21st Century Leadership pilot program success

Published on January 31, 2025

Los Alamos County staff have successfully completed the pilot program of a new 21st Century Leadership development class in December 2024, designed to round out a variety of vigorous leadership development opportunities provided to County staff. Participants learn to demonstrate people-centric involvement and develop continuous improvement processes for the organization.

Based upon LEAN framework and principles, participants work to develop a mindset and practice of continually improving processes across functions. Successful programs reduce waste in time and resources, leading to greater efficiencies and consequently significant cost savings.

Each enrolled employee participated in a Kaizen project – a Japanese philosophy that focuses on continuous improvement – with a goal to improve efficiency and effectiveness of County services. Employees are eligible to participate in this program only after completing the LAC Leadership Academy and the Leadership Power Skills programs.

“I want to congratulate all of the graduates for completing the program and commend them for their insightful presentations and recommendations to County leadership,” commented County Manager Anne Laurent.

Graduates of this pilot program include Casey Aumack, Justin Lujan, and Gary Trujillo from the Department of Public Utilities; Teresina Berg, Police Department; Terrance Gray, Karen Henderson, Louise Romero, Sobia Sayeda, and Anthony Strain from Public Works; Angelica Gurule, County Manager’s Office; and Norma Valdez, Fire Department.