The mission of Central Counties is to improve the lives of the people we serve and in order to create a work culture that demonstrates value, for both consumers and staff, all employees are expected to behave professionally and display behaviors that enhance the work and treatment environment. This includes demonstration of the following behaviors in all interactions, including face-to-face, telephone, and written/email.

• High ethical values
• Trustworthiness
• Integrity
• Cooperation
• Personal Accountability
• Cultural sensitivity
• Conflict resolution and problem solving
• Appreciation and recognition
• Respect and dignity

All employees are reviewed on interactional behaviors as part of their scheduled performance evaluation and during any performance coaching with their supervisor.

Expectations for required interactional behaviors:

Ethical values – decisions and behaviors reflect a commitment to Central Counties Services accepted standard of social and professional behaviors; adherence to all local, state, and federal rules and regulations; words and actions are transparent and mission oriented and are not motivated by a personal or hidden agenda; actions reinforce words and intentions.

Trustworthy – consistently and reliably completes all assigned tasks; consistently and reliably applies/follows rules and policies; maintains confidentiality of information entrusted to them; work adheres to all appropriate regulations and requirements; words and actions reflect truth and honesty.

Integrity – applies sound moral judgement to all work behaviors and decisions; is concerned with the principles of right and wrong and how their individual and corporate actions reflect these principles.

Cooperation – works with a spirit of collaboration and unification; willing to help others; displays supportive team skills; seeks to understand; is not single-minded but works for the greater good.

Personal accountability – is accountable for own actions and decisions with regard to all work behaviors and responsibilities to include punctuality and dress code; avoids blaming others; accepts responsibilities for own errors and makes apologies as appropriate; does not engage in negative talk about others, gossip or rumors; discourages gossip, blaming and negativity; demonstrates a positive attitude.

Cultural sensitivity – acknowledges cultural diversity in the workplace; consistently and effectively communicates and interacts with diverse people to include race, religion, gender, age, and ethnicity; no displays of derogatory behaviors; works to prevent assumptions, biases, etc. from negatively influencing work, outcomes and relationships.

Conflict resolution and problem solving – focuses on the problem, behavior, situation – not the person; focuses on how to fix the system/process – not what is wrong; looks for win-win solutions and is willing to compromise so all parties’ outcomes are met as much as possible; expresses a point of view that is objective, issue oriented and free of personal feelings.

Appreciation and recognition – says “thank you” for other’s assistance; recognizes a job well done in a timely manner and relevant to a specific behavior.

Respect and dignity – demonstrates tact and consideration of others through choice of words, tone of voice, eye contact, body language; practices patience and active listening (listens without interruptions or attending to another task, makes eye contact, acknowledges and clarifies);  acknowledges everyone’s self-worth and right to respect; all behaviors display politeness, courtesy and manners; avoids ridiculing and sarcasm.