And I am very happy to report that we recently um hired and um another individual on our leadership team, um, Abby Ludea, who is the Deputy HR director who will oversee talent services, learning and development, and our talent acquisition.

And so when we do our TARP uh presentation next month, uh, Abby will be joining us.

So I'm extremely excited to have her join us.

She previously was the deputy HR director for the City of St.

Paul.

She is also a resident of Ramsey County, and we are thrilled to have her join our team.

So I just wanted to say that.

It spans across all sectors, it spans across everyone in this organization.

One of the things that we're seeing more and more is many of the issues that used to be unique to the public sector are now within the private sector as well.

And I just want to go over a little bit of those.

Number one is regardless of what's happening externally, everybody is competing for top talent.

Um, there are generational shifts in the workforce.

Um baby boomers are no longer uh comprise the majority of the people in our organization, and that is consistent regardless of what sectors you're in.

We have budget constraints.

Um, the social and political things that are happening in the communities are also impacting the workforce, and it doesn't matter whether it is in the public sector or the private sector.

And one of the other things that's very intriguing to us is not only the advent of technology, but the advent of how AI is beginning to impact our workforce.

That is something that is not new to us, but it's something we have to address, and we see that in the work that we do, even in the human resources space.

And then the last thing is as all we know, there is declining trust, which has been going on for many years in local government.

But these are the kinds of things that are impacting the employee experience in our organization.

And I think it's important that we take that into consideration.

But I also want to talk a little bit before we go into this presentation that this is more than just about numbers.

This is more than about talent or retaining talent in our organization.

It's about seeking to understand the people who deliver services across Ramsey County every single day, and how various types of workforce data can help us build a stronger organization.

At its core, the concept of one Ramsey County recognizes that while our employees work in different departments and perform different functions, we share a common purpose, and that purpose is serving our residents.

Workforce data helps us understand who we are, where we are experiencing success, what challenges exist, and how we can strengthen our ability to serve our community.

It is our hope that the data that we'll talk about today supports our commitment, our undying in our strong commitment to operational excellence by helping us make informed decisions about attracting, developing and community in the workforce.

In addition, it is our hope that the data that we talk about, whether it is regarding what we've done in the TARP efforts, whether it's the analytical information that we will share, it will we hope that it will provide insights into who we are as a county, who we are as an employer, what trends we are experiencing, and what we are doing to build a current and future ready workforce.

Ultimately, it's our hope and our goal is to build a current and future-ready workforce, one that has the talent, the skills, the leadership and capacity to meet today's needs while preparing for tomorrow's opportunities and challenges.

So join us on this journey as we talk a little bit about our workforce here at Ramley Family.

And with that in mind, I'm going to turn this over to Kristen's going to talk about our talk up there.

So before we jump into the workforce statistics, um, just a little bit about TARP.

Talent attraction retention and promotion has been a county strategic priority since 2016.

A TARP-focused workshop will take place on July 28th, where you will meet our new HR deputy director, Abby Gadea.

Human Resources is proud of the major TARP accomplishments to date achieved in partnership with leadership from across the county, including the 2023 inclusive and respectful workplace policies, which established a consistent standard for behavior across the organization.

The 2024 benefit changes that expanded employee choice and acknowledgement that employee benefit priorities change throughout their life cycle.

In 2025, hiring process improvements reduced time to hire from 160 days to under 80 days, and the implementation of automated exit interviews, ensured employees voluntarily leaving the organization are asked the same questions, ensuring reliable comparable insights.

We will provide more information on ACET interview data later in the presentation.

Finally, the 2025 bargain market and cost of living adjustments as phase one of comp and class modernization value and fairly compensate staff and better position the county as a permanent employer.

Many TARP opportunities remain.

For 2026 to 2027, HR has prioritized progress in the following TARP initiatives, which again you will hear more about at the July 28th workshop.

People leader development will ensure all staff who supervise are equipped to coach, set expectations, manage risk, and develop future leaders, strengthening long-term organizational stability and capability.

People leader development will support successful implementation of a performance management strategy where people leaders develop staff with consistent actionable feedback.

Phase two of class and comp modernizes a total reward survey of the workforce.

Total rewards include everything an employee receives from the organization in exchange for their work.

It includes compensation, benefits, recognition and performance, and work experience, like career growth opportunities, learning, culture, flexibility, leadership support, and overall employee experience.

The total reward survey will kick off in the fall and will provide data-driven insights about the benefit changes to date, identify gaps, and align our total reward strategy with organizational goals to remain to ensure we remain competitive in attracting and retaining the top talent we need.

We are using an independent third party provider to ensure anonymity and increase employee confidence in the process.

You will hear more about the total reward survey soon.

Phase two of class and count modernization will also include finalization of a cycle for market and pay equity reviews in alignment with budget and bargaining cycles.

Key policy revisions will include updating the personnel rules and Minnesota Statute 383A.

Finally, HR will move forward with an engagement survey, vendor selection, and strategy development to support the collection of accurate insights into culture leadership and workplace experience and implementation of meaningful change.

Now we're going to move into the data.

Thank you.

And I just want to acknowledge the people, even though I was not here doing the initial initiative and the implementation of the TARP initiative, because I think that that shows a strong commitment in this organization of really seeking ways that we can attract retaining support from police.

I can honestly say, as a person who's been in this human resources for a long time, I'm very impressed with the intentionality around that TARP because that shows that this is not something that's in one and done, or it's not performative.

And of course, there can always be areas of improvement.

But I just want to say, as a person who's been here fairly new, I really appreciate all of the intentionality that you as commissioners and leaders have really shown to really work to attract and retain top talent.

So with that in mind, I'm going to talk a little bit about our annual workforce statistics report.

As many of you know, all state and local governments with 100 or more employees have previously been required to submit demographic workforce data, including data by federal categories of rape, race and ethnicity, gender and job category to the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

What you may or may not know is that the report that has been commonly known as the EEA4 report has been put on pause and remains on hold, but that does not stop the county from still tracking that information.