Small Business Specialist (Construction)

Client: Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), Facilities Executive Office | MAAS Companies

The Work

LAUSD runs one of the largest school construction programs in the country, and the District is serious about small businesses and local workers sharing in it. As the Small Business Specialist, you are the person who makes that real: you help small contractors, architects, engineers, and suppliers learn how to compete for District work, and you connect graduates of the District's We Build training program with jobs and union apprenticeships on LAUSD projects.

Day to day you develop and run seminars and symposiums for contractors and service providers, meet with general contractors, subcontractors, and local trade unions to arrange job placements and apprenticeship enrollment, and monitor We Build training programs at the District's occupational and skills centers. You build partnerships with District representatives, small businesses, unions, community and faith-based organizations, and local agencies, walk small businesses through the certification process and upcoming bidding opportunities, keep the master calendar for the Small Business and Contractor Academy programs, and prepare written reports used before the Board of Education and the Bond Oversight Committee. One position is open.

What You Will Own

• Seminars, symposiums, and outreach that grow small business participation in the building program
• Job placement and union apprenticeship enrollment for We Build graduates on District projects
• Monitoring of We Build training programs: trainee evaluations, skills progress, and attendance
• Partnerships with small businesses, trade unions, community and faith-based organizations, and local agencies
• Guidance for small businesses through District certification and bidding opportunities
• The master calendar for the Small Business and Contractor Academy programs
• Written reports for Small Business Supervisors, the Board of Education, and the Bond Oversight Committee

What You Bring

• 4 years of professional experience with a public or private agency doing field work with community-based organizations and coordinating with contractors on small business workforce development, including pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship training and compliance with state-mandated apprenticeship placement requirements
• A bachelor's degree in public administration, business administration, or a related field (experience may substitute for up to 2 years of the degree)
• Working knowledge of pre-apprenticeship and state-governed apprenticeship programs and each local trade union's entrance requirements
• A valid California driver's license; regular travel around the District is part of the job

Preferred

• Familiarity with Small Business Administration rules and apprenticeship employment law
• Experience presenting to boards, community groups, and business organizations
• An eye for promotional materials and clear, detail-oriented writing

Compensation

Salary range: $100,000 to $109,000 per year, based on experience.

Benefits: health, dental, and vision at low cost; 401k; three weeks of PTO; and an ESOP (employee stock ownership) at no cost to you, with a 3% Safe Harbor contribution vested on day one.

Why MAAS

MAAS has spent nearly 40 years earning the trust of 50+ educational institutions across California, managing over $10B in projects. That track record means the work here is stable, funded, and consequential. You are not chasing the next contract.

As a MAAS employee, you are also an owner. The company is 100% employee-owned through an ESOP, a retirement benefit provided at no cost to you, on top of your salary. MAAS is a profitable, well-run organization and our share price has more than doubled since the plan's inception, with continued growth year over year. Your ownership stake builds the longer you stay, and ESOP participants nationally tend to accumulate 2.5x more in retirement savings than employees at non-ESOP companies.

In an industry not known for prioritizing culture, 96% of MAAS employees say it is a great place to work, and 100% say people genuinely care about each other.