REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
DATE: Regular Meeting of September 8, 2024
TO: Mayor and Members of the City Council
SUBMITTED BY: Dante Hall, City Manager
SUBJECT: Quarterly Update on FY 2024-2026 Hercules City Council Strategic Goals RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Receive and file the report on FY 2024-2026 Hercules City Council Strategic Goals.
BACKGROUND:
In February 2024, the City of Hercules hired Tripepi Smith Talent Solutions (TSTS) to help the City Council develop a Two-Year Strategic Plan (FY2024-2026). The development of the Council’s Strategic Plan began with a goal-setting workshop on Saturday, April 13, 2024, at the City Hall Senior Center. The workshop facilitated by TSTS provided an opportunity for Council members, City staff leadership, and the public to celebrate recent successes, discuss best practices, strengthen teamwork, and discuss priorities for the next two years.
On May 28, 2024, the Hercules City Council adopted the attached Strategic Plan, which outlines seven goals identified by the City Council, along with tactical steps and metrics for each (ATTACHMENT 1).
ANALYSIS:
Strategic planning is a common best practice for all organizations. Identifying broad goals, defining success for the organization, and helping to set a direction for the team that works daily to deliver is a logical management practice. In city governments, this takes on a particularly important role where the function of the elected leaders is to set targets and priorities for the agency staff, and then to charge the city staff to work on accomplishing the goals and delivering for the community. An effective strategic planning process informs city staff about the priorities of the city council and helps council members resolve their competing priorities and visions for the city they serve.
City managers find the strategic planning process to be particularly helpful as it gives them a chance to hear from all the council members in a public forum where they can engage each other in a healthy dialogue of shared missions and visions. This process also aids the city staff leadership team, allowing them to share their expertise to help inform the elected leaders about areas of concern, potential focus areas, and strategic solutions. The robust exchange can align the city staff to the aspirations of the city council and provide a three-to-five-year vision for their work and budget priorities.
As part of the strategic planning process, the Hercules City Council also established a work plan with reportable objectives to be implemented. The report this evening is a quarterly update on the progress of the work plan. The mandated obligations of local government remain the core function of the City and need not be fully detailed in the Work Plan, including but not limited to public infrastructure, public safety, governmental transparency, financial accountability, and implementation of regulations. This balance between core services and strategic goals is well depicted by the “Iceberg Model” depicted below (Figure 1).
Figure 1 - Nalbandian Consulting & Training, May 2003
To ensure effective implementation, the City Council and community will review progress toward objectives quarterly and adjust the work plan and objectives as needed. The Quarterly Strategic Goals Update is included as part of this staff report (Attachment 2).
FISCAL IMPACT:
The recommended action carries no fiscal impact. Funding for programs and projects described in the document will become part of the City’s normal annual and long-term planning and budgeting processes.
ATTACHMENTS:
FY 2024-2026 Hercules City Council Strategic Goals Report City of Hercules FY 2024-2026 Strategic Goals Work Plan Update – October 8, 2024