Approve third amendment to Agreement No. 5280 with Lodestar Consulting & Executive Coaching to add funding in the amount of $165,450 for 2024-25, for a new contract maximum of $353,450, for the period of January 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025; and to update and clarify the contract language regarding the method of payment, for the provision of providing trauma-responsive leadership and cultural development training services to HHSA managers and supervisors. (No general fund impact) (Morales)

Approve third amendment to Agreement No. 5280 with Lodestar Consulting & Executive Coaching to add funding in the amount of $165,450 for 2024-25, for a new contract maximum of $353,450, for the period of January 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025; and to update and clarify the contract language regarding the method of payment, for the provision of providing trauma-responsive leadership and cultural development training services to HHSA managers and supervisors.

On or about September 12, 2023, the Yolo County Board of Supervisors authorized State Agreement No. 22-11348, also known as Yolo County Agreement No. 23-244 (PH Career Ladder Grant Agreement) with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) for the provision of Workforce Career Ladder Education. The PH Career Ladder Grant Agreement was fully executed on September 25, 2023. Under the PH Career Ladder Grant Agreement, the County is responsible for providing high-quality initial and ongoing training and services to supervisors, managers, directors, and staff interested in promoting into supervisory or managerial roles to prepare them for advancement in the organization. Among other goals, the trainings should aim to cultivate a climate of psychological safety for both staff in supervisory/managerial roles, as well as staff seeking to grow in the organization, and address burnout associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic response and disrupt unhealthy work practices and environments.

Public health, behavioral health, and human services professionals across America have faced years of unprecedented toxic stress and trauma, enduring intense criticism, scrutiny, and threats while navigating organizational strain and carrying elevated workloads. While many of the challenges currently faced existed prior to COVID-19 Pandemic significantly exacerbated vulnerabilities. More recently, shifts in federal policy and budget shortfalls at the local, state and federal levels have further intensified stress and burnout among staff. The impacts of this chronic stress are amplified by environments of distrust and psychological unsafety and have manifested in numerous negative outcomes, including but not limited to: staff burnout and exhaustion, communication breakdowns, incivility in the workplace, and staff recruitment and retention challenges. Equipping HHSA executive leadership, managers, and supervisors with the tools to navigate and lead effectively during these times is essential to the agency’s long-term success. Investing in trauma-informed leadership practices will contribute to improved staff retention, a healthier work environment, and ultimately, better service delivery to the community. 

On or about January 1, 2024, Yolo County HHSA entered into an agreement with Lodestar Consulting & Executive Coaching (Lodestar) to provide trauma-informed leadership training for staff. Lodestar's training programs are grounded in thousands of hours of research, content development, and delivery across sectors such as healthcare, education, public health, government, law, and business. Their curriculum is designed to be accessible and responsive to both group and individual learning needs, with a strong emphasis on practical, trauma-informed approaches. Lodestar’s trainings assists the County with meeting its contractual obligations under the PH Career Ladder Grant Agreement. To date, the PH Career Ladder Grant Agreement has funded the majority of trauma-informed leadership trainings delivered by Lodestar across HHSA.

Now, HHSA requests approval of the attached third amendment to Agreement No. 5280 with Lodestar to add funding to the current fiscal year to pay outstanding invoices.

County Counsel has approved this Amendment as to form.

Competitive Selection: These services for staff training are exempt from solicitation requirements under the Yolo County Procurement Policy.

Vendor Performance: There are no performance measures included in this agreement. However, Lodestar has been meeting all expectations.  Lodestar was chosen for their proven expertise, existing partnership with the California Department of Public Health, and leadership in supporting executives to manage toxic stress and build resilience.

Based on outcomes of the Healthy Work Survey and County Employee Engagement Survey, HHSA Executive Leadership prioritized psychological safety for staff well-being. Findings of these surveys showed 52.5% of staff find their job always or often emotionally demanding, and 43.8% frequently hide feelings at work, contributing to stress and disengagement.

These trainings have proven critical to HHSA staff during these unprecedented and difficult times.

Lodestar Training Summary
Since the inception of the agreement, Lodestar has delivered several training sessions, engaging supervisors, managers, directors, and executives across HHSA. Services provided include:

• BRAVE Trauma-Responsive Leadership (47 attendees): These trainings emphasized managing stress and fostering psychological safety.
• All Of Us (30 attendees): These trainings emphasized repairing trust and strengthening culture.
• Excellence Keynote (100 attendees): These trainings provided an overview of trauma-responsive leadership while balancing caring for self.
• Time on the River (30 attendees): These trainings promoted ongoing reflection and coaching for long-term resilience.
• JEDI (13 attendees): These trainings focused on developing an agency-level plan to address justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.

HHSA staff who received the trainings report feelings of increased psychological safety, better management of uncertainty and change, and being better equipped to manage toxic stress. HHSA leadership reports that they are better equipped to support each other, subordinate staff, and colleagues.
 

Strategic Benefit	Impact
Direct Response to Staff Feedback	Staff reported that the trainings helped them with addressing staff’s urgent psychological safety needs. Increased needs were identified in two major surveys (Healthy Work Survey and County Employee Engagement Survey).
Boosts Leadership Capacity & Culture	Staff reported they left the training better equipped as leaders with trauma-mitigation skills to reduce burnout, rebuild trust, and improve staff engagement.
Sustainable, System-Wide Change	Staff reported they learned skills to improve staff communications and deal with toxic stress in the workplace, which in turn helped with staff retention and ultimately improved service delivery.