City of Oakland
FY 2025-2028 Strategic Plan Implementation Charter
I. Background
In early March 2024, a strategic planning process commenced to facilitate a thoughtful and responsive process for the development of a Strategic Plan that addresses Oakland’s resource and budget constraints, challenges and opportunities, ensuring short-term and long-term plans for its workforce and residents. The Strategic Plan development journey includes:
• Management-level Retreat: 1.5-day retreat with Agency Directors to build trust, encourage healthy conflict, foster commitment, and enhance citywide priorities. • Data and Document Review: A comprehensive review of 100+ data sources, including community findings, policies, budgets, and plans, to inform interviews and engagement activities.
• Strategic Planning Design Team (SPDT) Application and Launch: A citywide survey selected 25 City of Oakland staff to serve as SPDT members, ensuring diverse representation based on identity, capacity, experience, collaboration, and public-facing roles.
• Interviews and Focus Groups: Conducted one-on-one discussions with 15 Agency Directors and five focus groups to explore their visions for Oakland, core services, challenges, and collaboration needs.
• City Data Gathering & Analysis: Interviews and research across 10 cities and counties identified best practices in strategic budgeting, crime prevention, economic development, and housing support.
• SPDT Workshops: Three SPDT workshops aligned on citywide priorities, cost- savings and revenue opportunities, and co-designed an implementation plan aligned with the City’s goals.
The Strategic Plan will be presented as an Informational Report to the Finance and Management Committee on April 9, 2025 and to the full City Council on April 14, 2025.
II. Implementation Team Purpose
The City Administrator’s Office is fully aware of the critical need to strengthen Oakland’s internal systems and processes to deliver equitable and sustainable services for all. By enhancing these foundational structures, we aim to improve efficiency, transparency, and accountability across our departments, ensuring that resources are directed where they are most needed, especially as we navigate financial limitations.
III. Guiding Vision, Strategic Plan Overview, and Assumptions
A. Guiding Vision: As Oakland faces financial challenges, it is committed to fostering a thriving and equitable community. The City emphasizes transparency, accountability, and compassionate approach to public needs. While making touch decisions, Oakland aims to balance immediate demands with future growth, City of Oakland
FY 2025-2028 Strategic Plan Implementation Charter
prioritizing fiscal responsibility and economic development to build resilience and lasting equity for all residents.
B. Strategic Plan Overview: This plan is designed to guide the City through the complex process of fiscal recovery while ensuring that core services and programs remain aligned with the aspirations of our Community and workforce. The focus is on balancing the necessity of fiscal responsibility with the fundamental needs of Oakland residents, creating a path forward that is both responsive and inclusive.
C. Guiding Assumptions1:
• Race matters: Almost every indicator of well-being shows troubling disparities by race.
• Disparities are created and maintained, often inadvertently, through institutionalized policies and practices that contain barriers to opportunity. • If opportunities in all key areas of well-being are equitable, then equitable results will follow.
• Given the right message, analysis, and tools, people will work toward racial equity.
IV. Selection of Steering Committee and Implementation Team • Agency Directors received a presentation on the Strategic Plan and were asked to identify staff members who would add value to a successful implementation team.
Key factors for a successful implementation team member included:
o Strategic
o Agile and Solutions Focused
o Growth Mind Set
o Justice Focused
o Collaborative
• Members of the Strategic Planning Design Team received a presentation of the Strategic Plan and were asked to self-nominate if they would like to continue with the Implementation Phase.
• Implementation Team Co-Leads reviewed all the nominated individuals for alignment with the identified key factors, representation of Oakland’s demographic diversity, broad representation of Departments
• To round out the Implementation Team options to ensure that there was a good representation of staff across Departments, reflective of Oakland’s demographic diversity, and aligned with the key factors, additional staff were identified and interviewed for interest and capacity to participate on the team.
1 The Department of Race & Equity operates under these assumptions adapted from the Annie E. Casey Race Matters Toolkit.
City of Oakland
FY 2025-2028 Strategic Plan Implementation Charter
V. Expectations and Responsibilities
A. City Administrator
• Convenes all leadership bodies in support of implementation. • Advises the Steering Committee.
B. Steering Committee
• Develops implementation recommendations.
• Provides strategic thinking.
• Lends thought leadership.
• Rotates each year – Year One, Two, and Three Actions. • Members should represent each Evaluation Criteria Category.
C. Implementation Team Co-Leads
• Leads the Implementation Team to accomplish its charge. • Manages all communication updates.
• Coordinates between CAO, Steering Committee, and Implementation Team.
D. Implementation Team
• Join a working a working group to drive Actions.
• Meet monthly to drive Year One Actions.
• Facilitate communication back to various internal committees. • May designate one person to attend meetings in their unavailability. • Support messaging needed for press and media.
VI. Logistics
A. Steering Committee Meetings
• Schedule: Meet quarterly.
• RSVPs Required and Attendance: Responses to calendar invitations are required and if you are not able to attend, please respond accordingly so that the meeting can be rescheduled to ensure critical mass.
• Location: Virtually.
• Meeting Materials: The Implementation Team Co-Leads will send out a draft agenda and related information or documents at least (1) week prior to the scheduled meeting.
• Meeting Notes and Follow-Up Actions: A note-taker will be designated at the beginning of each meeting. Draft summary notes and action items will be distributed for review within three (3) working days of the meeting.
City of Oakland
FY 2025-2028 Strategic Plan Implementation Charter
B. Implementation Team Meeting
• Schedule: Meet monthly.
• RSVPs Required and Attendance: Responses to calendar invitations are required and if you are not able to attend, you will need to designate an alternate from your Department to attend in your place, and respond accordingly to the meeting invitation.
• Location: Annual meeting in person, with most meetings held virtually. • Meeting Materials: The Implementation Team Co-Leads will send out a draft agenda and any related information or documents at least (1) week prior to the scheduled meeting.
• Meeting Notes and Follow-Up Actions: A note-taker will be designated at the beginning of each meeting. Draft summary notes and action items will be distributed for review within three (3) working days of the meeting. • Contact Information for Implementation Co-Leads:
o Monica Elise Davis, Deputy City Administrator, [email protected], 510-495-4810 (C), 510-238-7689 (O)
o Candice Parker-Trigg, City Administrator Analyst, [email protected] o Visraant Iyer, Director, Innovation Team, [email protected], 630-639- 8928 (C)
o Patricia Merino Price, Civic Designer, Innovation Team, [email protected], 510-684-7568 (C)
VII. Outcomes
• Every six months, there will be regular progress reports on the Strategic Priorities and related Action Items.
• The selected Action Items will be completed over the course of the three years of implementation.
• At the end of the three years, the data indicators included in the Strategic Plan will be refreshed and reviewed.
• Near the end of the three years of implementation, research and discussed options for organizational structure to continue this work will be determined.
Appendix
Attachment 1: Strategic Priority Action Items
Attachment 2: Initial Membership
Appendix
Attachment 1: Strategic Priority Action Items
1. Streamline Operations
Strategic Priority (Action) Actions
(Tasks/Details/Process)
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Lead Department
Simplify Procurement
Contracting Processes
Create process, timeline, and begin to
implement Priority 1 recommendations from
Baker Tilly report. Evaluate and improve
efficiency on the contracting process,
payment schedule, and timelines.
Finance
Centralize Payroll Policies
and Practices
Streamline and enhance payroll processing
and systems.
Create citywide policies and standardized
practices with consideration for department
policies and structure (e.g., overtime policies).
Finance
Strengthen Hiring Practice
Transparency
Continue to regularly meet with departments
to review their hiring priorities and provide
timelines to achieve filling their vacancies.
Human Resources to promote and encourage
departments to consistently utilize and
reconcile the monthly Position Control Report
to provide a transparent view of all vacant and
frozen positions, across all levels of City
departments.
Develop resources to communicate available
career pathways to enable employees to
explore promotional opportunities across
departments.
Human Resources
Management
Standardize Onboarding
Administer and review New Hire Experience
Survey and use survey feedback to ensure the
Human Resources
Management
Appendix
Citywide New Employee Orientation provides
new employees with required and useful
information. New Hire Experience Survey will
be re-implemented in January 2025 after NEO
and feedback will be shared with the
Recruitment & Classification Division and HR
SPOCS on a quarterly basis.
Each City department will consult with Human
Resources Management to formalize, expand,
and promote its departmental onboarding
program. Standardization of the onboarding
process will improve the new employee
experience, focusing on staff-identified
priorities, including the employee’s role in
achieving the department’s mission, workload
management, and training on the use of
resources and tools to perform their duties.
HRM will leverage the automation and
technology of NEOGOV Onboard to create
consistent processes and workflows for
employees and departmental partners.
Develop a Citywide
Accessible Policy Archive
Create a well-organized filing system of
policies and procedures with access for all
City staff with sub-folders for each
department.
City Administrator’s
Office
Integrate Finance and
Budget Process Updates
into Performance
Management Framework
Align finance and budget process updates
with the City’s performance management
framework, guided by the CAO. Continue to
embed KPIs to track budget goals and build a
public facing portal for transparency, allowing
residents to monitor progress and enhance
accountability across departments.
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
Enhance Communication
Between Finance and
Other Departments
Building upon the already established fiscal
managers’ budget update process, create an
enhanced budget process communications
strategy that includes standard practices for
disseminating information from Directors to
staff, regular staff wide town halls, and regular
updates on budget status at Agency Directors’
meetings.
Finance
2. Foster Cross-Departmental Collaboration
Strategic Priority (Action) Actions
(Tasks/Details/Process)
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Lead Department
Coordinate City Housing
Strategic Plans
Establish a coordination strategy among
departments managing the City’s housing
plans – capital-focused, anti-displacement,
and homelessness – to align goals.
Schedule regular cross-departmental check-
ins with key stakeholders and divisions to
streamline communication and coordination,
track initiatives, set joint decision-making
protocols, prioritize county engagement, and
integrate homelessness support actions into
the broader housing strategy.
Actualize existing capital affordable housing
strategic plan developed by Housing &
Community Development Department
Administer remaining U dollars via NOFA
programs (new construction, preservation,
etc.).
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
Establish HCD annual reporting on affordable
housing development progress to City Council
to accompany the Annual Progress Report
(APR).
Create formalized stakeholder feedback loops
to inform future implementation efforts.
Engage Alameda County on methods to
increase funding sources for capital,
operating, and services dollars.
Continue to pursue advocacy at the State to
leverage local resources and increase funding
for pipeline projects.
Building a Holistic
Approach to Public Safety
Including Emergency
Preparedness
Establish structured, regular joint meetings
between Police, Fire, Department of Violence
Prevention, Finance, and CAO to foster open
communication and address support and
resource allocation. Create a shared action
plan that outlines mutual responsibilities
during emergencies, with clear expectations
on how police can better support fire
operations. Implement cross-training
opportunities to enhance understanding of
each department’s roles and challenges.
City Administrator’s
Office
Continue to Leverage &
Maximize Community
Engagement Outreach &
Data Working Groups
Create a cross-departmental team of
Community Engagement & Digital
Communications Leads to coordinate each
department's engagement efforts, ensuring a
unified voice in digital platforms, public
engagements, and overall messaging.
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
Engage Middle
Management in Decision
Making Processes
Engaging middle management in decision-
making fosters a collaborative, transparent
environment where leaders feel valued and
connected to organizational goals. As the
closest link to frontline staff, middle managers
bring insights into daily operations and
employee morale that inform practical,
effective strategies. Use town halls or
quarterly listening sessions to share context
and establish feedback loops with middle
managers.
City Administrator’s
Office
Strengthen Governance
and Coordination for
Economic and Workforce
Development
Integrate workforce development strategies
into all development plans. Refine the
governance structure for the existing
development meetings to include establishing
cadence, renaming these meetings to
“Development Coordination” meetings,
extending invitations beyond Housing &
Community Development, Planning& Building,
Economic and Workforce Development to
also include the Communications
representatives from CAO, Transportation,
Human Resources, Procurement, and
Finance. Enhance existing shared tracking
system to monitor key project progress.
Consider replicating the Department of
Transportation’s tracking tool to enhance
efficiency, improve service delivery, and
ensure alignment with citywide goals and
strategic priorities.
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
3. Enhance Communication and Coordination
Strategic Priority (Action) Actions
(Tasks/Details/Process)
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Lead Department
Strengthen Internal
Citywide Communication
Practices
Evaluate and update policies and practices for
enhancing citywide communications. Based
on findings from this evaluation, implement
needed improvements. These improvements
could include but are not limited to: using the
Intranet as a centralized communication
platform, monthly interdepartmental
newsletters, standardized communication
templates, regular communication training,
quarterly all-hands meetings, internal
feedback channels, department liaisons for
communications, weekly update emails on
key projects and policies, and emergency
communication protocol.
City Administrator’s
Office
Streamline
Communication Channels
between CAO and City
Council
Implement an internal communication
framework that ensures timely updates from
City Council and the City Administrator's
office are shared across all levels of staff. This
can include regular bulletins, a dedicated
internal newsletter, or town hall meetings to
keep staff informed about major initiatives
and goals.
City Administrator’s
Office
Enhancing Decision
Transparency and Staff
Engagement
CAO to identify potential policies and
practices for sharing the impact and purpose
of decisions/decision making. These could
include decision rational reports, regular
decision making updates, developing case
studies that outline specific decisions, post-
implementation reviews, and annual decision-
making process training that includes the
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
review of Evaluation Criteria. Establish a
system for gathering staff input on challenges
and successes in aligning with city priorities.
This will include surveys, feedback sessions,
and open forums to ensure a continuous loop
of communication and improvement.
4. Optimize Workforce Management
Strategic Priority (Action) Actions
(Tasks/Details/Process)
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Lead Department
Strengthening Employee
Performance and HR
Coordination
Department managers will collaborate to
streamline workload management and
training resources, aligned with budget
impacts, to effectively support staff
performance. Evaluate and enhance roles and
responsibilities of Single Points of Contact
(SPOCs) to improve coordination and support
across departments. This approach promotes
shared responsibility and reinforces HR’s
capacity to meet employee needs effectively.
City Administrator’s
Office
Increase Communication
and Resources Related to
Equity Indicators and
Goals
Promote the refreshed Equity Indicators
Report citywide to enhance individual staff
understanding, department-level roles, and
citywide impact. Develop coordinated cross-
departmental mechanism to align
department-level activities/efforts to internal
equity goals.
City Administrator’s
Office
Optimize Intranet for
Enhanced
Communication and
Transparency
Optimize the centralized intranet for improved
information sharing and transparency across
departments. Communications CAO
representatives to establish Department page
templates. Each department manages and
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
updates its page, supported by a citywide
website update in the upcoming fiscal year for
easy access to basic information for staff and
constituents. Implement staff training on
accessing and providing feedback on
employee resources through the intranet.
5. Align Budget with Citywide Priorities
Strategic Priority (Action) Actions
(Tasks/Details/Process)
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Lead Department
Launch Evaluation Criteria
Citywide in Preparation for
Budget Process
Implement a department-level strategy for
using the Strategic Plan-developed evaluation
criteria to review project and service
recommendations, ensuring decisions align
with budget realities while balancing racial
equity in prioritization and resource
allocation.
Finance
Establish Aligned
Priorities for Integration
into Departmental Work
Plans
Establish a priority alignment process among
the Mayor’s Office, City Council, City
Administrator's Office, and key leadership to
set unified priorities that reflect budget
realities. Ensure these priorities are
consistently integrated into departmental
work plans and resource allocations,
providing clear directives and measurable
outputs that enhance accountability and
coherence across city initiatives.
City Administrator’s
Office
Appendix
Attachment 2: Initial Membership
Steering Committee
First Name Last Name Department
Tony Batalla ITD
Sean Maher Communications/CAO
Ashleigh Kanat EWDD
Erin Roseman Finance
Andrea Mariano HRM
Jaime Turbak Library
Appendix
Implementation Team
First
Name Last Name Title Department
Tanisha Tucker Captain Training Division OFD
Michelle NewRingeisen Information Systems Manager II ITD Ali Gaylord
Deputy Director of Housing
Development HCD
Nina Lindsay Associate Director OPL
Sarah Herbelin Assistant To the Director Finance
Rodolfo Duenas Business Analyst III PBD
Gaspar Montoya Administrative Analyst II EWD
Chris Norman Chief of Staff HCD
Justice Bolden Recreation General Supervisor OPRYD
Robin Abad Project Manager III CAO
Keary Brink Park Supervisor II OPW
Carina Lieu City Administrator Analyst CAO
Sofia Navarro Deputy Director EWD
Liam Garland Assistant To the Director OPW
Monica Pelayo-Lock PIO II
Police
Commission
Lakshmi Rajagopalan Planner IV PBD
Barbara DeSalvo Volunteer Program Specialist II OPD
Jasmine Pomar Program Analyst III DOT
Andrea Mariano Human Resource Manager HRM
Casey Johnson Deputy Chief OPD
Jenera Burton Supervising Librarian OPL
Juliet Huang Assistant To the Director DWES
Demond Simmons Deputy Chief Support Services OFD
Denise Aaron ASM OPRYD
Shayna Hirshfield-Gold Program Analyst III CAO
Mailee Wang Deputy Chief of Administration DVP
Tiffany Kirkpatrick Budget Analyst Finance
Megan Wier Assistant Director DOT