Narrative: c. 2.

Agency Response:

Based on a wide set of data, including the 2023 CSNA and input from the SRC, agency customers and community partners, the agency is setting out on a major revisioning of the agency’s VR program. We are revamping historical business processes; methods for staff training; systems of communications (internal and external),  and increasing resources to foster business relations and workforce partner services. The core revision areas are categorized as People; Process; Technology; Strategy; and Structure.

Develop, prioritize, and execute on a renewed operational vision for the Washington State Department of Services for the Blind (DSB) Vocational Rehabilitation services to better equip and support people with visual disabilities to gain, retain and advance in meaningful employment.

We are ReVisioning our Vocational Rehabilitation Program to improve service provision, lessen the bureaucracy that our customers and staff face, build relationships with businesses and external partners, and improve our employee skill, morale and environment.

Through the ReVisioning, our leaders and staff will become more skilled at adaptability, accountability and teaming, which in turn will help our participants to become more skilled, marketable, and effective in their career readiness path.

Increased results​

• 10% increase in percentage of participants who exit with employment
  • 2023 benchmark: 31.9%
• Continued diversity and high quality employment outcomes
  • 2023 benchmark: 44% of employment outcomes earned above $25 per hour
• 5% increase in number of referrals​
  • 2023 benchmark: 288 referrals
• Improved VR process metrics: Achieve negotiated VR program performance indicators in this state plan​

More businesses served

• 5% increase number of business engagement services documented
  • 2023 benchmark: Average 30 per month​

Improved employee satisfaction​

• 3% increase positive score on Employee Engagement Survey question: “Overall, I am satisfied with my agency/ institution as a place to work”.
  • 2023 benchmark: 83%​

Increased employee empowerment​

• 5% increase in VR Counselor empowerment, measured through positive score on Employee Engagement Survey questions: “Involved in decision making”, and “Feels safe to take risks, make mistakes”.
  • 2023 benchmark: Decision making 64%; Risks 78%

Foster employee initiative, adaptability, accountability​

• Maintain or improve Customer Satisfaction Survey results that show agency staff are responsive and engage participant in meaningful activities, and are not an obstacle to individual’s employment goal.
  • 2023 benchmark: Averaged 88% for staff respectfulness (87%) and staff accuracy (90%) of DSB staff

The DSB strategic areas of focus for 2024 and 2025 include:

1. Process Change: Radically improve employment outcomes for the communities we serve by significantly ReVisioning and improving our VR processes.
2. Workforce Initiatives: Stand up a new Workforce Initiatives organization within DBS that builds opportunities for our participants to use work-based services to gain employment by executing programs which effectively engage Washington’s Workforce system, youth, workers, and businesses
3. Reorganization: Add leadership, focus, and capacity to key services of DSB, while re-balancing responsibilities across the leadership team and relevant DSB roles. Design and execute an agency-wide training strategy, architecture, and curriculum that enables a culture of quality, effectiveness, and continuous learning. Refine, mature, and formalize DSB’s Quality Assurance capabilities to enable a Culture of Quality and Continuous Improvement within DSB.
4. Communications Overhaul: At the end of the DSB Website Redesign Project we will have a website that is fully accessible, easily navigated by people with disabilities utilizing a variety of devices.  Our constituents will be able to easily find the information they are looking for and the site will be modern and engaging.  The website will be easily updated, and governance will be in place to help us roll out future updates.
5. Deaf Blind Customer Improved Service Provision: Address and coordinate gaps in agency’s service provision, knowledge base and environment to create a sense of belonging and achievement for DSB Deaf Blind customers.

Process Change Strategic Goals 

By redefining how we provide services, we will strive to make a better customer experience and increased achievement of vocational goals. By maximizing responsiveness and individualization by reducing timelines and bolstering counselor judgment, we will reduce the customer’s experience of bureaucratic process. By getting customers more swiftly into planned services, and by providing meaningful, frequent and employment-based interactions once in services, we can provide an atmosphere of support and coaching that keeps the customer focused on their vocational goals.

Strategy 1:

Address timelines for eligibility and plan – shorten the time to start of planned services by addressing processes for intake, eligibility, and assessment for developing plan for vocational goals and services

Strategy 2:

Provide more frequent, meaningful and employment-based interactions with customer. Identify opportunities for shifting administrative tasks to allow more coaching and counseling opportunities. Address plan in shorter segments and revise more frequently. Utilize Business Relations and employment-based activities early and on-going in customer interactions.

Strategy 3:

Utilize mechanisms for gathering voice of the customer to identify other areas for process improvement. Develop processes, tools, and techniques for project management, change management, and process improvement for all areas of the agency.

Workforce Initiatives Strategic Goals 

Workforce Initiatives will integrate workforce engagement and business relations into DSB’s VR program, with early introduction of services and delivery of skill development programs, work-based learning, and business relations activities leading to greater, more informed, competitive, and integrated employment for DSB participants. 

The workforce initiative goals will be achieved through the following strategies: 

STRATEGY 1: Expanded Business Services and Engagement 

Increase the breadth, depth, and frequency of engagement with employers and workforce partners to create greater awareness and adoption of DSB services by:  

• Onboarding business relations specialists that provide business relations and workforce development services to agency participants, partners, and employers.  
• Enhanced internal and external communications and marketing through public relations, training, and community involvement. 
• Serving businesses accessibility and accommodation needs through training, recruitment, and retention services. 

STRATEGY 2: Integrated Vocational Rehabilitation and Business Relations Processes 

Improve service delivery effectiveness through customized planning and integrating business relations activities from service application to acquisition of employment.   

• Develop a Business Relations methodology for DSB staff and employers that is aligned and integrated with Vocational Rehabilitation processes. 
• Enhanced agency policy and procedures that guide the VR program and processes to monitor and evaluate progress. 
• Expand integrated VR team that responds rapidly to employment opportunities and business needs, with scheduled and consistent communication with timely delivery of services. 
• An enhanced VR Process, to include business relations and workforce engagement activities early, starting with pre-employment transition services throughout their participation in the VR program. 

STRATEGY 3: Entrepreneurship for People with Visual Disabilities 

Develop innovative opportunities for people with visual disabilities to gain steady income and self-sufficiency, without the barriers that come with fluctuation of economy and employment.   

• Build partnerships with Washington state agencies, community and technical colleges, and community partners to develop self-employment career pathways, targeting labor market industry sector growth.   
• Establish a training function/service to support delivery of Business Enterprise Program (BEP) curriculum and self-employment training to individuals seeking self-employment opportunity within the BEP and in other industries.  
• Utilize the Business Enterprise Program (BEP) for work-based and entrepreneurial learning for students with disabilities.  

STRATEGY 4: Expanded Knowledge of Labor Market and Career Pathways 

Embolden partnerships with workforce sector and business to broaden employment opportunities and outcomes for DSB participants. 

• Utilize labor market tools and guidance to inform DSB staff and participants about employment occupations, industries, and career pathways. 
• Introduction of skills development programs, to include credentialed programs, pre-apprenticeships, and apprenticeships for DSB participants, including students with disabilities. 
• Build skill training, work-based learning opportunities and pathways with workforce partners for students with disabilities in DSB regional territories across the state.   
• Organized DSB participation and contribution to local workforce councils and boards.  

Reorganization Strategic Goals 

Reorganize leadership and operational structure to expand capacity for maintaining quality assurance, robust and coordinated training of staff, and stronger vocational focus in the work.

Reorg STRATEGY 1: Expand Quality Assurance Capacity

• Add staff positions to create new Quality Assurance program
• Design and develop performance data connecting top-level measures to team and individual measures, metrics, and KPIs.
• Design and develop forecasting models for leadership to identify capacity constraints, throughput, contractor capacity and fiscal limitations to ensure the agency can meet forecasted workload.

Reorg STRATEGY 2: Design and Develop Training Program

• Add staff positions to create new Training program

• Develop process for on-going needs assessment across agency units
• Develop new and ongoing processes for training development/design

• Develop training priorities and establish agency training calendar
  • Emphasize staff training on Deaf Blind awareness; Pro-Equity and Anti-Racism and creating a sense of belonging for the broad intersectionality of DSB customers; and addressing multiple disabilities including mental health.
  • Include training strategies to address attitudinal barriers that agency customers may face, addressing implicit biases and lack of belief in capability of individuals with a disability that might be held by community partners, business partners, family and customer social networks, agency staff, and the agency customer themselves.  

Reorg STRATEGY 3: Design and Develop Workforce Initiatives Program

• Create Assistant Director for Workforce Initiatives position and add staff positions to create Workforce Initiatives program
• See Workforce Initiatives Strategic Goals above

Reorg STRATEGY 4: Address Other Staffing Capacity Gaps

• Address internal accessibility needs by adding Internal Accessibility Coordinator
• Explore needs for expanded Communications, direct service and fiscal capacity

Communications Strategic Goals

Revise agency web presence to improve communication and outreach with customers and among the community. Develop strategies for improving internal communications in order to increase staff clarity on purpose and through change.

Communications Strategy 1: Revise Agency Website

Website redesign will meet these priorities:

• User-centric: Help people accomplish their tasks effectively, efficiently and with satisfaction
• Accessible: Usable by people with disabilities and meet the latest WCAG standards
• Easy to comprehend: Provide usable content, written in plain language, and optimized for reading on the web so people comprehend the information, draw accurate conclusions and can take appropriate next steps
• Easy to navigate: Organized in a way that people can find what they need quickly and easily
• Aesthetically pleasing: Cleanly designed, modern and engaging  
• Responsive: Usable on various screen sizes, smartphones, and mobile platforms
• Easy to maintain: Designed in a content management system that is flexible and easy to use by content contributors and publishers

Communications Strategy 2: Maintain and Improve Agency Communications

• Implement alternate formats for conveying internal agency information
• Maintain and build on collection and utilization of customer voice
• Develop ways to communicate when customer voice has been considered and implemented

Deaf Blind Customer Experience Strategic Goals

Deaf-Blind Customer Experience STRATEGY 1: Create a welcoming environment that meets the needs of a Deaf Blind individual

• Compile easy-to-access Deaf Blind resource lists and tools
• Collaborate with DVR and other agencies to streamline and better coordinate shared service provision processes
• Implement awareness training for DSB staff through community partners with lived experience, such as HKNC and/or DBSC
• Ensure Pre-Employment and Transition services for Deaf Blind students and youth are fully accessible and welcoming

Other Goals

Transportation STRATEGY 1

• Continue to address noted transportation barriers through:
  • Adaptive skills training and developing problem solving strategies with customers in securing alternative transportation options
  • Coordination with community, business and workforce development partners to ensure public transportation options best meet needs of community
  • Coordinate with city to ensure safety of traffic crossings 

Support Innovation and Expansion Activities

The agency will continue to use Innovation and Expansion funds to support all State Rehab Council activities, including funds required to conduct and analyze on-going customer satisfaction survey data, and on-going Comprehensive Statewide Needs Assessment information. The data gathering informs the agency of customer needs and identifies areas for service improvement.

Innovation and Expansion funding will support the acquisition of a food trailer for use in the BEP Training to further support the above Workforce Strategy 3, expansion of entrepreneurship opportunities. The BEP program will purchase a food trailer to allow for a unique and growing food service entrepreneurial pathway for VR participants.  The trailer, owned by the BEP program, will be a mobile training unit for individuals seeking self-employment in the food service industry.  As the customer footprint in Washington state government buildings has significantly reduced after the global pandemic, and because the rise of take-out food options have expanded, the food trailer concept provides contemporary food service solutions to multiple buildings and meal periods throughout the business day, while providing a training space for new recruits into the BEP program.  The food trailer will be managed by BEP staff, including a BEP trainer, and will offer the breadth of curriculum needed for a vendor to own and manage a mobile food trailer business thereafter.  The food trailer will create future opportunities for the BEP and new BEP business owners throughout Washington State.