JF&CS Employment Services helps match job seekers with disabilities with community employers that align with their personal interests and skill set. Read on to learn about a recent match we made between one of our participants and a Boston accounting firm.
In June 2018, a representative from Matson, Driscoll & Damico Forensic Accountants attended the JF&CS Business Advisory Committee Employer Engagement Breakfast. The representative from the firm left the event feeling inspired and brought information from the breakfast back to his team. They expressed similar enthusiasm toward the idea of partnering with JF&CS and employing one of our participants.
The team at MDD then had multiple discussions and meetings with the director of employment services to go over their employment needs, provide a sense of their office environment and develop a job description based on these initial conversations. The director of employment services and employment specialists then utilized the information gathered during these discussions to identify a candidate who matched the needs of the firm.
Making the Match
At the same time, we were working with a participant who had a strong skill set and interest in math, computers and working in an office environment in downtown Boston, so we were quick to share basic information about the job with this participant, and he was very enthusiastic about the opportunity. Once we had an interested candidate who we felt would be a good fit, our team assisted in setting up an interview and supported both our participant and the staff at the firm throughout this process. The interview took place in early November, and our participant was offered a job on the spot.
Before the job began, we provided some training to the team working with our participant to give them some background, tools for effectively working with/teaching our participant, basic disability etiquette information and opportunities to ask questions. We also worked with our participant and his family to prepare for the new schedule, train for traveling to and from work and train for the family’s need to report earnings to Social Security.
A Great Fit
When the job started, our participant was provided with intensive job coaching to support his training, solidify his role and help to develop relationships and natural supports within the firm. Since intentional and systematic effort was put into developing the role and making sure our participant was a good fit, the intensive supports were able to fade quickly and our participant was offered the opportunity to work an additional shift each week after just two months.
This employer/employee match continues to be a great success, with satisfaction being consistently reported by both. The participant’s mother even wrote the Employment Services team to thank them for finding her son “the job of his dreams.” The office manager at the firm also shared her experience with another business located in downtown Boston, and JF&CS has started the process of partnering with this new business as well.
JF&CS Employment Services provides person-centered support so people with disabilities can succeed in independent competitive employment. For more information, visit our Employment Services page.
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