Marin Compass is our new performance management program designed to foster a culture of continuous improvement and learning.  By bringing diverse perspectives to the table, we can tackle tough issues in our community while ensuring we're addressing the things that matter most to our residents.

The foundations of Marin Compass were developed by a group of employees and community members who were charged with recommending a new framework to replace the County’s Managing for Results (MFR) program.

Marin Compass is different from previous performance management efforts because goals are developed by engaging our employees, clients and residents and it will identify data to help inform our operational priorities and progress. Our work starts with a focus on the countywide vision and department missions and we focus on meaningful strategies and measures that are evaluated using data, emphasizing quality over quantity. 

Marin Compass is not a list of tasks for the coming year, but a focus on what the organization is working on to improve.  In addition, its not a one time activity, but a continuous process, measuring progress along the way.

All county wide strategies as well as department missions  will align to at least one of the three county goals:

Regardless of city/county boundaries, the community is interested in assessing the health, safety and sustainability of Marin County.  A list of community indicators will be developed as part of Marin Compass to help tell the story about the quality of life in Marin and guide policy makers to identify trends and develop strategies for improvement.  Since resident input about these indicators is important, we will leverage the recent 2018 Resident Survey data to identify the most important indicators to deliver on.

The County of Marin has a mission, but no vision statement.  A shared vision, which connects employees and work across departments to the community we serve, is necessary to ensure system alignment.  A vision statement focuses on tomorrow and what an organization wants to ultimately become.  Building on the results of the 2018 Resident Survey, the Board of Supervisors will conduct a visioning exercise in 2019.

As County departments define their performance objectives and action plans, they'll also identify meaningful data and measures to help track progress.   Those data sets and measures will be added to Marin Open Data so our residents can explore the work that's being done in our community.  By June 2020, every County department will have data sets added to Marin Open Data.