At DSHS, our House of Health and Human Services priorities are the driving force behind our agency’s Strategic Plan goals. Each administration contributes to shaping our DSHS Strategic Plan.
A World of Inclusive Work
This page showcases Division of Vocational Rehabilitation goals, along with action plans and success measures. From connecting students with disabilities to work possibilities to reducing poverty through living wage careers for adults with disabilities, the world of inclusive work in Washington state is bright.
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DVR Strategic Goals
In the strategic planning process, we identify three key components.
- The Strategic Goals: Sets the goal that we are striving to achieve.
- The Action Plan: Our action strategies to get there.
- The Success Measure: The outcome to achieve a goal.
Read in detail below about all of the components of DVR's strategic goals. DVR's Strategic Plan Metrics, coming soon.
Strategic plan index: Jump to a section of the plan by clicking the Strategic Goal (SG)
- Highly Engaged, Diverse and Skilled Team.
- Safe, Efficient, and Secure Operations.
- Customer Service Excellence.
- Successful Customer Outcomes.
- Strong Business, Partner, and Community Relationships.
Strategic Goal #1: Highly Engaged, Diverse and Skilled Team.
The Action Plan:
- Implement role-specific and topic-specific training as needed, which utilizes Equity, Diversity, Access and Inclusion principles.
- Utilize an electronic Enterprise Performance Management System to link strategies to operational plans, integrate data from various information systems, bring visibility to performance and identify problem-solving opportunities, to promote performance excellence and create a culture of continuous improvement.
- Hire and retain staff to effectively implement and maintain programs and services, with a focus on achieving competitive wages and a manageable workload.
Success Measure:
1.1: Increase the percentage of people with disabilities in DVR’s workforce from 19.7% to at least 22% by June 2026.
1.2: Increase the percentage of people in DVR's workforce who identify as Black/African American from 6.4% to 10% by June 2026.
1.3: Increase the percentage of people in DVR’s workforce who identify as Hispanic/Latinx from 11.6% to 12% by June 2026.
1.4: Increase the percentage of people in DVR’s workforce who identify as American Indian/Alaska Native from 1.7% to 5% by June 2026.
1.5: Increase staff completion of EDAI Cultural Competency training within six months of hire from 93.5% to 95% by June 2025 and annually thereafter.
1.6: Increase positive responses to Employee Engagement Survey question, "My agency demonstrates a commitment to pro-equity and anti-racism (through policies, practices, and actions)", from 73% to 75% by June 2026.
1.7: Increase positive responses to the three Employee Engagement Survey questions selected as the Department focus by June 2026.
Strategic Goal #2: Safe, Efficient, and Secure Operations.
The Action Plan:
- Establish a data-based reporting framework that supports routine review of program progress and service quality and informs decisions and improvements at all levels.
- Adopt technology solutions that streamline the vocational rehabilitation service model and enhance customer service experience and outcomes.
- Maintain a safe and accessible work environment to ensure staff and visitors remain safe and secure and business operations are maintained and can recover quickly.
Success Measure:
2.1: Hold monthly business reviews with each Action Plan reviewed on a quarterly basis through June 2025 and ongoing.
2.2: 95% of staff complete annual training on emergency preparedness plans by June 2025 and annually thereafter.
Strategic Goal #3: Customer Service Excellence
The Action Plan:
- Provide continuity of case management and frequent engagement to ensure customers experience timely, continuous progress throughout the vocational rehabilitation process.
- Outreach to unserved and underserved populations of individuals with disabilities and offer multiple service delivery options to ensure just and equitable access to DVR services.
- Complete regular staff training to promote understanding of government-to-government relations and cultural humility when working with American Indian/Alaska Native customers and partners.
Success Measure:
3.1: Increase overall customer satisfaction rate from 68% to 75% by June 2026.
3.2: Increase rate of customer satisfaction with service timeliness from 58% to 62% by June 2026.
3.3: Increase timely completion of individual plans for employment from 95% to 96% by June 2026.
3.4: Increase referrals of customers who identify as American Indian/Alaska Native to Tribal Vocational Rehabilitation programs to 75% by June 2026.
3.5: 95% of staff complete 7.01 government-to-government training within six months of hire and every three years thereafter.
3.6: Implement problem solving and performance improvement practices to address results of qualitative case review by June 2025.
Strategic Goal #4: Successful Customer Outcomes.
The Action Plan:
- Deliver best practice, customer-centered assessments and career and training services to support DVR customer employment and benefits that meet basic needs.
- Ensure successful transitions into the workforce for students with disabilities by implementing best practice, customer-centered transition and pre-employment transition services programs in collaboration with schools, tribal education agencies, other transition partners, students and families.
Success Measure:
4.1: Increase the percentage of DVR participants who achieve successful employment outcomes from 53% to 60% by June 2026.
4.2: Attain a 70% rate of entering post-secondary education or employment within one year of exiting secondary education for students with disabilities who are DVR customers by June 2026.
4.3: Increase the percentage of DVR participants who exit DVR services with incomes at or above 200% of federal poverty level to 25% by June 2026.
Strategic Goal #5: Strong Business, Partner and Community Relationships.
The Action Plan:
- Collaborate with partners to increase job opportunities, job supports and access to other workforce services for people with disabilities.
- Formalize and implement targeted business engagement efforts.
Success Measure:
5.1: Increase the number of Business Engagement services from 972 to 1,070 by June 2026.
5.2: Increase the number of distinct businesses contacted from 426 to 470 businesses by June 2026.
5.3: Establish Key Performance Indicators for Community Rehabilitation Programs by June 2026.
5.4: DVR and Tribal Vocational Rehabilitation partners mutually identify objectives and measures addressed in the Statewide Cooperative Agreement to improve the delivery of and access to vocational rehabilitation services for American Indian/Alaska Native customers with disabilities by June 2026.