The CalWORKs Strategic Plan
In December 2022, California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) leadership at the State level identified an opportunity to develop a forward-looking strategy that would strengthen shared direction across a large, multi-bureau branch. Staff across the branch demonstrated deep commitment to disrupting poverty and improving participant outcomes, with meaningful work occurring across a range of focus areas. Division leadership saw value in aligning these efforts through a cohesive framework and shared direction. CalWORKs partnered with Anavo Solutions to create a strategic plan that was written with staff, embedding equity, participant voice, and collective ownership at every stage.
Project Information
Client: California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs)
Location: California, US
Project Duration: 18 months (2022–2024, 2026)
Focus Areas:
Strategic Planning
Leadership Development
Participatory Facilitation
Organizational Alignment
Coaching Culture
Client Type: Government / Public Social Services
Anavo worked with CalWORKs to design and facilitate a participatory, multi-phase planning process that spanned 18 months.
Listening deeply
We began with staff and leadership listening sessions, surveys, and a SWOT analysis to surface needs and opportunities, ensuring voices at every level of the Division shaped the plan’s direction from the outset.Establishing shared leadership
Building on insights from the listening phase, we formed a planning committee with representatives from across all three branch bureaus. This group served as the guiding force for the work, helping shape priorities and co-leading the subsequent planning sessions.Co-creating vision and values
In the first in-person planning session, staff brainstormed and iterated on several versions of new purpose, vision, and values statements. By the second session, through collaborative wordsmithing and dialogue, the group reached a final set of core statements that resonated broadly. As one participant shared, “My voice is heard.”Identifying impact areas
Building on this shared foundation, staff identified and came to consensus on four priority impact areas to guide the strategic plan:Improving access and engagement
Continuous quality improvement and outcomes
Workforce development
Strengthening partnerships
Building the roadmap
In the final planning session, participants developed 15 concrete goals aligned to the four impact areas. Using templates designed by Anavo, staff mapped activities, timelines, and success metrics, creating clear accountability and a structure for tracking progress over the next five years
Igniting Change
When the final CalWORKs Strategic Plan was presented, one Division leader described it as “the most concise, clear, and understandable plan” they had ever seen. Yet the most meaningful impact emerged through the process itself. Staff consistently described feeling heard, valued, and proud of the plan they had co-created. Both the planning committee and the Anavo team experienced the collective joy of building a strategy that authentically reflected the people closest to the work.
The process strengthened cross-county and cross-sector collaboration, bringing together bureaus and teams that had previously operated independently. By embedding equity, participant voice, and a coaching culture, the planning effort laid a strong foundation for sustained collaboration well beyond the formal planning timeline. Reflecting the plan’s role as a living framework, Anavo has continued to support CalWORKs in this journey, facilitating a strategic “refresh” more than a year after its original completion to ensure the strategy remains relevant and responsive.
Fueling Impact
Spotlighting Our Approach
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We aimed to expand CalWORKs’ leadership toolkit to include more reflective, strengths-oriented coaching conversations. This included modeling inquiry-based leadership, supporting managers to facilitate dialogue across teams, and reinforcing consistent practices for feedback, learning, and accountability.
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We tested drafts, gathered input, and refined plans with staff and leadership at every stage. These sources of feedback informed how we designed the next step of the planning process.