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Lake Stevens Public Works unveils five-year strategic plan and staff climate survey results
Summary
Public Works presented a five-year, balanced-scorecard strategic plan and the results of an anonymous climate survey showing crew concerns about trust and recognition and admin concerns about accountability. Staff outlined countermeasures and said the survey will be repeated in spring 2025.
Public Works presented a department-level strategic plan and the results of an anonymous climate (culture) survey to the council at the Jan. 21 workshop, saying the two efforts aim to align staff priorities, improve service delivery and address morale after a period of rapid growth.
Laurie Erickson, public works analyst, described the five strategic focus areas: (1) track and maintain natural and built infrastructure, (2) improve the natural environment and provide accessible infrastructure, (3) ensure responsible stewardship of public funds to deliver reliable services, (4) make Public Works a great place to work and empower a skilled, responsive workforce, and (5) foster positive relationships with the public and partner agencies. Erickson said the plan uses a balanced-scorecard methodology and breaks the five-year strategy into an annual work plan and individual employee work plans so staff can see how their daily tasks connect to department goals.
Public Works Director Aaron Halverson emphasized the operational intent: "Everyone's work should be tied back to our strategy in Public Works," he said, adding the approach helps protect time for high-priority projects and gives employees a framework to talk with supervisors about new work items.
Erickson summarized the climate survey process: the survey was anonymized and deployed electronically; staff then met in small-group deep dives to explore low-scoring questions and identify countermeasures. Crew responses showed three lowest-scoring areas: trust in Public Works leadership, feeling recognized as a valuable employee, and whether the department culture had improved over the last year. Admin staff prioritized accountability concerns: comfort holding supervisors and coworkers accountable and trust among coworkers. Erickson said crews requested measures such as consistent enforcement of standards, clearer support for delegated decisions, attention to tone in supervisory communications, more internal promotion, and moving trainings to times when all staff can attend.
Halverson said the results matter to him personally and to department operations: "To read up there that 'Do you trust Public Works leadership?' is the primary concern of our crew... It hurts when I get a low score. That matters. I want to understand why. How can I do better?" He said leadership has committed to try the countermeasures and will rerun the survey in spring 2025 using the same questionnaire to measure changes.
Other operational details Erickson noted: Public Works adopted quarterly metric reviews, is aligning its plan with a forthcoming citywide strategic plan, and in 2025 will link individual employee plans to the department strategy. The department said it had about 35 employees and that the plan rollout included training for staff on the framework.
What’s next: leadership said it will implement the countermeasures where feasible, run the survey again in spring 2025 and maintain quarterly check-ins on metrics and project progress. The department also plans to review the strategic plan for adjustments at an upcoming leadership retreat.
Ending: Council members expressed appreciation for the presentation and asked follow-up questions about implementation and how the plan will influence service delivery and capital projects.
