Dr. Lee Bowes began her career in employment in the mid-1970s. While a graduate student at Columbia University's School of Social Work, she formulated her theory that work should be the central social policy. Rather than an emphasis on income support and social services, policies should be directed toward providing employment.

In the late 1970s Dr. Bowes was the Director of a large CETA program placing 2000 people in public sector jobs. Here she became convinced that there should be a connection to the private job market. Public jobs were costly and didn't provide the skills needed by businesses.

In 1978 Dr. Bowes joined the non-profit Transitional Employment Enterprises. TEE Inc. was established by the Ford Foundation and MDRC to operate the national supported work demonstration. It was here that she designed the private sector model which is run by America Works. Simultaneously she got her Ph.D. in Sociology from Boston University. Her thesis was on unemployment and social policy. She developed her theories on hiring, job links and human resources which are described in her book No One Need Apply: Getting and Keeping the Best Workers.

In 1984, when her husband Peter Cove left to start America Works Dr. Bowes stayed at TEE and expanded the model to new populations, the elderly, the mentally ill, the mentally retarded and the physically handicapped.

In 1987 she joined America Works as Chief Executive Officer. She directs all activities of the $7 million business. Dr. Bowes is an adjunct Professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. She lectures on Human Resource Management, Social Policy, and Innovative Management Techniques. She has recently completed a book on Human Resource Management under contract with Harpers. She has published articles in The New Democrat, The Entrepreneurial Economy and Social Policy Research. She has appeared on NBC, CBS, ABC,(morning and nightly news) McNeil Lehrer, PBS, and CNN. She has been frequently on CNBC as an expert on Welfare Reform. Dr. Bowes has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Time Magazine, Newsweek, Fortune Magazine and Business Week as well as numerous local media outlets.

She is a frequent quest and speaker at Associations on welfare to work. Most recently she has appeared at The Public Welfare Association, the Democratic Leadership Council, The Renaissance Weekend, and The Association of Community Development Corporations to name a few.