Where your future begins

Business Account Services

Categorized In: Case Services - Planned Services

Approved Date: February 24, 2022

Owner: Mary Matusiak

Policy

Business Account Services are any and all services provided to employers, either directly or indirectly.  Nebraska VR has a dual customer role, with one of those customers being the businesses in our communities.  We must ensure that, in addition to supporting our clients with disabilities, we are also supporting our local businesses and meeting their needs.  Some examples of services we can provide businesses include:

  • Assistance in recruiting suitable employees
  • Assistance with retention of existing employees
  • Training such as ADA, Disability Etiquette in the Workplace, Inclusive Hiring Practices, Reasonable Accommodation, etc.
  • Assisting with spreading the word regarding their business openings, through such venues as job fairs, partner meetings, etc.
  • Information regarding tax credits
  • Exposure to employing and working with persons with disabilities

 

Business Account Managers

The Business Account Manager, or BAM, role is meant to work in the field to build relationships with employers, as well as bridge relations between businesses and clients with disabilities.  The BAM treats the business as their customer, working with them to determine needs and to provide the appropriate and requested services.  As a part of this role, the BAM performs as a liaison between the businesses and the field office, establishing relationships and connections as needed (based on both the needs of the businesses in the community and the needs of the field offices in that area).  The BAM should spend the majority of their workday doing outreach in the community or making contacts with businesses.  The BAM also has indirect services regarding businesses, such as WIN meetings,  labor market information, Employ meetings, Project SEARCH Business Advisory Council (BAC) meetings, and monitoring the Employer Database.

 

Progressive Employment

 

The Progressive Employment (PE) model is a dual-customer, team approach that uses worksite experiences to meet the needs of businesses and jobseekers with barriers to employment.  PE places emphasis on how VR business relations and job placement personnel interact with employers. PE is predicated on a dual-customer philosophy, making information about  business engagement  key to better serving VR clients in finding work experiences while ensuring employer needs are optimally met by the VR program. The PE model is fundamentally based on the premise that businesses should be partners and clients of VR for the process to work most effectively.

 

Progressive Employment is an important aspect of our engagement with businesses in our communities.  These experiences not only give our clients with disabilities opportunities, but also provide businesses exposure to working with and employing persons with disabilities.  This is the list of Progressive Employment Worksite Activities:

  • Informational Interview- an opportunity for a client to interview a business representative to ask questions and learn more about their business and hiring practices. Can be completed on site or virtually.
  • Mock Interview with Employer- an opportunity for a client to engage in a practice interview for a job, receiving feedback and tips for improvement afterwards.  
  • Job Shadow- an opportunity for a client to observe a worksite and what types of responsibilities are required for a specific job.  Can be completed on site or virtually.
  • Employer Tour- a tour of a business in order to see the worksite and learn more about the different positions in the company.  Can be completed virtually or on site.
  • On-The-Job-Experience (OJE)- a job experience where the client works in a specific position to learn about that role and be assessed on their work abilities.

 

Employer Database

 

The Employer Database is the responsibility of all staff in Nebraska VR.  The purpose of the database is threefold:  

  1. A useful resource for staff to utilize to assist them in searching for employment opportunities for clients
  2. A means to track employer contacts for reporting purposes to Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), as is required by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) reporting regulations
  3. To ensure that we are providing employers with appropriate contacts and services, in both quantity and quality.

Checklists

BAM Responsibilities

1.  Connect and build relationships with employers in their areas.  This includes:

  • Introducing employers to Nebraska VR
  • Learning about the businesses, their needs, hiring practices, etc.
  • Providing training to employers (on ADA, Workplace Etiquette, etc.)
  • Providing information regarding tax credits and other such incentives to employers
  • Assisting with initial contact to businesses regarding Progressive Employment Worksite Experiences, as well as Work Based Learning Experiences (WBLEs) and On-the-Job Trainings (OJTs).
  • Setting up tours of businesses, for both clients and staff (and other partner agencies)

2.  Leading or actively collaborating in WIN meetings, to include bringing in partners, employers, etc. when appropriate

3.  Co-leading Employ meetings with partner agencies

4.  Entering new businesses into the database, as well as repeat contacts with existing businesses.  Reminding other staff in their offices to input their employer contacts into the database.  All staff are responsible for inputting their own employer contacts into the database, whenever they have spoken with a new or existing business contact.

5.  Strengthening relations with core partners and their business service teams for the purpose of providing quality services without duplication to employers in their areas.

6.  Varying additional activities, dependent upon area and responsibilities, such as the following:

  • Developing job fairs
  • Attending chamber meetings
  • Attending other appropriate business related meetings in the area
  • Assisting with certificate programs

Employer Database

The Employer Database in QE2 requires the following processes:

1.  Anytime a staff is going to reach out to a business, they should first check the database to see if contact has already been made.  If the business is in the database, the staff should check in with the primary VR contact before reaching out to the business.  

2.  ANY STAFF that has a substantial conversation with a business is responsible for creating or updating the contact in the employer database.  Substantial conversations should include at least one of the following:

  • Exchanging of contact information for future communications
  • In depth conversation regarding the business's needs
  • In depth conversation regarding Nebraska VR's services
  • Discussion regarding setting up a service for a client (WBLE, OJE, Job Shadow, Interview, etc)
  • Periodic progress reports on a service for a client (keep in mind the documented contact should not reflect details about the client, but instead should be focused on the business's needs being met by the service, their feedback and experience, etc)

2.  After having one of these conversations with an employer, the staff person is reponsible for searching to see if the business is listed in the database; if not, they will need to create a new business entry.  If the business does exist, a contact note should be created.  

3.  If regular contacts (such as weekly) are being made to the business to check on the status of a client's progress, and nothing of note regarding the employer and their needs is discussed, all of these contacts do not need to be noted separately.  Instead, the staff person could make a contact note once a month with a brief summary.  

 

 

 


Chapter Archives

Approved Date
February 04, 2019 Show this Archived Version


back to top