Sandra Schwarz Conley

Experience

• 

  University of Illinois at Chicago Honor College

  Jan 2014 - May 2016

  Researcher

  Performed Capstone: Studied the effect of small businesses on the economy, with an emphasis on smaller city-wide economies.• Met quarterly deadlines and organized meeting schedule with Capstone Advisor.• Analyzed research comparing local impact of small businesses with multinationals• Presented findings at 2016 Student Research Forum

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  Coyne College

  Sept 2016 - Feb 2021

  Career Services Representative

  • Facilitate students and graduates with all job search activities such as job fairs and career programs• Couched students to understand their career goals and accordingly provide career guidance• Effectively hold seminars on resume writing and interview skills to achieve student placement goals• Evaluate students and recent graduates with job placement assistance according to school policies, and federal and state regulations• Performing analysis of the labor market to create a menu of specific paths within the field based on interests, personality, and specific disabilities• Effectively negotiated pay rate for entry-level candidates with employers according to the labor market • Developing personal connections with students and employers so students can understand their options for career paths based on their interest and aptitudes• Generating a list of technical questions from the student's field for mock interviews so they can discuss in-depth aspects of the position during the interview• Efficiently developed new relationships with human resources managers and recruiters for entry-level opportunities• Creating Power Points and presenting seminars on a variety of topics so students have the tools to find the career path best for them• Tracking and verify students and graduate's employment data and cohort• Ensuring that cohort job placement statistics exceed regulatory minimums by 75% • Recruiting employers for participation in Program Advisory Boards and cultivate relationship with employers for graduate placement• Daily management of client’s requirements for better opportunities for graduates Show less

• 

  Bostrom

  Feb 2021 - Jan 2022

  Associate Consultant

  • Gather and prioritize market, customer and internal feedback and requirement; own the roadmap and backlog • Outlined the scope of the work and worked directly on mapping out schedules, milestones, and required resources to meet project objectives • Developed and carried out communications to the client’s executive director, company staff, and internal and external project teams• Conceived of and created plan to offer only digital certificates as part of client’s green initiative• Learned quickly about business challenges and technologies of client to identify quick-fix solutions to long-standing issues for increased efficiency• Conducted user research to redefine the Customer Commitment strategy• Work with management to help drive revenue forecasts and deliver revenue objective • Research, identify and monitor market problems and trends• Effectively deliver projects on-time within the scope that meets or exceeds client expectations• Coordinated conferences and other events for clients in close collaboration with team• Developed strong working knowledge of business management best practices to achieve client goals Show less

• 

  HIRE360 Chicago

  Jan 2022 - Aug 2022

  Industry Project Manager

  • Researching, identifying, and analyzing industry trends, new and emerging projects and initiatives that will lead to employment opportunities• Outreach and recruitment of partner organizations to provide employment and apprenticeship opportunities for candidates. • Documenting specific requirements of current and upcoming apprenticeship and employment opportunities• Building relationships with industry and labor representatives, contractors, and subcontractors in order to understand employer needs and successfully place qualified candidates• Identifying opportunities for qualified apprenticeship candidates• Liaising between candidates and training or employment representatives to ensure that candidate placements are successful• Sharing knowledge and industry contacts to inform candidate outreach and recruitment.• Informing development and implementation of apprenticeship preparation, tutoring services, curriculum development, industry certifications, testing, and other programming as necessary• Ensuring currency and accuracy of industry, labor and employer data• Participating/leading presentations to selected audiences as appropriate• Reporting on various aspects of training opportunities, placements, and tenure• Tracking employer outreach, open job orders and placements in database• Attend Networking events• Coordinate and assist with various Job Fairs internally and externally • Coordinate and assist with fundraising Show less

• 

  Mathematica

  Aug 2022 - Mar 2025

  Project Manager

  •Serves as a Life-Cycle Project Manager, with overall responsibility for managing the planning, scoping of important inter-agency, and inter-governmental projects•Controls and manages project milestones and budgets from planning through project initiation with a focus on project objectives• Work within the Enterprise Project Management Office to develop and implement Project Management best practices and standards•Involved with day-to-day project activities, resource and schedule management, cost and budget management, risk mitigation, and coordination•Ensure that the project team understands all aspects of the prime contract relating to their respective responsibilities, and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the prime contract checklist and organizational structure•Facilitates the development of resource loaded schedules, monitors project performance using Microsoft Schedule, analyzes financial data using Automated Information Systems, and supports the formulation of risk-informed decisions.•Assists budget development and defense processes, supports, programming decisions, and provides input for the operating budget•Fosters positive working relationships internally while serving as the primary point-of-contact for assigned projects•Assists in the development of other project management professionals through mentoring, training, and review of work products•Submit Monthly Status Reports detailing the status of activities performed during the previous calendar month, including summary of work performed for the reporting period, progress towards open efforts and planned actions towards new efforts Show less