Office of Workforce Opportunity
The Office of Workforce Opportunity (OWO) within the Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) serves as the state level administrative entity for all WIOA Title I Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth funds flowing to New Hampshire from the US Department of Labor (USDOL). BEA is the state entity fiscal agent and the official grant recipient of WIOA Title I funds. The USDOL, Region I Philadelphia/ Boston office provides federal oversight and technical assistance to the OWO.
As a single state service delivery area, New Hampshire has developed a highly aligned governance and administrative structure that sets policy direction and performance goals and provides oversight to hold the workforce development system fully accountable. The State Workforce Innovation Board (SWIB) serves as the advisory body for the development, update, and evaluation of the planning process to ensure that workforce development programs remain fully responsive to New Hampshire’s economic development and labor market needs. State agencies work in a coordinated manner to oversee the implementation of a host of specific workforce development programs. Local agencies (or local administrative arms of state agencies) are responsible for managing programs and providing services to customers.
OWO staff serve as staff to the SWIB, assisting the board in carrying out the vision, mission and goals as established for the one-stop service delivery system known as NH Works.
Vision
Healthy and vibrant communities provide an innovative workforce to meet current and future industry needs and create a competitive economic advantage for New Hampshire.
The vision begins with “healthy and vibrant communities” as the Board understands that healthy communities are the foundation that leads to building healthy economies and a healthy workforce. It helps with attracting and retaining both companies and talent and signals an increased quality of life that supports every aspect of economic and workforce development.
Mission
To promote and advocate for talent development by partnering with businesses, agencies, educational institutions, and organizations to support a unified and innovative workforce development system that meets the needs of business and individual customers.
Values and Priorities
The SWIB identified a set of values and priorities that guide its work. The Board’s values include:
- Proactive Solutions
- Flexibility
- Life-long Learning
- Collaboration
- Social Mobility
- Demand-driven System
- Inclusion
- Effective Technology
- Efficiency
The SWIB’s priorities include a focus on:
- Career Awareness and Exploration
- Advocacy and Policy Guidance
- Talent Attraction and Retention
- System Communication and Collaboration
- Work-based Learning
- Soft Skill Development