Office of Economic and Workforce Development San Francisco

What Office of Economic and Workforce Development San Francisco does

The Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) is a municipal government department of the City and County of San Francisco, established in 1930, responsible for administering the city's economic and workforce development programs. It serves a broad constituency including San Francisco residents seeking employment and housing assistance, small businesses, and storefront businesses across the city. Its core service portfolio includes business permitting and licensing, workforce development, small business grants and improvement programs (such as SF Shines), affordable housing lotteries via the DAHLIA portal, and general civic services through SF311.

OEWD operates a multi-channel digital and physical service infrastructure. Its digital platforms include sf.gov (the city's main web portal), PermitSF (permitting and licensing), SF311 (mobile app and call center), DAHLIA (affordable housing portal), DoIt!Online (online applications), and the Open Data Portal (400+ datasets). Physical service points include City Hall and the Permit Center. The department has built integrations with third-party platforms including VitalChek, MyChart, and QLess queue management to extend service delivery capabilities. A new Digital Permitting Services platform is planned for rollout in 2026, and the SF311 Mobile App has undergone iterative releases including multilingual support expansion in September 2024.

As a government entity, OEWD does not operate a commercial revenue model. Its funding derives from the City and County of San Francisco's general fund budget, federal grants, and special revenue allocations. Services are delivered to constituents free of charge at the point of use. There is no pricing model, sales motion, or per-seat revenue; the department functions as a public cost center funded by taxpayer dollars and grant programs.

Name

Office of Economic and Workforce Development San Francisco

Legal name

Office of Economic and Workforce Development, City and County of San Francisco

Website

https://sf.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

The Office of Economic and Workforce Development San Francisco is a municipal government department that administers economic development, workforce programs, permitting, and small business grants. It serves San Francisco residents, job seekers, and businesses through digital platforms and physical service centers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Economic Development Services

NAICS

Administration of Economic Programs (926), Administration of Human Resource Programs (except Education, Public Health, and Veterans' Affairs Programs) (92313), Administration of Economic Programs (9261)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local) (BPAIACAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

State/Provincial Labor, Employment Standards & Workforce Development Administration (BPAIABAN), Public Workforce Development Programs (WIOA/One-Stop Career Centers) (EDAAAOAA)

Keywords

• Economic development services
• Workforce development programs
• Small business assistance
• Government permitting services
• Municipal business support

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: OEWD is funded through City and County of San Francisco government budgets, which are supported by taxpayer revenue and various federal grants for workforce development and economic programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) is a municipal government department within the City and County of San Francisco that delivers economic development initiatives, workforce training programs, small business assistance, permitting support, and film industry services. It operates divisions including the Office of Small Business, Workforce Development Division, and FilmSF, and channels services through City Hall, the Permit Center, the SF311 contact center, and the sf.gov digital portal.

Product overview

SF.gov is a unified city services platform operated by the City and County of San Francisco, offering digital access to government services through a multi-department architecture. The platform integrates numerous products and services including PermitSF (digital permitting portal), SF311 (24/7 customer service center), DAHLIA SF Housing Portal (affordable housing lottery system), and the Open Data Portal (DataSF with 400+ datasets). The Office of Economic and Workforce Development provides specialized services through its Office of Small Business, Workforce Development Division, FilmSF, and SF Shines grant program. The ecosystem connects citizens to services across building, business, health, housing, personal records, and permitting through a centralized web presence supplemented by mobile applications and in-person Permit Center locations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PermitSF Digital permitting platform that provides a customer-centric, fast, predictable, transparent, and unified permitting process for San Francisco, allowing users to apply online for signs, awnings, no-plans reroofing, and in-kind door, window, and siding replacements.
• SF.gov City Services Portal Unified web portal providing access to all San Francisco city services including building, business, health, housing, government, and personal records, and publishing over 400 datasets on its open data portal.
• SF311 Customer Service Center 24/7 customer service center accessible via phone, web, mobile app, and Twitter, providing assistance in over 160 languages for residents, visitors, and businesses seeking city information or services.
• DAHLIA SF Housing Portal San Francisco's affordable housing portal where users can enter lotteries to rent below-market-rate apartments.
• Open Data Portal (DataSF) Open data platform publishing over 400 datasets for public access, enabling data-driven analysis and government transparency.
• Office of Small Business The City's central point of information for small businesses, offering one-on-one business assistance online and in person at City Hall and the Permit Center.
• Workforce Development Division Programs that train and connect San Franciscans to sustainable jobs with career growth opportunities, serving unemployed, underemployed, and hard-to-employ residents.
• SF Shines Small Business Improvement Program Grant program offering up to $10,000 in reimbursements for interior upgrades to small business storefronts.
• FilmSF (San Francisco Film Commission) Film commission that champions filming in San Francisco to support a diversity of storytellers and the thriving local production community.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Office of Small BusinesscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPart of OEWD, the Office of Small Business serves as the City's central point of information for small businesses, offering one-on-one business assistance, online and in person at City Hall and the Permit Center.
• Film SF | San Francisco Film CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChampions filming in San Francisco to support a diversity of storytellers and the thriving production community through the Office of Economic and Workforce Development.
• Workforce Development DivisioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrains and connects San Franciscans to sustainable jobs with career growth opportunities, promoting prosperity for all residents including the unemployed, underemployed, and hard-to-employ.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• OpenGov (PermitSF vendor): Technology vendor providing the OpenGov Portal that powers PermitSF. Relevant as the enabling infrastructure provider behind OEWD's digital permitting platform.
• National Association of Workforce Development Professionals (NAWDP): National membership organization supporting workforce development professionals. Relevant as the ecosystem association that connects municipal workforce programs like OEWD's Workforce Development Division.
• Accela (Permit & Licensing Software): Civic-tech vendor providing permitting and licensing software used by many municipal governments. Relevant as the technology infrastructure layer that powers digital permitting platforms analogous to PermitSF.

Direct peers

• Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County: Regional workforce development body serving Seattle-King County, operating training and job placement programs comparable to OEWD's Workforce Development Division.
• City of Boston Mayor's Office of Economic Opportunity & Inclusion (OEOI): Boston's municipal office focused on economic opportunity, workforce development, and small business inclusion. Functionally analogous to OEWD in delivering city-level economic development programs.
• NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS): New York City's municipal agency providing similar services — small business support, workforce development, and business licensing. Direct functional peer because both are city-level economic and workforce development authorities in major U.S. cities.
• Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP): Chicago's municipal agency handling business licensing, consumer protection, and small business support. Comparable because it serves as the city's central point for business assistance and licensing within a major U.S. metro.
• Los Angeles Economic & Workforce Development Department (EWDD): LA's municipal department administering workforce development programs, business assistance, and economic development initiatives. Closely comparable in mission and service portfolio to SF OEWD.

Broad incumbents

• California Employment Development Department (EDD): State-level agency administering workforce services, unemployment insurance, and labor market information across California. Comparable at a broader jurisdictional level to OEWD's workforce functions.
• U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA): Federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce that leads economic development policy and grant programs. Relevant because it funds and shapes municipal economic development agencies including OEWD.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sfoewd
• Facebookfacebook.com/SFOEWD
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-and-county-of-san-francisco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Office of Economic and Workforce Development San Francisco