Meet Andrea, Director of Career Pathways

Hired is thrilled to announce Andrea Peterson as the new Director of Career Pathways, overseeing a rapidly growing workforce development program that brings short-term training and certifications for in-demand fields to participants pursuing family-sustaining career opportunities.

With nearly 17 years of experience in career pathway development within Hired and the broader community, Andrea has worked with hundreds of participants as she held multiple roles, from program delivery to strategic implementation and program management. Andrea’s journey with Hired started when she was a college intern, where she supported the first Career Pathways program at Hired (a machine operating, welding and CNC pathway).

“I am so thrilled to continue the success of these programs that Hired is so well-known for in the community. My hope for Hired is to continue to be seen by employers and participants, and other training institutions, as the provider of choice for pathway opportunities. Additionally, I hope to continue finding more ways for Hired to provide holistic wrap-around support for existing community programs, merging our individualized support with existing high-quality training,” Andrea shares.

In her most recent role as Senior Program Manager, Andrea has overseen significant growth, expanding pathways and cultivating a team dedicated to delivering high-quality programs in a supportive environment. In her new role, Andrea will leverage her purpose-driven leadership to sustain this momentum, guiding our team in delivering quality training and career navigation and collectively planning for the future.

Andrea enjoys strategic collaboration with post-secondary institutions, employers, and other referral agencies to help participants reach their goals. She has participated in employer advisory boards, is involved with collaborative partnerships with NAZ and the East Side Employment xChange, engages in Hired’s internal committees, an Equity Works leadership group, and holds a bachelor’s degree in Family Social Science from the University of Minnesota.

Andrea’s favorite part of working at Hired? “Building and launching new programs has been so rewarding and a team effort. In Career Pathways, partnering with participants from recruitment all the way to employment retention is the best part of the job. It’s so rewarding to see our participant progress from training to being hired by our employer partners.”