County HR Earns International Excellence Honors

The County’s Department of Human Resources has gone international. The International Public Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA-HR) awarded the County its 2014 Agency Award for Excellence in the large agency division.

The acclaimed Awards for Excellence recognizes the overall quality, accomplishments and contributions of public human resources divisions to one small, one medium and one large agency annually. The award will be presented on Sept. 22 in Philadelphia.

“We’re thrilled to win an Agency Award for Excellence. The international award speaks volumes to the hard work being done by our dedicated staff both in human resources and in all groups to make the County an employer of choice,” said Susan Brazeau, director of Human Resources.

The County’s human resource department, with 115 staff members, serves and supports more than 16,000 employees. It was up against numerous other large cities, counties and public agencies for the award. It was recognized in the following areas:

Employee Wellness Program

The County’s wellness program takes a comprehensive approach to health and well-being. From onsite fitness and cooking classes to biometric screenings and health risk assessments, employees are living well.

Work Safe Stay Healthy Strategic Plan

The Work Safe Stay Health program was developed to encourage all County employees to work safely. The County decreased the number of workers’ compensation incidents, workers’ compensation costs and total production loss due to injury last year.

Recruitment and Selection Efforts

The County receives approximately 100,000 applications for employment annually. It’s new online hiring and selection programs helps screen candidates and expedites the application review and hiring process.

Veterans Outreach Program

With one of the largest populations of veterans, the County is assisting veterans with their transition into civilian life with outreach programs. A veterans’ outreach team has attended numerous career fairs, summits and college networking event.

Employee Development

The human resources department offers a series of professional development training workshops to help employees improve their skills through online and classroom trainings. In addition, the County offers management seminars and leadership academies to prepare our emerging leaders.