The final step in the Menlo PERK planning process, creating strategies to address top ranked drivers of employee engagement, concludes with a series of action workshops April 10–12, 2018. The workshops include departmental teams developing strategies, identifying impacted stakeholders, outlining next steps and defining success measures that will become the organization’s engagement plan. The plan will then be released to all employees for review and comment in May, with implementation beginning in June. 

In November 2017, City Manager Alex D. McIntyre reassigned Cherise Brandell, the retiring Community Services Director to lead Menlo PERK, because of her expertise and experience in organizational development. The project has included widespread sharing of employee survey results, focus groups, small group discussions and the use of input stations in all City departments to begin identifying priority issues to be addressed in an organizational engagement plan. Development of an internal organization mission and values is also a part of the project. Project leaders also plan “spot polls” later in the summer to judge progress on improving the engagement culture of the organization.