The Results-Oriented Community Services Workplace

Community services jobs, whether camp counselor, community organizer or lifeguard, are involved in a lot of detail. When community services people are so engrossed in the details of their jobs, it's easy for them, for anyone actually, to lose sight of the job's major contribution.

A Results-Oriented Community Services Job Description is different from a traditional job description because it focuses an employee on the several job results that answer the question: What results must this community services job accomplish for the organization?

Community Services Job Standards added to job expectations tighten management controls by clarifying how well and when results must be accomplished.

Community Services Job Objectives establish management and employee plans by highlighting important current and future results needed.

Job-specific Community Services Employee Management Forms maintain consistent and legally sound management actions by basing manager-employee interactions on job results.

The Purpose of Community Services Jobs

Stated in a results-oriented, three-line style, community services jobs--

SUPPORTS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT by

identifying community needs; forming focus groups; establishing community priorities; providing information, advice and support; obtaining funding; maintaining equipment and facilities.

Types of Community Services Jobs

Some community services jobs identify, study and evaluate community needs-forming focus groups, studying statistics, preferences and lifestyles, talking to people who have knowledge of the community. Still other jobs meet with residents to present and explain issues, organize and set-up action groups, and provide support services.

There are jobs involved in providing camp activities, such as program directors, counselors, instructors and lifeguards, and other youth services offerings. And, of course, somebody has to manage and supervise the community services people and processes.

Community Services Job Management Tools

Here are actual job examples of how community services job actions can be focused on results and kept on track using each of our job management tools:

Results-Oriented Community Services Job Descriptions form the foundation of all job management tools. Our uniquely structured job descriptions focus on the result to be accomplished first and prominently, followed by the duties performed in order to accomplish the result. For example,

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Community Services Job Standards sharpen employee attention and management control by defining and communicating how well the community services results must be accomplished and what benchmarks will be used to measure job results. For example, for the job result above, the job standards might be:

• Community Services situations are correctly understood.
• All options are identified and evaluated.
• Community Services recommendations are ready when needed.

Community Services Job Objectives point the direction for employee actions by focusing job efforts on current and future community services issues. Job objectives are written in the three-line, results-oriented structure. For example, for the job result above, a job objective might be:

SPEED-UP DECISION MAKING by

reducing time to deliver community services recommendations by 10% by (date).

Community Services Employee Management Forms tied specifically to each community services job description are more helpful (and legal) than generic forms used for all different kinds of jobs. Job-specific forms are used to state job qualifications, guide job interview questions, orient new employees, plan job training, and appraise job performance.

Community Services Job Qualifications are stated in the same terms used in the job description. They are not translated into generic (typically behavioral) terms. For example:

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Community Services Job Interview guide questions are inserted directly below each job result in the job description: For example:

• "What specific job responsibilities have you had in this area?"
• "Where did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "When did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "How did you go about accomplishing these responsibilities?"
• "What accomplishment in this area gave you the most pride?"
• "In this area, what were some of your biggest challenges?"
• "How did you overcome the challenges?"

The Community Services Job Orientation guide reformats the job description sequence so that job explanations, policies, protocols, processes, and procedures are logical and complete and can easily be checked off. For example:

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Here's the procedure and format we use to analyze and present community services recommendations."

The Community Services Job Training plan guides a thorough examination of actual job knowledge, skills, and abilities as described in the job description that need improvement or that might be enhanced. For example:

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Analytical skills would be improved by enrolling in a statistical analysis class."

The Community Services Job Performance Appraisal guide is a job-specific form. It is not a universal form used for all jobs. The guide adds an appraisal scale below each job result in the job description so that attention can be drawn to each job requirement and expectation. For example:

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

__ Great! Just want we wanted.
__ We have a problem.
__ Improvement is needed.
__ Much, much more than we asked for.

Comments: _________________

Community Services Résumé Template

Potential employers want to know what a job applicant has accomplished in his/her community services work career. They don't want to be bored with minor details. Our Résumé Template provides:

• an outline to help assemble personal background information.
• a Results-Oriented Job Description to provide the community services job language-focused on results-needed to write an effective résumé.
• Community Services Job Objectives to orient thinking in terms of accomplishments.
• instructions on how to use a Results-Oriented Community Services Job Description and Community Services Job Objectives to express job accomplishments.

Use the community services job description responsibility statement as a base:

RECOMMENDS COMMUNITY SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Select the community services job objective that fits your experience:

REDUCE COSTS 10% by

improving community services processes.

Combine the two into a résumé statement:

Reduced costs 10% by analyzing, identifying, and recommending new community services system controls.

Community Services Career Links

California State University, Chico, Careers in Health and Community Services

Career opportunities, job trends, job settings, key issues.

Universities.com

Degrees for social and community service managers; on campus and distance learning.

Stateuniversity.com, Careers in Public and Community Services

Information and resources for looking into public and community services careers.

Stateuniversity.com, Careers in Public and Community Services

Information and resources for getting into public and community services careers.

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Social and Human Service Assistants

Information about training and education needed for social and human service assistant jobs, earnings, expected job prospects, what workers do on the job, and working conditions.