Zone Director Recommendations_K. Jacobson

Kim Jacobson, Interim Director Cass County Human Service Zone  Lack of presence Zone Philosophy The CCHSZ team has not been provided, or perhaps accepted, a fundamental understanding of what are human service zones, interrelations of the human service delivery system, the purpose, vision, and mission. It appears the mindset is 3-5+ years behind the rest of the state with understanding and transitioning. It appears that Cass County initially believed that they would be immune from any the changes resulting from redesign and/or human service zone changes. Rather, it has been repeatedly commented that Cass believed the rest of the state was going to change to be more like them. There are silos within siloed silos within CCHSZ itself. As an institution they do not view themselves as part of a statewide team. Rather, the organization is suffering from an identity crisis. The organization is misaligned and what brings them together is the opportunity to commiserate about their uniqueness. This has negatively impacted culture, moral, and cohesiveness. In the end, impacting turnover, productivity, and service. New Board A new human service zone board will be place starting January 1, 2022. There will be three returning board members and four new community representatives in addition to the Zone Director. This is an area of strength as the new board will bring diversity, community knowledge, voice, and additional skillset/knowledge to the board. There is internal conflict within the existing board. There is resistance to whether the Zone Director is a voting member of the Board. Efforts are being made to address this area. However, it may creep into the new year and impact the tone and transition to a new board structure along with a desire to preserve legacy. Local Government and State Government Knowledge Recent leadership has not had a strong background in neither local government nor state government. This is combined with a historic lack of understanding of comprehensive human service zone values and purpose. In result, relationships within the community, within the county, and within the state have greatly suffered. It is key for leadership to be