Goal III | District of Columbia Courts

District of Columbia Courts

Goal III: A Professional and Engaged Workforce

The Courts will ensure a professional, engaged workforce that consistently achieves excellence and is agile to meet the demands of a changing environment. The Courts will continue to invest in education, training, and other development opportunities to enhance the knowledge and skills of its workforce. To advance our long-standing commitment to being a great place to work, the Courts will strive to create a flexible and high-performing work environment where all personnel are positively engaged.

Strategies & Key Results

Strategies Key Results

Implement comprehensive workforce planning to prepare for a changing workplace.

Beginning in 2019, comprehensive workforce planning will be implemented annually, including succession plans for key 1-5 year retirement-eligible positions.

Promote a values-based workplace focused on high ethical standards and professionalism.

By 2018, values initiatives will be implemented in all divisions of both Courts.

Provide professional development opportunities for judges and court employees.

By 2019, increased online, job-specific, and technology training will be offered to personnel, with special emphasis on expanded training and orientation for new employees.

Enhance a strong performance–based culture.

By 2022, performance management practices will be strengthened at the Courts.

Offer programs and initiatives to enhance the well-being of the workforce.

By 2022, an increased number of court personnel will participate in well-being initiatives.

Develop/expand flexible work processes and programs.

By 2022, an increased number of personnel will participate in flexible work.

Court Values

The Courts will continue building a values-based workplace where all court personnel are guided by the values of accountability, excellence, fairness, integrity, respect, and transparency. The Values Leadership Council, an employee-led group that champions the Courts’ Living Our Values initiative by holding dialogues with personnel on the values, will continue to coordinate values teams within court divisions. Over the next five years, the Courts will assess barriers to full integration of the values in the workplace.

Workforce Planning and Development

The Courts’ current workforce consists of five generations. A significant number of senior-level and experienced personnel, including judicial officers, are nearing retirement or have recently retired, and new, younger employees and judicial officers are joining the workforce. The Courts have begun and will continue to carry out comprehensive workforce planning and development initiatives to ensure that current and future personnel are equipped to serve the public. An essential component of effective workforce planning is succession planning. As baby boomers exit the workforce through retirement or work at reduced hours, the Courts will ensure that the organizational knowledge held by these senior staff is preserved and passed on to the next generation of employees. The Courts will develop succession plans for key court positions to ensure that highly qualified candidates are available to replace retiring personnel. The Courts will also expand efforts to identify the job skills and knowledge that court personnel will need in the future, as jobs and business processes change because of technological advances and other factors.

Training and Education

This Plan focuses on developing the next generation of court leaders through training and development programs to ensure that employees can qualify for management and leadership positions when they become available. The Courts will continue knowledge transfer and new skills development training through mentoring, job rotations, and other flexible work assignments. The Courts will continue to identify training needs and opportunities, and manage partnerships with educational organizations to ensure the Courts have access to comprehensive training and education resources.

Flexible Work

Just as the Courts’ business processes and services to the public continue to evolve as a result of advances in technology, the workplace must also evolve and adapt. The Courts will assess and develop new methods for how work is performed to maximize the effectiveness of court personnel while ensuring high quality customer service to the public. This may include, for example, greater use of job sharing, job rotations, and cross-functional training. The Courts will strive to create a more flexible workplace culture that provides increased opportunities for professional development, flexible deployment of personnel to meet changing business needs, and recruitment and retention of top talent in a highly competitive marketplace. The Courts are committed to being a great place to work that inspires positive employee engagement and participation. The Courts will continue to assess and address employee engagement and job satisfaction on a regular basis through internal systems and by participating in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey.

Choose Goal

Goal III: A Professional and Engaged Workforce

Strategies & Key Results

"Open to All, Trusted by All, Justice for All"

District of Columbia Courts | (202) 879-1010

"Open to All, Trusted by All, Justice for All"

District of Columbia Courts | (202) 879-1010