Homelessness Contracts Team Program Specialist

United Trading Group; Salt Lake City (UT); Hybrid; USD 34,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Job Stability

Career Growth

Meaningful Work

Supportive Work Environment

Job summary

Utah Department of Workforce Services, Office of Homeless Services, is seeking a Program Specialist to coordinate and monitor contracts supporting homelessness services. Hybrid work arrangement in Salt Lake City, with a criminal history check and a competitive benefits package.

Responsibilities include contract development, monitoring, training, and fiscal reviews in collaboration with state and federal partners. This role supports statewide homelessness plans and policy alignment.

Qualifications

• Experience in managing contract development and administration, including monitoring and reporting on outcomes.
• Ability to provide technical assistance and consultation to programs and partners.
• Experience navigating complex situations and creating workable solutions.
• Ability to learn complex programs and implement them successfully.
• Knowledge of homeless or social services and related funding processes.
• Excellent written and verbal communication for diverse audiences.
• Strong prioritization, deadlines, and adaptability to changing priorities.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate and monitor the contract life cycle for state- and federally-funded programs.
• Develop contracts with scope of work, performance measures, and budgets.
• Provide training and technical support to ensure compliance with directives.
• Review reimbursements and budget changes for fiscal compliance.
• Assess grantee performance measures and system-wide participation.
• Prepare and communicate monitoring outcomes and improvement opportunities.

Skills

Contract management

Regulatory compliance

Stakeholder communication

Technical assistance

Writing & reporting

Project coordination

Social services knowledge

Budgeting

Education

Bachelor's degree in social services or related field

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

Job description

Homelessness Contracts Team Program Specialist

FT / PT Status – Full-Time
Salary – $25.00 - $29.00 Hourly Wage
Remote Work / In-Office – Hybrid
Application Deadline – 9/27/2026

Key Responsibilities

The Department of Workforce Services, Office of Homeless Services (DWS-OHS) is seeking a highly skilled candidate to join its Homelessness Funding and Contracts Team. In this role, individuals will help coordinate, administer, and monitor contracts that support homeless services programs overseen by the Office.

Principal Duties
This position is responsible for:

• Supporting the implementation of Utah’s Guiding Principles to Overcome Homelessness, Utah Homeless Services Board initiatives, and DWS-OHS' mission, vision, and values.
• Professionally coordinating with DWS and DWS-OHS colleagues, as well as external partners, including homeless service providers, federal partners, local governments, and other state departments and divisions.
• Managing the contract life cycle for state- and federally-funded programs. Activities include:
  • Contract creation: Collaborate internally and externally to develop a contract’s scope of work, performance measures, and budget.
  • Contract monitoring:
    • Provide training and technical support to programs to ensure compliance with state and/or federal directives.
    • In conjunction with the Finance Division, review and process reimbursement requests and budget changes to determine fiscal compliance.
    • In conjunction with the Homelessness Data staff, assess grantee compliance with targeted performance measures.
    • In conjunction with the Homelessness System Coordination staff, assess grantee compliance with system-level participation, including but not limited to participation in the Point-in-Time Count, Housing Inventory Count, and Local Homeless Council.
• Identifying and communicating monitoring outcomes, technical matters, and improvement opportunities to appropriate internal and external stakeholders.
• Providing expertise on federal, state, and local regulations, standards, and best practices to internal and external stakeholders.
• Collaborating on the development of Requests for Grant Applications (RFGA) and other funding solicitations, and assisting with the preparation of state and federally required reports.
• Supporting the development and implementation of statewide homelessness plans and policies in alignment with local community plans and DWS-OHS strategic priorities.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate for this position is someone who is:

• Experienced in managing contract development and administration, including conducting programmatic and fiscal monitoring and reporting on monitoring outcomes.
• Experienced in providing effective technical assistance and consultation.
• Experienced in navigating complex situations and creating workable solutions.
• Able to learn complex programs and operations and implement them successfully.
• Knowledgeable of homeless or social services, state homelessness strategies, and contract funding and related processes.
• Excellent in communicating and demonstrates an ability to communicate professionally and effectively on complex and technical issues to a variety of audiences.
• Experienced in writing correspondence, reports, documents, and other written materials.
• Experienced with prioritization of tasks, managing deadlines, and changing priorities.
• Able to work with internal and external stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds in a manner that shows sensitivity, tact, professionalism, and responsiveness.
• A bachelor’s degree graduate in a social services–related field, or who has an equivalent combination of education and at least three years of experience in social services.
• Able to contribute positively and constructively to the Office’s culture, including but not limited to supporting the implementation of Utah’s Guiding Principles to Overcome Homelessness, Utah Homeless Services Board initiatives, and DWS-OHS’ mission, vision, and values.
• Highly organized, self-motivated, and adaptable to changing priorities and deadlines.
• Proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel, with strong writing and documentation skills.

About the Role

Location –
140 E 300 S
Salt Lake City, Utah, 84111
United States

Background Check Required – You must successfully pass a criminal history check.

Schedule Code – B - Competitive Career Service

May be filled as a Career Mobility for internal candidates

Why You Should Join Our Team

In Utah, we believe hard work is important, but balance is essential. Finding work/life balance is a vital element to our culture. To find out more about WHY Utah, click here. Other benefits may include:

• Job Stability: Enjoy the security and reliability of employment within a well-established organization.
• Career Growth: Develop valuable skills and gain opportunities for leadership within a large organization.
• Meaningful Work: Contribute to an important service that benefits the community and supports organizational goals.
• Supportive Work Environment: Be part of a team that values cooperation, strong work ethics, and mutual support.

The Agency

The mission of Workforce Services is to strengthen Utah's communities by supporting the economic stability and quality of our workforce. Today, more than 2,200 Workforce Services employees assist individuals in preparing for and finding jobs, meeting workforce needs of Utah businesses, administering temporary assistance, and providing economic data and analysis. Through a collaborative approach, the department has served millions of Utahns and has become a leader on several statewide initiatives. These include intergenerational poverty, homelessness, affordable housing, supporting refugees, helping rural communities, serving veterans and individuals with disabilities, and getting Utahns trained and back to work. To learn more about Workforce Services, click here.

EEO Statement

The State of Utah is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. For accommodations, please contact [phone].