Blogs

By Kristin Withrow, CSDA Communications Specialist

Following a significant leadership change nearly five years ago, the new leadership team at Fresno Irrigation District (FID) undertook a staff polling project to gauge the staff’s expectations of leadership and their definition of success. A staff-wide survey was distributed, and employees were encouraged to provide honest feedback. As an agency that has been in operation for over 100 years, the leadership team felt it was important to establish a formal definition of what the district stood for in its operations, commitment to the community, and intention as an employer.

“Our fundamental 12 core values were born out of those survey results and employee responses. This led to the creation of CORE, as it is referred to. CORE is a dynamic initiative and has been developed in stages. CORE combines Organizational Development, Engagement, and Positive Culture Change, all interconnected by these core values. These core values and the formation of CORE were developed in-house, specifically tailored to enrich our culture,” stated FID Human Resources Business Partner @Donaday Chapman.

Accountability, Communication, Customer Service, Development, Efficiency, Flexibility, Honor, Integrity, Leadership, Safety, Teamwork and Technical Competencies became the defined, refined, and reinforced values embraced by the entire team at Fresno Irrigation District.

Each CORE value utilized staff comments in its build-out and support materials. It’s important to note, as stated by FID Assistant General Manager- Administration, September Singh, “These CORE values and definitions did not come from the top to be forced upon everyone.  It was important to the new leadership to develop CORE in a thoughtful and democratic manner, supporting the voice of all staff and ensuring everyone’s values were reflected.  In this way, we can proudly and collectively say WE are FID, and these are OUR values.”  Developing a variety of formats enabled the district to emphasize the at the core of their culture without imposing arduous learning modules on staff. It was important to the development team to be able to influence company culture while making the lessons approachable.

With 12 values built into learning modules, this allowed the district to roll out programming for one value each month. “Initially, there were multiple sessions of each core value training,” explained Chapman. “We launched with topical overviews of each value to provide a broad introduction of our definition of these values, so everyone started with the same foundation.”

Each introductory hour-long CORE session was pulled together into recorded presentations that new employees can view online that are used in onboarding and ongoing resources. In addition to the primary presentation, the district developed short-form “CORE Cues” to highlight elements of each value in ongoing mini-lessons in the form of short MP4 videos. These were created to keep CORE at “top of mind.”

The fourth phase of the rollout was dubbed “CORE More” and included the creation of a distinct banner for each core value, along with branded merchandise distributed during monthly team meetings. The banners incorporated comments from the original staff surveys, recognizing the entire FID team for their participation and contribution to the program. When each banner is rolled out, the corresponding “CORE Cue” short videos are reintroduced in a fun way that adds a gamification element with prizes for participants.

“Core Cubed” is the most recent phase of the CORE initiative and offers a 16-session, after-hours, voluntary opportunity for individuals to gain skills in leadership and other areas of professional development. The exploration of leadership includes sessions and discussions such as, critical thinking, personal branding, directing and delegating, business basics, and creating and delivering presentations.

Identifying these core values allows the district to continually and systematically reinforce the values, attitudes, and actions that are identified as central, or CORE, to the agency’s success. The program has been developed and implemented systematically over the course of five years to allow Chapman and the district the flexibility to respond to the needs of its employee population. 

Since its inception, CORE has contributed to an 88% reduction in staff turnover, increased participation by staff in all areas, the creation of an engagement team, and 17% of the staff is enrolled in the 16-week after-hours professional development series.

CORE has not only redefined how Fresno Irrigation District operates internally but has also set a benchmark for fostering an engaged, value-driven workforce. By systematically embedding its 12 core values into every aspect of the organization, from onboarding to performance appraisals, to professional development, the district is cultivating a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous growth.

As FID moves forward, the program emphasizes the successful outcome when agencies invest in their people and take the time to align their actions with defined shared values at their foundation.