RevGen: 10-Point Revenue Generation Strategy for Career Centers by Daniel Newell, MPA

Released October 24, 2024

Career centers operate like businesses! Sure, we provide services free to job seekers and students, and in some cases, at no cost to employers. But at the end of the day, like any organization, we need to place the customers first and that requires financial resources to keep running. Whether we like it or not, revenue is essential for sustaining operations and enhancing our services. Unless your center is already well-funded and recession-proof, expanding revenue streams is a smart move to ensure long-term success and stable customer service to ensure you meet strong employment outcomes.

As you move up into leadership, the need for financial resources becomes increasingly evident, often taking more of your focus than when you were primarily a service provider. Most career centers rely on only a few funding streams to stay operational, but there are many ways to attract revenue to offset operational costs. Diversifying these streams is essential for making your organization more resilient and better able to navigate challenging economic times.

In this piece, we’ll explore a model I call “RevGen” (Revenue Generation) a framework that embraces 10 solutions to help diversify your career center’s revenue streams. A healthy career center should aim to incorporate as many of these approaches as possible, within reason, to ensure stable finances and avoid budget shortfalls—or worse, employee layoffs. While even a diverse financial portfolio doesn’t guarantee survival during an economic collapse, having a contingency plan significantly improves your chances of weathering the storm.

RevGen: 10-Point Revenue Generation Strategy

1. General/Base Funds 

2. Fee-for-Service (one time) 

3. Sponsorship Packages 

4. Internal Institutional/Organizational Funding 

5. Philanthropy/Donations 

6. Residual Funding (fee-for-service: Ongoing) 

7. External Grants & Contracts 

8. In-Kind Contributions 

9. Point of Sale (POS) 

10. Business Venture 

University career centers typically utilize options 1, 2, and 3, while community college centers often rely on options 1, 4, and 7. Public and WIOA-affiliated career centers tend to leverage options 1, 4, 7, and sometimes 5. If your career center is using six or more of these sources, you’re on the right track toward financial sustainability.

Throughout my career, I’ve personally worked with up to nine of these points—though I’ve never managed more than eight at once. However, by securing multiple streams within options 4, 6, and 7, I was able to develop as many as 14 revenue streams simultaneously. It’s a dynamic process, and the more diversified your streams, the better positioned you are to navigate economic shifts.

Let’s break down these 10 points: 

1. General/Base Funds: For many career centers, this is the primary pot of money received from a larger institution or organization. Typically allocated annually, these funds serve as the main source of operational funding. Colleges and universities receive these allocations from their division or institution, while public schools may refer to them as “state funds.” Public or WIOA-affiliated (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) career centers may access these funds through their affiliation with municipalities, cities, or counties, often drawn from workforce or economic development budgets. Similarly, public career centers associated with larger nonprofits, such as Goodwill or the International Rescue Committee, may receive annual allocations from their parent organizations to support career services operations.

   
   

   Regardless of the career center’s affiliation, general/base funds are generally reliable as annual allocations. However, they can fluctuate based on economic conditions, particularly if other revenue streams are limited. To mitigate financial risks, it’s essential to explore additional funding sources to supplement and diversify income. Career Centers that rely solely on this allocation are not elastic and are very vulnerable to financial shortfalls. . 

   
   

2. Fee-for-Service (One-time): This is the most common supplemental funding source for university career centers. It involves charging a customer for a service provided on a one-time basis. Examples include career fairs, employer information sessions, and other related activities.

   
   

   Some community colleges and WIOA-affiliated career centers may be hesitant to charge employers but don’t be. Businesses don’t expect to give away their products and services for free, and neither should you. Fees help sustain programs and create pathways to self-sufficiency. Employers understand the value of paying for services that help them stay competitive. Provide quality services and don’t shy away from creating flexible and affordable options for varying types of employers. 

   
   

   TIP: Consider expanding your fee-for-service model and scope of customers. Are there services you can offer other stakeholders, like entrepreneurs, colleges, or community-based organizations? Broadening your customer base can create new revenue streams and support long-term sustainability.

   
   

   TIP: WIOA-affiliated centers can charge for events like career fairs, counting the revenue as “program income.” Alternatively, use it for staff salaries, making the funds unrestricted and eligible for cash-match or cost-share requirements.

   

3. Sponsorship Packages: These are bundled service offerings based on your one-time fee-for-service options, commonly used at university career centers. Many centers offer perks like email blasts, participation in career fairs, info sessions, or annual luncheons. If you offer sponsorship packages, consider a "Build your own" option to let employers customize packages.

   
   

   Community college career centers—this is easy to adopt. If you mirror university offerings, employers will pay. For public WIOA-affiliated centers, this may be more difficult if you're part of the government, but for non-profit centers, it’s a great opportunity. You can also link sponsorship packages to other programs and events, like a table at your organization’s annual gala or admission to a community 10k run. These unique offerings can help you stand out from other centers.

   
   

4. Internal Institutional/Organizational Funding: Career centers that are part of larger organizations, like universities, community colleges, or municipalities, often have access to internal funding streams. For university and community college career centers, this might include funding from academic colleges, EOP(S), Job Location and Development (JLD) programs, student fees, and more. Public or WIOA-affiliated centers tied to cities, or counties could tap into sources like the Office of Economic Development (OED), workforce development departments, or special initiatives funded by city councils or mayoral offices. Explore all internal options and exhaust these sources while simultaneously exploring external opportunities.

   
   

   TIP: CPAs in your organization are great resources for discovering potential funding options. They know the "ins and outs" of each department's finances, and building good relationships with them can help uncover new internal revenue streams.

   

5. Philanthropy/Donations: Philanthropy can take many forms, including one-time gifts, monthly contributions, bequests, and more. Donations from individuals and corporations can often be both fruitful and flexible, allowing career centers to fund key initiatives or special projects.

   
   

   Tip: Create a “Menu of Giving” to share with potential donors. This menu should outline the various ways their contributions can make an impact, ranging from smaller gifts of $250 to significant donations of over $1 million.

   
   

6. Residual Funding (Fee-for-Service: Ongoing): This is one of my favorites! Residual funding means you make a sale once but continue to get paid over time. Examples include monthly subscriptions or ongoing billing (quarterly, bi-annually, etc.). This model ensures ongoing payments for services provided on a continuous basis.

   
   

   One example I used successfully was hiring job candidates onto my payroll for employers, then charging the employer a service fee each month for every hour the candidate worked. This staffing agency model allows career centers to place a candidate once but receive weekly payroll payments for as long as the employer uses the service. You can do this by either hiring candidates directly on your payroll or using a third-party payroll agent—both of which can be highly lucrative.

   

7. External Grants & Contracts: This is a significant revenue source. While some community colleges and many WIOA career centers have a strong understanding of this funding stream, university career centers often miss this opportunity. College-affiliated centers would benefit from shifting their mindset—from seeing themselves solely as career counseling departments to positioning themselves as workforce/economic development think tanks and business solutions providers for industry. By doing just that, I secured approximately $5 million from a single grant to support career development and employer relations.

   
   

   Tip: Embrace employment outcomes as a key performance indicator (KPI) for your career center, and use this data to tell your story through grant proposals. Explore funding from city, county, state, federal, industry, and foundation sources. Think regionally and show how your work impacts not just your target population, but also supports the broader economic goals of your region.

   
   

8. In-Kind Contributions: These are donations of time, materials, or other valuable resources that a career center would typically pay for. While not direct cash, in-kind contributions save money by covering expenses. For example, a donor or employer could provide 10 laptops for your team or a new printer. Employers can also donate their time by offering resume reviews, coaching, or workshops. In these scenarios, the career center saves by not purchasing equipment or paying staff for services. The time saved by having employers handle appointments allows your staff to focus on other priorities, including revenue-generating tasks.

   
   

   Tip: The value of in-kind contributions is just as impactful as cash and can be used in grant proposals to fulfill cash-match or cost-share requirements.

   

9. Point of Sale (POS): This involves selling goods or services to consumers and can be a simple but effective way to generate extra revenue. Examples include selling bottled water or snacks at career fairs, branded swag, or even setting up an online store. You can also sell drinks or merchandise at mixers or networking events. In addition to bringing in revenue, POS activities can increase your center's visibility and create a more engaging experience for attendees.

   
   

10. Business Venture: This involves creating an entrepreneurial initiative that could incorporate one or more of the nine other revenue points. In many ways, career centers already operate as business ventures, with many acting as event-planning businesses. A business venture could expand on existing services, such as event planning, or launch an entirely new concept. I've seen organizations refurbish computers for sale, recycle old mattresses, and even create staffing agencies. The possibilities are endless—one colleague even suggested leveraging multimedia students to sell graphic design services to small businesses!

Revenue generation requires creativity and thinking beyond the norm. It means stepping out of your comfort zone and challenging the status quo. Unless you actively pursue it, revenue won’t come to you. It requires intention and purposeful planning. At times, it may seem overwhelming, but by focusing on one point at a time and setting small goals, it can add up quickly. Once you get things in motion, more opportunities will arise simply because you’ve already started opening doors.

My final advice: Don’t do it alone! Build relationships, find mutual interests, and become part of the larger community across your city, county, and region. Stop being reactive to budget cuts and economic shortfalls, and instead, be proactive. Take control of your organization’s financial health and lead the way. One of my favorite quotes, by computer scientist Alan Kay, is “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” Here’s to inventing our financial futures and providing the means for economic mobility in our career centers.

About the Author

Daniel Newell brings nearly 25 years of expertise in employment, workforce, and economic development. He currently serves as the Executive Director of Career Vogue, a consulting firm specializing in career center strategy and Employer Relations; the Executive Director of Career Services at San Diego State University; and the President/CEO of A+ | American Association for Employer Relations +.

Mr. Newell has secured millions of dollars in funding through diverse channels and earned recognition from the California State Senate for his significant regional impact. He was named to Silicon Valley’s Top 40 Under 40 list, by the Silicon Valley Business Journal where he stood out as the only honoree representing higher education and career services among the region’s most influential business leaders. His thought leadership has also been featured by Forbes, Entrepreneur, USA Today, FOX News, and numerous other media outlets.

When the pandemic disrupted global operations, forcing many employers and career centers to freeze funds and halt hiring, Mr. Newell benefitted from his RevGen model, expanding his funding and staffing levels. Preceding the pandemic, he achieved a rare distinction, securing two federal designations, serving as administrator for two federal, state, local, and privately funded centers: a U.S. Department of Labor-authorized career center and a U.S. Small Business Administration-authorized business/entrepreneurship center—both housed within a college career services department. His forward-thinking leadership aims to set new benchmarks in career services, workforce development, and employer relations.