About Skillworks

SkillWorks is a nationally recognized funder collaborative that has positively impacted the lives of thousands of low-income jobseekers and low-wage workers, helped to create a vital talent pipeline for the region’s industries, and established itself as a critical part of the workforce development ecosystem in Greater Boston and beyond. Established in 2003, SkillWorks now serves as a pioneer and model for other workforce collaboratives across the nation. SkillWorks acts as a workforce intermediary that pools funding from public, private, and corporate philanthropy to create a flexible set of resources that can be steered towards innovative solutions across community-based organizations, government entities, and employers. Co-Chaired by the Boston Foundation and the City of Boston and housed at the Boston Foundation, a Funders Group of members from government and philanthropy helps to provide guidance for the organization. 

Vision 

Skillworks envisions a Greater Boston where everyone has access to and training for household-sustaining jobs and where race is not a predictor of wealth or income. 

Mission

SkillWorks strengthens the workforce development sector in Greater Boston in order to reduce poverty and narrow racial income and wealth gaps. We do this through targeted investments in workforce innovations, collaborating with stakeholders to build capacity and professional development in the sector, and partnering with employers and government to advance equitable practices, policies and systems that empower workers and provide sustainable pathways to quality, household-sustaining jobs.

Core Values

• Equity & Economic Justice: Center equity, racial and economic justice in workforce development, prioritizing underrepresented populations and seeking at all times representative perspectives and partners. 
• Systems Change: Invest in solutions to meet current challenges, while also working to address systemic barriers to access and success in the workforce, including strengthening the workforce system itself. 
• Leadership & Influence: Leverage SkillWorks’ unique place in the Workforce Development ecosystem to bring issues, models, and challenges to the forefront, to move the field forward with research, and to advance policy and practice change through civic leadership. 
• Collaboration: Engage with and amplify diverse stakeholders, build capacity for change by working across sectors and leveraging both private and public resources, and support strategic partnerships and coalitions.