Durham Strategic Plan Dashboard
Prosperity
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Initiative: 4.11 Develop retention strategies
Innovative & High Performing Organization
Description
Retention strategies are essential for the City of Durham to preserve institutional knowledge and ensure continuity in service delivery. Over the course of their careers, employees develop expertise in handling complex tasks and an understanding of local policies. Experienced, high-performing employees play a crucial role in fostering a positive work culture, building trust with the community, and establishing long-term relationships that contribute to the city's stability and effective governance.
Key Measures & Data Analysis
Turnover rates peaked consistent with national trends in the years immediately following the pandemic. In FY25, the City implemented compensation changes based on the findings of a classification and compensation study, resulting in significant pay increases for most employees. These adjustments have strengthened both recruitment and retention efforts, resulting in lower turnover rates and lower vacancy rates.
Full-time Employee Turnover
Why is it important?
Retaining employees with institutional knowledge and experience is essential to ensuring continuity and efficiency in City services. Strong retention strategies help staff feel valued and supported, boosting morale and productivity. As senior employees retire, these strategies also ensure that talented staff are ready to step into key roles, preventing knowledge gaps and minimizing disruptions in leadership. Because many City employees work directly with residents, maintaining familiar and trusted staff members also strengthens community confidence in the City’s ability to deliver reliable, high-quality services.
What have we been doing?
HR has focused on translating Employee Engagement Survey (ESS) results into action — launching department-level plans and advancing foundational HR system improvements to support long-term retention and succession planning.
Key activities include:
• Supporting 21 of 24 departments (88%) in completing ESS Action Plans organized around five goal themes, with implementation underway across departments.
• Presenting EngageCOD — the City's employee engagement platform — to the Executive Team and preparing to share it broadly with Directors, Assistant Directors, and employees.
• Completing and presenting a Succession Planning Strategy to City leadership, and beginning Oracle system configuration work.
What's next?
Efforts to embed retention strategies and succession planning across the organization will continue through the following activities:
• EngageCOD Rollout – Sharing the platform with Directors and Assistant Directors, then all employees citywide.
• ESS Action Plan Implementation – Supporting ongoing departmental implementation of engagement action plans.
• Exit Survey Strategy – Developing and launching an exit survey program to capture departure insights.
• Succession Planning in Oracle – Testing and configuring Succession Planning and Career Pathing modules in Oracle.
City Website Home Page: Durham, NC | Official Website (durhamnc.gov)
Budget Website Page: Budget & Management Services Department | Durham, NC (durhamnc.gov)
Budget and Management Services Department
Office of Performance and Innovation
Strategy and Performance Division