TNWORKS ASSISTANT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR - 74256

Executive Service

This position is designated as Hybrid (office and Remote)

For more information, visit the link below:
https://www.tn.gov/workforce/careers.html

Who we are and what we do:

The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development is the state agency established to promote workforce development and improve workplace safety and health throughout the state. TNWorks is a new statewide workforce initiative that serves as Tennessee's collective brand for connecting employers to all the states workforce-related services and for delivering customized workforce solutions.

The TNWorks central hub is housed within the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) and convenes state and regional partners to make it easier for Tennessee employers to access these workforce solutions and for Tennesseans to access good jobs and job training services. The TNWorks team coordinates with the Department of Economic & Community Development (TNECD), the Tennessee Board of Regents, THEC, TDOE, DHS, local workforce boards, and other partners to deliver expedited, data-driven employer services.

How you make a difference in this role:

The Assistant Executive Director of TNWorks serves as a key strategic and operational leader responsible for driving the success of the statewide workforce hub alongside the Executive Director. The Assistant Executive Director leads and manages cross-functional teams, ensuring that day-to-day operations run with excellence and that agency partners remain aligned around shared goals. In addition to supporting statewide strategy, the Assistant Executive Director translates workforce priorities into actionable plans, sets delivery expectations, and holds teams accountable to milestones and outcomes. The Assistant Executive Director ensures that TNWorks services to employers and partners are delivered with consistency, quality, and agility. This role strengthens collaboration across agencies, guides team direction, and cultivates a high-performance culture centered on execution, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Job Overview:

Supports the Executive Director in driving TNWorks strategy execution by managing team members, operational workflows, coordinating interagency efforts, and maintaining performance tracking tools. Ensure timely delivery of initiatives and smooth collaboration across teams.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Manage and support project teams by establishing direction, driving alignment across agencies, and ensuring workstreams progress toward defined milestones and outcomes.

2. Oversee the coordination of internal and partner teams, ensuring workflows, decision-making processes, and communication channels operate smoothly and efficiently.

3. Support facilitation of strategy meetings and ensure follow-up actions are documented.

4. Monitor milestone progress and assist in resolving delivery barriers.

5. Prepare escalation documentation and coordinate with TDLWD on systemic issues.

6. Contribute to development of frameworks that enhance strategic execution and collaboration

7. Draft weekly visibility briefs and performance summaries for leadership

8. Analyze outreach and performance data to identify gaps and inform strategy adjustments.

9. Facilitate planning sessions, weekly coordination meetings, and monthly leadership touchpoints.

10. Help prepare materials for quarterly governance reviews and senior-level decision-making forums.

11. Provide recommendations on program prioritization, resource deployment, and risk mitigation.

12. Maintain and update project roadmaps, process flows, and tracking tools as priorities evolve.

13. Support risk identification and escalation processes, helping resolve issues.

14. Ensure timelines and expectations are consistently met by collaborating agencies and internal TNWorks members.

15. Assist in implementing advanced project management practices across TNWorks operations.

16. Translate insights into recommendations for process refinement, operational enhancements, and next-phase planning.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in public administration, Business, Workforce Development, Economics, or related field.
• 5+ years of qualifying full-time experience in public sector leadership or workforce development leadership.
• Valid drivers license and ability to travel statewide.
• Masters degree
• Experience working with Tennessee state agencies or regional workforce systems.
• Demonstrated success managing complex, multi-stakeholder programs.
• Familiarity with workforce funding streams, employer engagement processes, and state-level governance models.

Pursuant to the State of Tennessee's Workplace Discrimination and Harassment policy, the State is firmly committed to the principle of fair and equal employment opportunities for its citizens and strives to protect the rights and opportunities of all people to seek, obtain, and hold employment without being subjected to illegal discrimination and harassment in the workplace. It is the State's policy to provide an environment free of discrimination and harassment of an individual because of that person's race, color, national origin, age (40 and over), sex, pregnancy, religion, creed, disability, veteran's status or any other category protected by state and/or federal civil rights laws.