Marano Fellows Class of 2009

Name: Betty J. Johnson
Organization:

Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee, Inc.

Location: Nashville, TN
Primary Industry Sector: Customer Service
Type of Organization: CBO

“What excites me about sector work is developing a model to approach and partner with other organizations that we've normally not worked with. I plan to establish Goodwill as a lead in at least 1 sector strategy, if not more.”

Organizational Mission: Through the sales of donated items, Goodwill provides job readiness, job placement and skills training programs for people who are unemployed and face barriers to employment.

We've been in existence since 1958, almost 52 years.

Interest in Sector Work: Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee, Inc., plans to work in the customer service sector. Our niche is preparing people for solid entry-level jobs. We partnered with the local community college and an employer focus group through the development of a retail/customer service training program for entry-level, low income candidates. We are now planning to develop and implement a call center training program at Goodwill, and we plan to partner with a number of call center employers in our local community. Wages for call center employees are above normal entry-level wages, and there will be opportunity for advancement. Our plans are to establish an on-site call center withinn our Goodwill and train candidates both in the classroom and in that center. Our hope is that these graduates will enjoy a better life. One side goal will be to work with the employers to examine qualifications required for employment.