Adams County officials outline harassment-complaint procedures, data tracking and possible outside review

County Manager Dionne and Adams County human-resources and legal staff briefed the board on the county’s procedures for handling allegations of harassment, discrimination and other personnel complaints and described steps to centralize case tracking and improve reporting.

The briefing detailed how People and Culture (PNC) now routes employee-relations work through a single employee-relations manager, the use of an anonymous reporting tool called SpeakFully and an internal case-tracking system (HR Acuity), and the county attorney’s role in assessing legal risk and advising investigations and discipline. ‘‘We take every complaint seriously,’’ County Manager Dionne said, describing the leadership goal of treating employees consistently and protecting the organization’s legal interests.

Why it matters: commissioners said they regularly receive upset employees and community members and cannot assess whether cases are being tracked, resolved or escalated. Several commissioners urged clearer reporting to the board, greater ”closing the loop” on investigations, and recommended an outside organizational or process audit to restore trust.

Key elements described by staff

- Centralized case handling: John Nelson, director of People and Culture, and Beth Bisbee, the county’s employee-relations manager, said PNC now assigns business partners to departments so employee-relations concerns route through a consistent unit. Bisbee said SpeakFully ‘‘can be used for any concern’’ and that reports can be anonymous.

- Data systems: Staff said HR Acuity has been in use about a year and now…