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-Editorial
Looking at a better way to serve the ratepayers of Imperial County, the IID Board of Directors discussed the goals and objectives of a strategic plan at the Feb. 16 meeting.
Dedicated to establishing a roadmap that has clear, ambitious goals and expectations of improving service, the Imperial Irrigation District Board of Directors has launched a strategic planning process that seeks participation from the people the district represents.
“We want to hear the ideas and the opinions of those we serve,” said IID Board President James C. Hanks. “We want to know what matters most to you.”
The item was part of the information items of Tuesday’s meeting.
With the help of the public, the district intends to create a 2021 Annual Strategic Plan that sets goals for the district and works with plans to reach those goals.
Creating the annual plan is a process to set a strategic direction at the beginning of the year for the full year’s work with the participation of the full board and community, added Vice President JB Hamby.
“Once established, this will be an instruction manual for the rest of the year, helping us focus on what’s important for the people we represent,” Director Hamby said.
Director Hamby mentioned in his presentation that previous strategic goal plans were not user-friendly, too complex, or needed more detail. As part of the plan, the board will agree on topics and issues they want to work on and create a written plan. Staff will then operationalize the plan that will be included in the agenda that will meet the goals of the strategic plan.
The goals discussed on Feb. 16 were governance, executive, and legal. The idea of having the strategic plan was introduced by Director Hamby and the board, along with staff, agreed to implement this plan that will take months to discuss and implement. The goal is to create a roadmap where the board can accomplish more things in an effective way.
Hamby said the IID received 40 pages of participation from the public which is a testament to the interest of the people, he said.
Board President Hanks recommenced that the executive looks at preparing staff for replacement in the event something happens and recommended reorganizing legal and streamline it so it can be more effective.
The public is asked to provide written input by February 28. To do so, please visit www.iid.com/annualplan and click on the red “Click to Participate” button. Participants will be taken to a user-friendly online public comment form.
In addition to the online option, the IID Board of Directors is expected to discuss, in public session, 1-3 topics per board meeting as agenda items during the first quarter of 2021, inviting active public participation and verbal and written input in the strategic planning process during these discussions.
Directors will compile board and community input and draft a plan to be presented for potential action that will be followed by work plans to operationalize the 2021 Annual Strategic Plan. As the year progresses, the plan will be reviewed and evaluated for effectiveness.
