PREPARED BY: Planning and Strategic Initiatives

DATE: 2026-02-05

SUBJECT: 2026–2030 Strategic Plan Implementation

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

The 2026–2030 Strategic Plan sets the direction for the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit over the next five years. Informed by extensive internal and external engagement, population health data, an environmental scan, and community-based research, the plan reflects staff and partner perspectives on public health needs, organizational strengths and challenges, and opportunities for collaboration. It identifies five strategic priorities that respond to local realities and the evolving role of public health. The Strategic Plan was endorsed by the Board of Health in November 2025, and the organization is now transitioning from planning to implementation.

This report provides an overview of the implementation approach for 2026, including communication and engagement, integration into organizational processes, and how progress will be monitored and reported to the Board.

DISCUSSION

Implementation in 2026 will focus on how the Strategic Plan is applied across the organization. Early efforts will emphasize communication and engagement, followed by integration into planning, priority-setting, and decision-making processes, alongside the phased introduction of measurement and reporting structures.

Communication and engagement activities will include orientation sessions with managers to clarify expectations for integrating the Strategic Plan into team level work and facilitated team-level discussions led by the Planning and Strategic Initiatives department. Core communication tools will be developed, including a one-page overview of the vision, mission, values, strategic priorities, and objectives, supported by intranet content and regular updates through WEChat meetings and team meeting agendas. Mechanisms to gather staff feedback on awareness and understanding of the Strategic Plan will also be established, with the Strategic Planning Advisory Committee continuing to support implementation through regular check-ins and feedback on engagement approaches.

As implementation progresses, the focus will shift to operationalizing the Strategic Plan by embedding it into planning systems and decision-making processes. This will include integration into the Annual Service Plan and intervention work plan development processes, and the annual program priority-setting exercise. Board reports will also reference alignment with the Strategic Plan to strengthen the Board’s line of sight between strategic direction and operational decisions.

Measurement and reporting will be phased in throughout 2026. High level indicators will be developed and aligned with departmental and program-level indicators through the 2027 Annual Service Plan process. The Board will receive regular updates during 2026, with early reports focusing on implementation progress and later reports incorporating Strategic Plan indicators as they are finalized. A year-end implementation summary will be provided to document key accomplishments, challenges, lessons learned.