What Are Employment Services?
At Creative Solutions, we take a team approach to supporting our clients in obtaining and maintaining meaningful employment. Our employment services are perfect for clients who are ready to apply for jobs or change careers if their current job is not suited to their skills. You’ll get to work with job developers who live and work in your community that offer a wide range of services including:
Job development
Job shadowing
Systematic Instruction & job coaching
Resume and career profiling
Customized employment opportunities
Student work-based learning services
Customized self-employment opportunities
Supported employment options
Structured Job Seeking Support
Our Employment Services team will provide you with customized support through the application and transition process while encouraging you to take charge of your job search. During your time in this program, you’ll get to meet with a job developer every other week to maintain a steady job search. Between these meetings, you will work with a job developer to complete any corresponding tasks that are required during your job search. We’ll work together to pursue a career you are passionate about.
Our Employment Services Team
Your Employment Services team will be made up of Disability Support Specialists that are experienced in job development and who live within 30 minutes of your home. Having our staff live and work in the same community as you helps ensure we can provide the best, most customized job development support possible. Once you start your job, our Direct Support Professionals will provide support directly in your work environment to assist you in maintaining employment.
Getting Started with Employment Services
To get started, you or someone from your support team will need to speak with your DVR counselor or IRIS/FC case manager to choose Creative Solutions of Wisconsin as a vendor. Once this is updated and the authorization/purchase order is sent over, we will pair you with a skilled job developer in your community. From there, your job developer will reach out to schedule your initial meeting to develop your plan.
You’ll start by getting to know each other and create a job search plan. During this initial phase we try to meet you at your home or somewhere in your community to collect the information we need like work history, references, and job goals to create your plan. Once we create your job plan, we’ll schedule additional meetings where we will visit employers, attend job fairs, complete interviews, and begin working together.
Selecting the Right Employment Services for You
We will customize our job development approach to meet your specific needs. You can help your job developer tailor your support by sharing as much information as possible about your specific disability, how it affects you, and what you are interested in or passionate about, while also keeping an open mind to explore new things. We will work with you and your funding sources such as your DVR counselor, IRIS consultant, or Family Care manager to determine which supports that might benefit you and your successful, sustainable employment.
At Creative Solutions of Wisconsin, we provide job shadowing and systematic instruction/job coaching services along with three primary types of employment services:
Job Development
specialized services provided to a DVR Consumer who needs help finding a job, but who does not need consistent on-the-job support. These services include building a resume, finding job leads, assisting with applications, preparing for interviews, and helping with follow up.
Supported Employment
tailored services for a DVR Consumer who is looking for employment and will require long-term on-the-job support. We will help you find a position that matches your interests, skills, and ability and coordinate on-the-job coaching to support sustainable job habits.
Customized Employment
Similar to Supported Employment, Customized Employment offers long-term support but we work with businesses to create a position driven by your interests, skills, and abilities.
Learn More About DVR
We’ve collected a series of videos that can help you get a better understanding of the Wisconsin Department of Vocational Rehabilitation or DVR. Use the links below to learn more:
Information for employers and businesses:
DVR Business Services – YouTube
Job Center of Wisconsin: In-Person and Online – YouTube
Information for clients and families:
Discovering the Possibilities with Wisconsin DVR – YouTube
Getting Started with the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation: Eligibility Process – YouTube
Let’s Talk About Your Needs and Goals
We’re here to be an integral part of your support team. That means getting to know you and finding out exactly what you want so we can get there together. Let’s connect and get started!