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Durham Strategic Plan Dashboard

Shared Economic
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Connected, Engaged, and Inclusive Communities

Innovative and High Performing Organization

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Status Indicator: In Progress | On Hold | Complete/Ongoing

Initiative: 4.12 Create employee development strategies based on current and future needs

Innovative & High Performing Organization

Description

One of the core values for the City of Durham is its employees. By offering development opportunities, the City of Durham demonstrates that it values its employes and is willing to invest in their growth. Moreover, learning and development opportunities have a positive impact on retention and employee satisfaction. When employees feel supported in their professional growth, it fosters a positive work environment whereby employees are more willing to share knowledge and collaborate at higher levels. Employee development also fosters a learning culture and allows the City to address skills gaps and adapt to new trends to stay ahead of other municipalities in a competitive labor market.  

Key Measures & Data Analysis

The fiscal year 2022 data only includes January - June, so is only half of the fiscal year. The data shows through April 2024, and usage for fiscal year 2024 is already higher than it was for the previous fiscal year. The top 5 most popular subject areas for trainings for Fiscal Year 2024 were: Workplace Safety; Business Skills; Customer Service; Policies and Compliance; and Leadership. As new content is developed and offered, usage is expected to continue to increase.

Learning Management System Use

Why is it important?

Employee development not only supports retention, but it also serves to advance the City’s recruitment strategy when it comes to women, people of color, and other diverse demographics. Groups who have been historically marginalized may enter the workforce with fewer advantages and higher student loan debt. The opportunity to gain new skills makes the value proposition of working for the City of Durham even greater when consider programs like the Public Service Loan Forgiveness.  

What have we been doing?

  • Developed and launched a new hire survey
  • Working on planning the Employee Development Conference
  • Hired an Instructional Designer
  • Developing a new supervisor training program
  • Launched a quarterly training calendar
  • Began work on a request for proposals for learning content

What's next?

  • Administer the Employee Engagement Survey
  • Perform a learning needs assessment
  • Run the Employee Development Conference
  • Select a learning content provider

Budget and Management Services Department
Office of Performance and Innovation
Strategy and Performance Division