ASSESSMENT OF PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT:

CLACKAMAS COUNTY MODELING THE WAY

Tiffany Hicks Portland State University Mark O. Hatfield School of Public and Government AffairsExecutive Masters of Public Administration – Cohort 2013

BACKGROUND

Employed at Clackamas County Children, Youth and Families since 2012

Human Resources Class inspired this employee engagement project

CHARACTERISTICS OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

The emotional commitment an employee has to an organization and it’s mission, goals and values

The motivation to contribute to organizational success

WHY IS EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT IMPORTANT?

Studies have shown employee engagement is directly related to Enhanced work

performance & The reduction of

costly employee turn over

PROJECT GOALS

Memorialize

Measure

Justify

SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

Identify Programs Stakeholder interviews Employee Survey Survey Analysis Recommendations

PROGRAMS

Morale Enhancement and Networking – The “A Team”

Awards and Recognition

Wellness

Leadership and Professional Development

MORALE ENHANCEMENT & NETWORKING – THE “A TEAM” Mission: “….to build connections and help make

Clackamas County a better place to work”

Goals: Develop opportunities for interaction between staff, acknowledge value of employee contributions & improve customer service through teambuilding

Activities: Chili & cornbread contest/feast, employee picnic, employee nights at sporting events, blueberries & ice cream event for Independence Day celebration

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION PROGRAM GOALS

Encourage positive feedback

Motivate employees

Emphasize the value of teamwork

Support employee retention

FORMAL RECOGNITION OPTIONS

“Bravo” Awards”

“Bravo Excellence Awards”

“Team Excellence Awards”

TEAM EXCELLENCE ACHIEVEMENT

LEADERSHIP AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT In Human Resource Management in the Public

Sector John Daly refers to continuous training opportunities as a “key factor” for achieving employee engagement

Clackamas County has demonstrated a commitment to creating a robust leadership and professional development program starting with employing a fulltime manager to coordinate the efforts

INTERNAL TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES Seminars: Frontline Leadership HR, Core Communication

Skills, PeopleSoft Intro (software program), Employee Data Entry, Meeting Facilitation, Frontline Supervision, Blood borne Pathogens, Worker’s Compensation, Franklin Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and 5 Choices, Project Management, Conflict Resolution, Strengths Finders, Resiliency and First Aid

Leadership Academy

Brown Bag Lunch and Learn

WELLNESS County embraced the concept that healthier

employees will equal more productive employees and hired a fulltime coordinator

Programming includes: Exercise classes offered at employee cost at lunch time Weight watchers is hosted onsite in multiple locations A competitive pedometer contest A walking club Onsite employee community garden plots A one mile walking trail around the campus Locker rooms with showers available for employee use Wellness Rooms

EMPLOYEES TENDING TO THEIR GARDEN ON A LUNCH BREAK

EMPLOYEE SURVEY – THE PURPOSE

Three Goals Measure the impact of existing

programs

Link existing programs to employee engagement

Measure overall engagement

EMPLOYEE SURVEY – THE DESIGN

Two Concepts Informed by Gallup

Q12 – Validity proven over 60 years of research, 22 million employees, 189 countries and 69 languages

Gallup determined several applicable characteristics for measuring employee engagement

Specific questions about existing programs. Are employees aware of programs Are employees participating in programs Do employees personally value the programs Do the programs enhance employee’s feelings of

engagement

Q12 APPLIED TO CLACKAMAS EMPLOYEE SURVEY

Specific questions based on Gallup science Are you friends with any of your co-workers? Do you feel trust with your co-workers? Do you feel trust with your supervisor? Do you feel your opinions count? Is there anyone at work who encourages your

development? Do you feel like someone cares about you at work?

One more question based on Clackamas County History Are you proud to tell people where you work?

AN ETHICAL PERSPECTIVE

In Dr. Morgan’s Ethic’s Class we were required to formulate our individual ethical framework.

“Throughout my public service career I am committed to practice moral goodness, cultural intelligence, legality, transparency for accountability and objectivity with an emphasis on constituency dialogue and education.” Tiffany Hicks

ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES

Measure employee engagement

Measure effectiveness of current programming

Inform future programmatic efforts

LEADERSHIP IMPLICATIONS

Capstone Project Took on a project outside the scope of my normal work Contribution to the County beyond regularly assigned duties Collaboration with new partners through stakeholder

interviews

EMPA Broadened perspective and understanding of my own

leadership abilities and style, my personal value of public service, enhanced critical thinking, public policy, organizational development, cultural intelligence, HR Management and budgeting.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My family: HoneyMitch!, Mom & Dad, Jake & BJ I could not have done this without you.

The Incredibly Inspiring and sometimes Intimidatingly Brilliant EMPA Faculty you have impacted my life beyond words

Catherine LaTourette thank you for keeping me grounded through this capstone process, there’s still work to do.

Cohort 2013, I feel so blessed to know you and share this journey with you. I know your intelligence and strength will take you to great heights. Now let’s go make a difference!

Brian Lawler my Capstone Buddy, your encouragement & guidance is greatly appreciated

Laurel Butman my amazing mentor you are always there for me and my gratitude is exponential. I am so very happy to have you in my life.

RESOURCES

Clackamas County Website, retrieved 2/8/2015. http://www.clackamas.us/onboarding/

Cox, T. (2001). Creating the multicultural organization: a strategy for capturing the power of diversity. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Daly, J. L. (2012). Human resource management in the public sector: Policies and practices. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.

Forbes Inc. http://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2012/06/22/employee-engagement-what-and-why/ retrieved 5/29/15

http://www.gallup.com/services/176708/state-american-workplace.aspx retrieved 5/30/15

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2002). The leadership challenge. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Wellins, R.S. & Bernthal, P (2004) employee engagement: the Key to Realizing Competitive Advantage. Development Dimensions International. Online publication. http://www.ddiworld.com/DDIWorld/media/monographs/employeeengagement_mg_ddi.pdf?ext=.pdf