Councilmember Rod Dembowski has been elected as the new Chair of the King County Council. 

The decision was made earlier this afternoon following passage of a reorganization motion approved by the council. The legislation also appointed Reagan Dunn and reappointed Claudia Balducci to serve as Vice Chairs. 

Read more in the official press release. 

You and your spouse or significant other are invited to learn more about the King County Deferred Compensation Plan at education sessions offered throughout the year. 

In-person sessions are coming up Jan. 15–17. Click here for details and registration.  

For more information about Deferred Compensation Plan education, including webinars, go to the Deferred Compensation web page. 

If you have any questions, please contact KC Deferred Comp. 

King County’s work is receiving national recognition through awards, honors, and accreditations by outside organizations from across the United States, and a new website has been launched to showcase some of the services and programs that have received recognition.

These recognitions range from Best Large Transit System in North America to Wastewater Treatment Outstanding Performance Awards, and include accreditations that our programs have received and individual employees who have been recognized for their work. 

“The work that our employees are doing is being noticed on the national stage and we want to make sure that we are sharing these awards with our residents,” Gary Kurihara, Chief Performance Officer, said. “We have incredible employees who take great pride in their work, and these awards are an important piece of the culture of excellence that we are building here at King County.” 

Do you see an award or accreditation that is missing? Let us know. Email us at kcemployees@kingcounty.gov.

At the recently held 2018 Washington State Lean Transformation Conference hosted by Results Washington, the Office of Risk Management Services (ORMS) and the Finance and Business Division (FBOD) within the Department of Executive Services (DES) were invited to present how team cohesion work has helped them attain better results and build a more conducive work environment.

Pictured: ORM staff speaking at their presentation.

Members from ORMS and FBOD presented in two breakout sessions titled “The People Side of Lean – An Interactive Experience for Improving Teamwork.” From ORMS, Business and Finance Officer Delena Carpenter, Litigation Data Solutions Manager Stephanie Santos, and Contracts Analyst Erin Ferrell presented during this session. Each session, featured in collaboration with Integris Performance Advisors President Brett Cooper, shared different experiences regarding team cohesion. View a video of the ORMS presentation here.

Pictured: FBOD’ staff at their presentation.

At this same session, FBOD’s Deputy Director Eunjoo Greenhouse and Senior Continuous Improvement Manager Kara Cuzzetto shared how FBOD benefited from the principles of the Five Behaviors of Cohesive Team trainings to enhance their teamwork and accountability. FBOD has been working to improve its team cohesion by building trust, engaging in productive conflict, and creating stronger commitment and team accountability to deliver better results. View a video of the FBOD presentation here.

Being a part of the conference was a great opportunity for Eunjoo and her team. During this session, several participants inquired how they can use a similar approach to improve their teamwork and wanted to learn more about FBOD’s experience.

“Presenting at the conference is a way to show respect to FBOD employees, share our successes and help others along their journey by sharing our lessons learned,” she said.

Other notable groups also included in the session were the Washington State Department of Licensing, the Washington State Department of Ecology and the San Diego Humane Society, from California.

Additionally, the FBOD team presented at a separate session during the conference titled “Come and Learn How to Build a Cohesive Team – King County’s People Side of Lean.” They were joined in their presentation by Integris Performance Advisors Consultant Gwen Voelpel.

King County is leading the way through transformative Lean efforts and building a culture of performance excellence.  Allowing employees to share their experiences of how Lean influences their workplace and their relationships with one another is essential to furthering the impact of this work. Through a positive, collaborative culture of continuous improvement, King County is changing operations for the better and delivering more value through County resources to customers and residents. For more information visit www.kingcounty.gov/lean.

Results Washington is Governor Inslee’s data-driven performance management and continuous improvement system.

Registration is open to all King County employees for Basic CPR classes offered in the Chinook Building.  Classes cover Adult, Child and Infant CPR, AED, and Choking Rescue. To register, visit www.kccpr.eventbrite.com.

• Tuesday, January 29, 2019, 1-4 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126
• Monday, February 11, 2019, 1-4 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126
• Monday, March 4, 2019, 1-4 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126

Additionally, registration is open for BLS for the Health Care Provider classes.  This class is intended for Public Health- Seattle & King County employees who are required to have  BLS for Healthcare provider card as a condition of employment.  To register, go to www.kcbls.eventbrite.com.

• Tuesday, January 29, 2019, 9 a.m. -12:30 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126
• Monday, February 11, 2019, 9 a.m.- 12:30 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126
• Monday, March 4, 2019, 9 a.m.- 12:30 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126
• Monday, April 8, 2019, 9 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. or 1-4:30 p.m., Chinook Building, Room 126