Jewish Vocational Service

Jewish Vocational Service (JVS) is a nonprofit working to close opportunity gaps in employment by supporting jobseekers with the skills and confidence to secure quality careers with family-sustaining wages through free job training, coaching, and skill-building programming. We believe that everyone, regardless of their background, deserves access to quality jobs and economic mobility. Every day, we invest in skills training, employer engagement, and systems-level change across California, because when we work towards equitable paths to opportunity, individuals, families, employers, and communities can thrive.

Data from the California Employment Development Department reveals a 40% increase in earnings for JVS program graduates 2 years after starting their JVS program. The longer-term impact is even more substantial: five years after enrolling in our programs, placed participants increase their wages by an average of 135% over what they were earning a year prior to engaging with JVS. This translates into earning more than $107,000 annually compared to earning $45,000 annually one year prior to enrollment. Qualitatively, participants report increased career awareness, exposure, and readiness after successful program completion, along with feeling more financially stable than they were one year prior to program enrollment.

Issue

How can JVS leverage AI tools and technologies to dramatically increase the number of jobseekers it serves, while maintaining the high-touch, equitable approach that defines its programs?

Situation

JVS faces a critical challenge in achieving our goal of scaling impact from serving approximately 525 jobseekers annually to reaching 10,000 annually by 2032, while maintaining the high-touch, equitable approach that defines our programs. Our mission is to empower economic mobility and help individuals achieve employment with family-sustaining wages through effective workforce development initiatives. However, our current models are not sustainable at this scale, as the cost per impact is prohibitively high. To address this, we need to fundamentally transform how we deliver services. The key to achieving this transformation lies in leveraging participant-facing AI and technology tools to increase operational efficiency and expand our reach. These tools have the potential to streamline processes, enhance program delivery, and enable us to serve significantly more participants without compromising program quality. However, identifying the right technologies that align with our mission, values, and unique participant needs is a complex challenge. At the same time, ensuring successful staff adoption of these tools is critical to their effective implementation.

Project

JVS is asking Stanford ACT to deliver:

1. A clear, evidence-based roadmap for leveraging AI and technology to scale our impact.  This roadmap will prioritize tools and innovations that align with our mission, address the unique needs of our participants, and match our organizational capacity. 
2. A high level roll-out plan to ensure JVS adopts new AI technologies thoughtfully, addressing the interconnected dependencies between technology, staff capacity, system upgrades, and funding. 
3. Recommendations on tailored training programs and effective change management techniques to empower staff to use new tools confidently and effectively, enhancing the quality of our services.