Report 2011-101.2 Recommendation 9 Responses

Report 2011-101.2: Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services: Management Instability Hampered Efforts to Better Protect Children (Release Date: March 2012)

Recommendation #9 To: Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services

To create and communicate its philosophy and plans, the department should complete and implement its strategic plan.

1-Year Agency Response

The department's strategic plan was finalized and released to all staff and stakeholders on September 28, 2012. The plan includes three goals, 12 strategies and 50 objectives developed to move the department towards its identified vision and mission. Related objectives were grouped together resulting in 32 objective teams, and team leads were identified for each team. In early November 2012, the director solicited participation on these teams from staff throughout the department. Staff response to this solicitation was very good, as over 230 staff expressed an interest in participating on one or more teams. On January 8, 2013, a kick-off meeting was held for the objective team leads who reviewed staff interest and identified those with the necessary expertise and experience to participate as members of their teams.

Objective team leads were provided with process management training through the Lean Six Sigma Program and have begun working with their teams to identify steps to move forward in meeting their objectives. The Director of Program Development and Strategic Initiatives (recently re-titled the Director of the Bureau of Organizational Support Services) reports directly to the department's director. She and her team provide ongoing assistance to the objective team leads and are responsible for monitoring department-wide implementation of the strategic plan.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented

6-Month Agency Response

The department distributed the completed strategic plan in September 2012, which contained 50 objectives. To implement these objectives, the department will create action teams that consist of executive sponsors and project managers. (See 2013-406, p. 125)

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Partially Implemented

All Recommendations in 2011-101.2

Agency responses received after June 2013 are posted verbatim.