About
Workforce Opportunity Services (WOS) is a New York-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit — legally incorporated as Workforce Outsource Services Inc — dedicated to providing and developing talent from local communities. Established in 2005 as a social entrepreneurial charity, WOS recruits, educates, trains, and places candidates using a scientifically based model derived from academic research, giving companies a consultant-to-employee pipeline while creating career pathways for people from underserved communities, recent college graduates, and military veterans.
Mission
WOS is dedicated to providing and developing talent from local communities. Its vision is to empower early-career professionals toward long-lasting professional success and financial independence, while helping companies build workplaces that reflect and engage with the communities they serve.
What they do
WOS offers consulting-to-hire services that let client companies work with WOS-trained consultants who can later convert to full-time employees, ensuring knowledge transfer and cultural integration:
- Managed service centers and call centers
- Facilities management
- On-site and remote staffing
- Educational services, including professional development training
- Advisory services for HR and talent acquisition teams, plus research offerings
WOS supports its employees with professional development and technical training, paid part-time college tuition, and special financial assistance where needed. Roles span information and AI technology, shared services, product support, and vocational trades.
History
Founder Dr. Art Langer grew up in the Bronx, where he experienced limitations to education and employment opportunities. In 2001 he launched the Inner-City Workplace Literacy Study at Columbia University, examining how to prepare more than 40 low-income adults from Harlem for IT roles. The findings — that technical training must be integrated with interpersonal skills and confidence-building — led to the Langer Workforce Maturity Arc assessment tool, a program launched at Columbia in 2003, and the founding of WOS in 2005.
Scale and impact
Per the organization's website, WOS has served over 8,000 people in over 60 locations across the US and has operated in Costa Rica, France, and the Netherlands. It reports over 85 corporate clients, including Johnson and Johnson, GE, HP, Prudential, PSE&G, Eversource, BNY Mellon, American Airlines, and JetBlue, and it runs a partnership with Hunter College.
Financials
Per its Form 990 on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer for the fiscal year ending September 2025, WOS reported revenue of 7,929,064 dollars — 83.9 percent from program services, reflecting its earned-revenue model — expenses of 7,973,349 dollars, and net assets of 7,110,038 dollars. The IRS issued its tax exemption in March 2007 (EIN 20-3684091). WOS publishes its Form 990s and audited financial statements on its website.
Governance
WOS is governed by a board of directors chaired by founder Dr. Arthur Langer, supported by an academic advisory board. Officers listed in its most recent Form 990 include CFO Philip Curry and treasurer/secretary Robert Farina.