Tuesday, November 7, 2023

 8:30 to 10:00 am

Stop Being Nice!

Every great leader who changed this world for the better refused to be nice.

Based on the best-selling book, the presentation is all about performance - and human performance cannot excel if we are unhealthy. Far too many of our most important teams—from our families to our work units—are unhealthy and weak. What is to blame? Being nice!

How can this be? Our societies, organizations, leaders, teams, and families have been dupped into believing nice is the best humanity can offer, but it’s not.

Discover what it really means for ourselves and for our teams when we choose to settle for nice. Nice too often brings out the worst humanity has to offer— cowardice, passivity, and the shortsightedness of accepting bad behavior. This is no way to lead. This is no way to build cohesive and high-performing teams.

Join author and acclaimed leadership coach Jim Uhl as he takes a deep dive into what “nice” really means for us as individuals and for our teams. Stop Being Nice is a thought-provoking and insightful conversation that provides a pathway to organizational, team, and family health. Painstakingly researched and laced with historical and contemporary evidence, Uhl opens and closes the case against nice.

This presentation is a call for leaders to stop being nice and start building teams that are cohesive, courageous, and kind.

Stop Being Nice will show you how.

Code Enforcement 101

An introduction for new code enforcement officers.  Using my 23 years of code enforcement knowledge, this course will create a class discussion on how to prepare and conduct site inspections for complaints that are received and observed.  It will start with the initial complaint process, historical history of the property and involved parties, how to approach the property using sound officer safety methods, how to conduct the inspection and the after inspection documentation.  The class will also discuss officer safety tools and provide knowledge related to inspections, hazardous and dangerous environments, and what to know and look for with drug and chemical situations.

Developing the Effective Supervisor

This presentation will cover important issues all new and seasoned supervisors will encounter during their tenure as a supervisor.  Topics to be covered will include:  communication; evaluations; reprimands; effective supervision of difficult employees; discipline; terminations; relevant labor laws. The intent of this presentation is to provide the foundational groundwork for a new—and experienced—supervisor to be effective in their assigned role.  Making the transition from a colleague to supervisor may seem easy but the true work begins when interacting and, possibly, disciplining the employee.  Newly appointed supervisors are oftentimes promoted given their years of experience within the organization.  How does one go from being an equal one week to a supervisor the following week? This transition is oftentimes done without any navigation tools.  There are many tasks a supervisor must adhere to in order to assure their employees are performing their best.  One of the first things that must be done is to be an effective communicator, which sets the framework to how your employees will receive your message and proceed with what is needed.  A lack of communication is oftentimes one of the key failures of a supervisor. As indicated above, other topics that will be covered include evaluations, disciplinary matters, supervising difficult employees and relevant laws that pertain to supervisors.   For the seasoned professional, this course will hone their supervisory knowledge they may already possess.

Addressing Nuisance Independent Living Facilities

In 2018, the San Diego City Attorney’s Office formed the Unsafe Facilities Taskforce (UFTF) to address nuisance Independent Living Facilities (ILFs). ILFs are group homes where individuals live together and pay rent to a business operator. ILFs are not regulated by state laws or via local zoning ordinances. The City Attorney’s Office works closely with building and zoning investigators with the City’s Building and Land Use Enforcement Division to address and prosecute substandard housing violations at these facilities pursuant to H&SC sections 17980 and 17920.3 and to address nuisance conditions including high calls for service to law enforcement and frequent calls for service to the fire department for medical emergencies. The taskforce includes members from state and local agencies, including Adult Protective Services and Community Care Licensing. This collaborative approach successfully eliminated most problem ILFs.  This session will discuss how code enforcement investigators can work in partnership with prosecutors and state and local agencies to address problem ILFS in their jurisdiction.

Hashing out the Litigation

The State of California is a leader in the regulation of commercial cannabis businesses and cultivation within its borders. The City of Sacramento has an interest in ensuring that cannabis is produced in a manner consistent with local and state regulations in order to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its residents. The Sacramento City Code allows for and regulates legal cannabis businesses, as well as legal residential cannabis cultivation. As the legal cannabis industry has developed, and we are no longer in the initial stages of regulation, the City has evolved its cannabis code enforcement practices to respond to litigation against both Sacramento as well as other jurisdictions within California. This course describes the history of Sacramento's enforcement of illegal cannabis businesses and cultivations, the specific legal challenges it has faced to various enforcement aspects, and the ways in which the City has adapted its Code Enforcement strategies and regulations based on those challenges to promote compliance, equity, and fairness in its cannabis program. 

Bombing Prevention Awareness

The Bombing Prevention Awareness course provides an overview of IEDs and explosive effects, homemade explosives, an introduction to the terrorist attack cycle, and response to suspicious behaviors and items. This basic awareness is used to enhance bombing prevention measures. This class is great for all field personnel doing inspections as well as support staff. This class is through the Office of Bombing Prevention.

Suspicious Structures- Sex and Labor Trafficking

A case study analysis of suspicious structures used in stash/drop houses, residential brothels, commercial brothels, businesses and commercial storage units. 

Administrative and Criminal Enforcement

From warning notices, to administrative citations, to administrative hearings, to cost recovery, most of the day-to-day work that code enforcement offers perform is done administratively.  This is a vital course for all code enforcement officers that are new to the profession, or need a refresher on the core of their administrative authority to assist in managing young code officers.

This Course will cover the fundamentals of administrative enforcement, including constitutional limitations, State statutes, and local municipal codes.  Part and parcel with code enforcement is defending your enforcement efforts when they are appealed as well.  Administrative matters can and often are—especially in contested matters—appealed to the Superior Court.  This course will also cover administrative hearings, from understanding the purpose of hearings, to the role of the hearing officer, to the role of city presenters, to preparing and presenting your case, all mindful of the laws bearing on the matter and practical outcomes.

Often overlooked and underutilized, criminal code enforcement is a valuable weapon in the code enforcement officer’s arsenal.  While not appropriate for ever case, criminal enforcement is a powerful tool in the right circumstances.  Criminal cases proceed much quicker than civil cases, and creative plea bargains can be used to craft tailored outcomes for unique cases.

Recent laws have changed how criminal code enforcement is conducted, so it is important for officers that are both new and experienced with the remedy to get an update on the use of criminal enforcement.  This course will cover how to: identify a good criminal enforcement case; prepare cases for prosecution; initiate the criminal action; prosecute the case once in court; and the types of dispositions that can be used to cure violations and prevent recidivism.

Street Vending and ADUs/JADU Regulation

This seminar will provide a brief overview into the regulation of “Sidewalk Vendors” at both the State and Local levels.  Topics will include the goals and scope of State regulations (SB 946), as well as local enforcement authority.  Additionally, we will look at the modification of the California Retail Food Code as a result of SB 972 (signed into law in September 2022) - and its impact upon Sidewalk Vending.  We will also discuss enforcement and penalties as they relate to Sidewalk Vendors, as well as removal of vending carts, merchandise, and food from sidewalks.

This seminar will provide a brief introduction/refresher to State and Local regulation of Accessory Dwelling Units and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units. We will discuss the goals and scope of the State’s regulations, as well as their impacts upon the City’s ability to regulate ADUs and JADUs. We will also discuss enforcement of ADU/JADU regulations, as well as some practical tips for effective enforcement.