For best management, Virginia Beach Department of Parks and Recreation, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Sara Hensley, accepting. The award is for the new employee staff handbook, in particular the section of the handbook on Organizational Values. This is the first time we’ve seen values stated in a staff handbook. The staff want to recruit new employees who (quote) “embrace our value system” (unquote, as Sara noted). The values include learning, integrity, commitment, openness, diverse thinking, sharing knowledge, and more. There are about 25 values total that they embrace. Having staff with consistent organizational values and what they call Corporate culture is becoming more important than ever. This value statement is an excellent new technique for our field.
