Pet of the Week: Pearl
Crossposted from Tails from RASKC
This girl needs a new home in the New Year – meet Pearl, our Pet of the Week!
She was brought in by a good Samaritan last May, and thought she had found her forever home. Unfortunately though, Pearl had to come back to us because her adopter was allergic. They did say that Pearl was a great pet, potty trained, and super well behaved.
Read more from Tails from RASKC
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Kudos! King County Metro Transit receives rave from Seattle Times readers
This piece was featured at the top of the Seattle Times’ Rant and Raves list for December 30, 2018. Kudos to our efficient King County Metro Transit!
“RAVE To Sound Transit, King County Metro Transit and Seattle Center Monorail for providing me and my out-of-town visitor a pleasant adventure from Auburn into Seattle, all on public transportation! From the kind attendant in Auburn who alerted us that we were on the wrong side of the train platform, to the friendly enforcers who boarded the train to verify riders had paid. Once into Seattle, everyone was gracious, polite and knowledgeable guiding us from purchasing tickets to directing us on our stops to the Space Needle, Pike Place Market and back to Auburn.”
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Featured Training: Lean Problem-Solving Basics and Introduction to Career Development,
Lean Problem-Solving Basics, Feb. 5: Do you feel like you tackle the same problems over and over again? In order to effectively solve problems once and for all, they must be solved at the root! Attendees will learn basic A3 Problem Solving, the powerful method borrowed from the Toyota Production System (TPS), learn techniques to incorporate problem solving and continuous improvement in daily work and build on existing Lean practices within your organization. Register and learn more.
Introduction to Career Development, Feb. 5: In this workshop you will learn the key elements of career development, identify your individual interests and values as they relate to career options, explore similar job classifications, learn the importance of competencies when identifying career options, leverage tips for engaging in conversations with your leadership, and gain the knowledge of how to research and seize career opportunities. You will choose a partner and participate in various exercises together. Register and learn more.
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New Chair elected at King County Council
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.
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Learn about retirement savings options at education events Jan. 15–17
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.
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New website showcases your awards and successes
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.
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King County workgroups featured at statewide Lean conference
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.
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CPR/AED Training dates available
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
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DPD offers Public Defense 101 Training to administrative staff
Pictured: DPD attorney and trainer Adrien Leavitt speaks with a participant during the training.
Several employees at the Department of Public Defense (DPD) took advantage of the department’s first Public Defense 101 trainings in December, an opportunity for administrative staff to learn the nuts and bolts of public defense. Two 90-minute sessions were held, one for staff in Seattle and another for staff in Kent, led by three members of DPD’s management team – Katherine Hurley, Tara Urs, and Adrien Leavitt. The three attorneys discussed many aspects of public defense as it is practiced in King County – from how the department is set up, to the types of cases DPD handles, to caseload standards – as well as answered questions and facilitated discussions.
The trainings were designed in coordination with Debra Baker from the Department of Human Resources. After a recent meeting with administrative staff, Debra reported to DPD leadership that several employees wanted a training of this type. Tara Urs, who is coordinating training at DPD on an interim basis, said both sessions were successful and additional ones will likely take place later this year.
“People were engaged. They asked great questions. And it seemed helpful,” she said. “It’s important that everyone feels a connection to the mission of public defense, and this is one way to make sure our administrative staff feels both connected and respected.”
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Featured Job: Public Administration Graduate Intern
Salary: $19.43 – $24.63 Hourly
Location: Seattle, WA
Job Type: Intern
Department: DES – Executive Services
Job Number: 2018TR09148
Closing: 1/21/2019 11:59 PM Pacific
King County International Airport supports internship programs that provide work experience for students in an accredited post-secondary institution that is related to their course of study. The internship program is designed so that the student will have the opportunity to apply principles and theories learned in the classroom, gain new skills, explore a career path and be supervised and mentored by a professional in their field.
The public administration intern will collaborate with the Program and Projects Administrator. The intern will be responsible for assisting with research, report writing, attending briefings, developing databases, data analysis and visualization, program development, and the development of Airport stakeholder outreach and engagement strategies to support KCIA in the implementation of projects as needed. The intern will play a key role in performing document review and contributing to the development of evaluation frameworks for organizational development, programs and projects at the Airport. The internship is intended to build the intern’s qualitative research and process evaluation skills and public administration skills. The intern will receive direct supervision and mentorship from the Program and Projects Administrator and will have the opportunity to become engaged in high priority policy topics of relevance to the Airport.
Learn more about this position or view all available positions.
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