Over the past year, Chytania Brown has learned many valuable lessons and has set a new standard for her leadership and role as the president and CEO of Employ Milwaukee. “The current workforce development landscape demands a higher level of transparency between all parties involved,” she said. “My greatest leadership lessons learned have been in areas of trust, collaboration, patience and sustainability.”
Employ Milwaukee’s primary industry is a Workforce Development Board serving Milwaukee County. The organization’s mission is to build a strong workforce development system by planning, coordinating, collaborating and monitoring workforce initiatives with businesses, partners and community stakeholders.
“Throughout my time operating in the space of workforce development, I have learned to be agile and alert,” said Brown. “The industry landscape is constantly changing, and in pursuit for growth, I continue to focus on providing impactful work, collaborating with other industry leaders and using adaptive thinking to strengthen Employ Milwaukee’s programming and partnerships.”
The organization has evolved leaps and bounds over the last three years, said Brown. “We have been pushed to think outside the box and revisit how we service our customers, which includes job seekers and employers,” she said. As a result, Employ Milwaukee has expanded partnerships to include areas in the past that were not engaged, such as childcare and early childhood education.
“We pride ourselves on meeting people where they are at and that meant getting away from our tradition of waiting on individuals to come and see us and partner with other organizations, including the faith-based community to go to places where those who need us the most are located,” said Brown.
Brown said she likes to take a creative approach to workforce development programming, which has led to recognition by Vice President Kamala Harris for implementing innovative workforce solutions. In addition, Brown continues to serve as a mentor to others.
“I identify mentorship as a two-way street – bouncing ideas, thoughts and connections between mentor and mentee,” she said. “I believe in paying it forward and pass on my personal experiences and lessons learned to a group of young ladies I closely mentor.”
One piece of advice she passes on is to find work that is purposeful. “I truly believe in doing what you love,” said Brown. “When you love what you do, it is easy to see past the challenging times, so choose work that you feel passionate about and there will never be a moment where you dislike the work.”
For her continuous mentorship and leadership in the workforce development arena, Brown has been named a Titan for the second time.
