harvest Heartland (SHH) and community organizations and agencies with the goal of increasing SNAP enrollment and utilization in targeted counties and among communities experiencing barriers to accessing benefits. Responsible for providing information and assistance to people potentially eligible for the MN Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). This includes direct application assistance, both in-person and virtual community outreach, and providing subject matter expertise about SNAP and food resources. In addition to in-person work, this position also supports the Second Harvest Heartland Care Center (SHHCC) team by providing robust direct assistance to Neighbor's over the phone from multiple channels including IVR/call runs, float support, and assigned cases. Hybrid position, regular outreach events in community, plus ability to work in-office at Second Harvest Heartland, travel up to 50% of time but very rarely overnight. Candidate must reside in Blue Earth, Brown, Le Sueur, Nicollet, or Watonwan county.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILTIES
- Perform community education and outreach efforts including: (1) Provide detailed explanation of benefits to potentially eligible people. (2) Offer Minnesotans information to apply for the program with, or without, additional assistance and supportive materials. (3) Foster strong partnerships with SNAP Outreach providers, counties, local organizations, and individuals.
- Offer follow-up and additional support should any matters regarding SNAP policy, outreach, or the application process itself require additional assistance or education. Be able to explain and assist applicants through appropriate complaint and/or appeals channels.
- Identify and solidify new partnership sites, determine strategies for optimal outcomes, and collaborate interdepartmentally when appropriate. Support collaborative outreach strategies and execute independently.
- Provide detailed explanation of outreach and screening opportunities to member agencies, particularly food shelves/pantries. Provide training, support and supervision of efforts and assistance, when possible.
- Provide real-time screening and application assistance over the phone and in the field. Coordinate scheduling for specialized assistance if applicable.
- Develop and maintain innovative outreach methods for identified populations which may include working poor, families, seniors, people from diverse cultures and backgrounds, immigrant populations, etc.
- Collect required data and as assigned, develop, and implement systems and materials necessary for the tracking of program efforts, processes, and outcomes. Document outreach activities and relationship-building efforts in applicable software.
- Educate community members and organizations about SNAP through public presentations, small group and one-on-one meetings, and other communication channels. Work to dispel myths, break down stigma, and overcome other barriers to applying for SNAP.
- Stay current on SNAP policy and processes and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program - Nutritional Assistance Program for Seniors (CSFP/NAPS) policy at State and Federal levels.
- Maintain an understanding of program barriers and policy issues related to MN SNAP. Identify and develop strategies to overcome barriers that prevent people from fully utilizing SNAP.
- Must be comfortable working with people from all walks of life and diverse backgrounds.
- Meet monthly individual and team assigned goals, including, but not limited to application assistance goals, data integrity goals, outreach event goals, etc.
- Contribute to creation and realization of short- and long-term business objectives.
- Coach interns, volunteers, or others on Outreach activities as needed.
- Consistently exemplify the vision and values of Second Harvest Heartland.
BEHAVIORAL EXPECTATIONS
- Demonstrate behavior consistent with SHH's mission, vision, and values daily.
- Understand safety and security policies and actively promote these practices in the workplace, which includes any home office and while in the field.
- Ability to build strong, constructive relationships with a diverse range of individual and organizational partners, where common goals can be discovered, jointly shared, and owned for maximum impact.
- Strong commitment to equity; ability to work with individuals from different abilities, ethnicities, genders, races, religions, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds.
- Demonstrate self-reflection on how their own identities, experiences, and biases will impact team culture, employee well-being, and the implementation of the organization's strategic plan.
- Supporting and collaborating on organization-wide equity and diversity efforts.
- Demonstrate the ability to support the work of others. A high level of understanding and respect for the urgency and needs of others. Ability to see how actions impact others. Willingness to put the needs of internal and external customers first.
- Support innovation with an openness to new ideas, learning from others, and the flexibility to support change.
- Demonstrate the ability to identify issues or areas of improvement and the willingness to address them.
- Maintain confidentiality of personal information of employees, volunteers, clients, donors, and others.
- Demonstrate enthusiasm and a positive attitude.
ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS
- Candidate must reside in Blue Earth, Brown, Le Sueur, Nicollet, or Watonwan County.
- A combination of experience and education generally attained through a minimum of 3 years' experience in customer service/customer contact or human services and/or post-secondary education in a related field(s) (social services, community engagement, public health, etc.).
- Experience working with diverse populations and community based/nonprofit organizations preferred.
- Demonstrated exceptional customer service skills to create a welcoming and inclusive environment where everyone is welcomed and valued, must be able to communicate with others effectively.
- Ability to assess and troubleshoot resistance to program enrollment, identify barriers and work toward resolution of concerns.
- Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate with professional English skills in written and oral forms.
- Comfortable communicating via various methods, including phone, emails, text messages, as well as face-to-face in-person communication, for long periods of time.
- Demonstrated familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite, Office 365, specifically Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint, Word, etc. And the ability to learn other computer software programs.
- Ability to work with flexibility, efficiency, and enthusiasm, both individually and as part of a team in a fast-paced, high-demand environment.
- Demonstrated ability to plan, manage and follow through on multiple daily tasks and projects.
- Valid MN driver's license and legally mandated insurance.
- Good driving record.
- Access to internet connection during entire workday when working off-site. Connection with speed of at least 80 GB internet, with 100 GB preferred. Also, a hardwired connection is preferred over wi-fi.
- Remote position with ability to work in-office or off-site as required, up to 50% of time, very rarely overnight.
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience working with SNAP or other government benefit programs.
- Ability to speak a second language (Somali, Spanish, Hmong, Russian, Vietnamese, etc.) to better serve our diverse client base is preferred but not required.
- Experience training/teaching and communicating in front of public audiences.
- Supervisory experience (staff, volunteer, intern, etc.).
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Below is a table with the percentage of time that this position is expected to be engaged in the following physical requirements.
Requirements
N/A
33 - 66%
66 - 100%
Whole Body Range of Motion (ROM)
x
Walking
x
Operate Motor Vehicle
x
Upper extremity ROM
x
Twisting of Head
x
Twisting Back
x
Stooping
x
Standing
x
Sitting
x
Reaching the Floor
x
Reaching Below Shoulders
x
Reaching Across
x
Reaching Above Shoulders
x
Static Pushing
(Pushing motion without moving an object)
x
Dynamic Pushing
(Pushing an object and moving with it)
x
Static Pulling
(Pulling motion without moving an object)
x
Dynamic Pulling
(Pulling an object and moving with it)
x
Lifting 50+ lbs
x
Lifting 30-50 lbs
x
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