According to Keith Parker, a Titan 100 Hall of Famer, titans tend to be highly-charged professionals who achieve major work accomplishments. “I strongly suggest that they exert even greater energy toward self-care, their friends and family, their faith and their communities,” he said. “I suggest they dedicate an appropriate amount of their time, talent and treasure to individuals and communities facing major barriers to success.”
This is what Parker has dedicated his professional career to as CEO of Goodwill of North Georgia.
Goodwill of North Georgia has a primary mission of putting people to work by generating sales at 68 stores and using the revenue to support 13 free-to-the-public career centers and several job training programs.
Parker joined Goodwill of North Georgia in 2017 to lead the agency in executing its 5-year plan to increase revenue to $255 million, connect 130,000 job seekers and earn top employer designation by 2023. Parker not only focused on the financial success of Goodwill leading the agency to achieving its highest revenues, but more importantly achieved the goal to connect 130,000 people to work in the local community.
Since taking the reins as president and CEO, Parker has been instrumental in opening seven new stores while Goodwill of North Georgia became the No. 1 Goodwill agency in the U.S. in terms of connecting people to jobs. He pulled from his tools and skills learned in transit as the former CEO of MARTA and applied them to the nonprofit industry.
In the past year, Parker said his most significant work-related accomplishment has been being recognized as the #1 Goodwill region in the country for workforce development. “In total, we have helped more than 100,000 individuals in north Georgia find jobs and moved 52,000 families out of poverty,” he said.
His 5-year vision includes increasing the number of people to whom the organization provides job training to 125,000 and grow revenues to over $300 million while being recognized as the best place to work in Georgia.
For his legacy, Parker said he wants the company to have improved in every category from when he was appointed CEO six years ago. “I want to leave an organization that is resilient, innovative and the best place to work in Georgia,” he said. “We expect to be the thought leader in workforce development and retail, and we are well on our way with a less than 1% job vacancy rate for our retail positions.”
