Sachi A. Hamai

With the support of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Interim Chief Executive Officer Sachi A. Hamai unveiled a number of structural changes to the CEO’s office Thursday in order to support and address several critical needs facing the County throughout 2015.

These critical areas include ongoing challenges and needs faced by the Sheriff’s Department, reforms to the child welfare system, and the potential consolidation of the County’s health-related agencies to improve patient healthcare delivery.

Other major issues before the County in 2015 include a wide array of organizational challenges, from negotiations with our labor partners to implementation of technology initiatives, development of capital projects, and development and training for the County’s workforce, among many other issues.

In order to meet these major immediate challenges, the Interim Chief Executive Officer will implement several organizational efficiencies designed to provide strong leadership and management to these key needs, including:

* Establishing the position of Chief Operating Officer with authority over Countywide administrative functions, including budget development, capital projects, employee relations, risk management, and other central services.

* Establishing an executive position within CEO to assist the Sheriff’s Department with critical needs and resources.

* Establishing an interim Office of Child Protection within the CEO’s office in order to immediately begin the implementation of reforms to the child welfare system, in parallel to the ongoing recruitment of a permanent child protection executive.

* Establishing an executive position within CEO to oversee the potential consolidation of the County’s health-related agencies and functions, in order to streamline administrative functions and improve patient care.

* These four leadership positions will replace the CEO’s existing executive structure and personnel by aligning resources to the highest-level emergent needs set by the Board of Supervisors and facing the County in the year ahead.

* These new leaders will be joined by existing CEO functions, which will be elevated to the Interim CEO’s leadership team, including Public Affairs/Communications, Emergency Management, and Legislative Affairs/Intergovernmental Relations.

“The Board of Supervisors will address critical issues facing our residents and stakeholders in the year ahead. This streamlining of the CEO’s office eliminates bureaucracy at the top and aligns talented leaders to tackle the major issues of the day. It’s going to give the Interim CEO much-needed flexibility and allow for quick response to these key challenges. The Board supports this leadership transition,” said Mayor Michael D. Antonovich, Chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

“These organizational changes to the Chief Executive Office will help further the goals and priorities I have established for the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. The CEO’s changes will concentrate leadership and resources in the major focus areas we are continuing to work on both internally and in partnership with the Board of Supervisors. I appreciate the focus the CEO is bringing to the pressing needs of our department and I am looking forward to a strong collaboration with the CEO and members of the Board in the coming year,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell.