Cody Waits serves as Executive Director of Arkansas Workforce Connections, a division of the Arkansas Department of Commerce and Arkansas's state workforce agency. In this role, he oversees the delivery of state and federal workforce development programs, including the Office of Skills Development and Arkansas Industry Connect, which includes Arkansas Manufacturing Solutions (AMS), the state's NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership center. He works across industry, education, workforce organizations, and government to connect Arkansas employers with the talent, training, and resources they need.
Waits previously served as Director of the Arkansas Office of Skills Development from 2019 to 2023 and as Deputy Director of the Arkansas Department of Career Education from 2017 to 2019. Before returning to state government to lead Arkansas Workforce Connections, he served as Senior Government Engagement Manager for Transfr, a virtual reality career exploration and skills training company.
Under Waits' leadership, Arkansas Workforce Connections is administering the $35.8 million American Manufacturing Apprenticeship Incentive Fund (AMAIF), a four-year U.S. Department of Labor cooperative agreement supporting the nationwide expansion of registered apprenticeship in advanced manufacturing. Waits also serves in national workforce leadership roles through the National Association of State Workforce Agencies.
