Leadership Evolution at Lake County Probation
Historically structured around a clear chain of command hierarchy, California’s Lake County Probation Department operates within defined layers of authority essential in law enforcement environments. But in 2023, the Department was preparing for a significant transition, with long-tenured leaders approaching retirement and a new generation of positional leaders stepping forward. Leadership saw an opportunity to strengthen leadership practices in the Department: What if the structure of the Department could coexist within a workplace culture that was more open, reflective, and growth-oriented? To cultivate a culture capable of sustaining the Department through change, Lake County Probation partnered with Anavo Solutions.
Project Information
Client: Lake County Probation Department
Location: Lake County, California, United States
Project Duration: 2023–2024
Focus Areas:
Leadership Development
Dare to Lead™ Workshops
Executive Coaching
Change Leadership
Organizational Culture
Client Type: Government / Law Enforcement
From 2023–2024, Anavo supported a senior executive leadership team of seven to ten leaders, spanning four layers of authority. The engagement combined workshops, group reflection, and individual coaching to support leadership through a period of organizational transition.
Stage One: Establishing a Shared Leadership Framework
Foundation in Dare to Lead™
In an initial three-hour virtual workshop grounded in Dr. Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead™ research, Department leaders explored what it takes to lead with courage and engage with vulnerability as a leadership strength. They examined how self-protective behaviors can inhibit honest dialogue and practiced tools for navigating difficult conversations and fostering inclusion.
Customized workshop series
The leadership team deepened their learning throughout 2023, engaging in an ongoing leadership development workshop series with Anavo. Three additional sessions expanded on key themes: trust on teams, cultivating psychological safety, and developing high-performing teams. These sessions equipped the leadership team with shared language and actionable practices, strengthening alignment across leadership levels.
Stage Two: Deepening and Sustaining the Shift
On-Ramps for New Leaders
As new leaders joined the Department, Anavo provided onboarding sessions to align them with the established leadership framework. A four-part executive leadership series grounded incoming leaders in foundational principles of daring leadership, psychological safety, values-based decision-making, and team development.Individual Executive Coaching
Anavo directly supported Department leaders through individual coaching sessions that focused on applying tools to real-time challenges in the workplace.
Leading Teams Through Change Workshops
Anavo offered new workshops for the entire leadership team on the topic of Leading Teams Through Change. These sessions helped leaders reframe resistance, explore how their Department’s organizational culture both supported and hindered change, and walk away with tools they could use to guide their teams with clarity.
Igniting Change
This engagement demonstrated that trust-based leadership practices can complement clear leadership structures—strengthening collaboration without compromising responsibility. Leaders reported improved communication across leadership layers and increased confidence navigating difficult conversations. Participants especially valued the practical leadership tools, the openness that developed among peers, and the opportunity for personal growth throughout the learning journey. One leader shared that they “never wanted the program to end.” As new leaders joined the Department, they stepped into a shared leadership framework rather than starting from scratch. Lake County Probation began shaping a culture where authority and accountability coexist with reflection and trust—positioning the Department to lead with intention into its next chapter.
Fueling Impact
Spotlighting Our Approach
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Our approach acknowledged the Department’s foundation in positional power structures while introducing tools that strengthened communication, trust, and adaptability within that context.
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Rather than a one-time intervention, this was continuous programming for a small leadership team. Follow-up “Circle Back” conversations reinforced implementation and allowed behaviors—not just ideas—to shift over time.
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A central emphasis was integrating coaching practices—reflection, self-awareness, personalized attention, and collaborative problem-solving—into daily management. Leaders explored how coaching skills could enhance supervision, strengthen accountability, and empower team members while maintaining clarity of authority.