Rising Stars: Derek Kirk, California Labor and Workforce Development Agency

Derek Kirk’s greatest strength, according to the Gallup Strengthsfinder test, is WOO, or “winning over others.” In Kirk’s short but impressive career, this judgment rings true. Look no further than his appointment to the role of Assistant Deputy Secretary of Climate Economy at the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency by Governor Gavin Newsom.

Born and raised in Porterville, CA, Kirk appreciates the value of community and small-town life. As a junior in high school, Kirk secured an internship at the Porterville Chamber of Commerce, which ultimately set the path for his future career. What was supposed to be a year-long internship became a four-year involvement that lasted through the start of college.

“I thought I was going to spend my entire career working in chambers of commerce because they sit at such a central part of the community to me, especially in smaller towns,” says Kirk. “No matter if you’re coming from the left or the right, you’re home. We’re here to advocate for small businesses and to be present with each other.”

Kirk attended Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, where he studied political science with a minor in women’s studies. His emphasis on women’s studies remains useful, as he works to prioritize equity and creation of access to opportunities for historically disinvested groups.

Kirk additionally pursued a Master of Arts in Social Justice and Community Organizing. While an unconventional route for someone working in a Chamber of Commerce, Kirk was impassioned to better understand the fight for everyday Californians.

Out of college, Kirk was hired at a chamber in Orange County as Director of Community and Government Relations. He later became the President and CEO of the Atascadero Chamber, which made him the youngest CEO of a chamber in California.

In 2019, Kirk was hired as the Director of Community Engagement and Advocacy at Visit SLOCal, in San Luis Obispo. For a while, he was also the chair of the California Travel Association Government Affairs Committee.

While at Visit SLOCal, Kirk’s team launched a “Destination Management Strategy” to ensure care for communities around popular tourist destinations. This represented one of the first destination management strategies in California for a tourism bureau, reframing the purpose of the tourism industry as not only bringing people to destinations, but also caring for destinations themselves.

Barb Newton, President and CEO of the California Travel Association, first got to know Kirk when he was at Visit SLOCal. Newton says that she has worked with thousands of industry leaders, and Derek stood out as “a fully engaged and informed advocate for his community.”

For Newton, it’s clear that this is not just a job for Kirk; it’s a calling. Kirk was so successful in this space that he was awarded the CalTravel Rising Star award in 2021.

Kirk joined the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) in the heat of the pandemic, when they developed the “Community and Place Based Solutions Team” which consists of regional staff in each of the 13 economic regions across California. Their job was to build relationships in various sectors of the community, acting as representatives of community economic development.

Derek Kirk’s greatest strength, according to the Gallup Strengthsfinder test, is WOO, or “winning over others.”

While Kirk was at GO-Biz, he participated in the Community Economic Resilience Fund, which established a pool of resources to support regional economic development across the state. About a year into this project, he was appointed to his current position in the Labor Agency.

Kirk describes his role as bucketed in two spaces. On one hand, he works on the Governor’s Infrastructure Strike Team to address how the state invests in workforce training and development, and to create infrastructure that positively impacts communities. He says now is a fascinating moment to work in the labor agency as there is $180 billion of expected funding in infrastructure between the federal and state governments, as well as private investments, over a 10 year period.

The other part of Kirk’s job concerns California Jobs First, which is a branch of the Regional Investment Initiative. This represents California’s partnership with each of the 13 regions, and the creation of an industrial strategy in California to promote economic growth.

This project is the first of its kind, which naturally poses many challenges. Previously, local governments were responsible for strategizing on economic development, but this initiative brings a variety of community organizations to the same table for these discussions. Working collaboratively, keeping different interest groups at the same pace, and creating a roadmap to implementation, have been some of the greatest challenges that Kirk attempts to mitigate.

Dee Dee Myers, Senior Advisor to Governor Newsom and Director of GO-Biz, speaks on Kirk’s resilience and his dedication to his role, saying “Derek’s commitment to state service, whether with GO-Biz or the Labor Agency, has always been unwavering. His passion for the work is infectious and there’s no doubt that he will continue to have an outsized impact as his career progresses, something we’re all excited to witness and support in the coming years.”

As for future career moves, Kirk reflects that having a child has taught him that planning for today is the most important feat. On the top of Kirk’s mind is supporting the California Jobs First Initiative into the next several years, and determining how to build that operating model.

“Working for the state is so cool because not only do I get to help teach locals how to engage with the economy. I also get to learn from so many people, and I wouldn’t give that up for anything,” says Kirk. “I hope I have the opportunity to stick around and continue working for Californians in this capacity.”

Having a 19 month old is pretty all encompassing according to Kirk, so for fun, he enjoys going to the zoo and hanging out in parks. When he is awarded free time, he likes exploring wine communities in the Sacramento area, and he’s an engaged member of the United Methodist Church in East Sacramento.

Kirk wants to remind rising policy wonks that age is just a number. “I’ve often been the youngest person in the room,” says Kirk. “I was the youngest CEO of a chamber. I was a Director of Government Relations at 22 in a major metropolitan region. I am barely 30 as the Assistant Deputy Secretary of the Labor Agency, and because I have been serious and committed to the work, and willing to consistently learn from those people around me, I have never let that be a barrier.”

Editor’s Note: Derek Kirk has since been appointed Senior Advisor for Economic Policy at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development.