DEAR FRIENDS OF SOUND,

I couldn’t be more excited to share all the wonderful things happening at SOUND these days. After several years, we’re finally bringing back a semi-formal evening Dinner/Auction Gala. The SOUND of Hope Gala will be held at the Seattle Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) on Saturday, November 23rd, and I truly hope you’ll join us. The night is about so much more than raising essential funds for SOUND’s programs and services, it’s a chance to inspire, meet and connect with our supporters, celebrate the power of community in addressing behavioral health challenges, and have a fun and memorable evening. On another exciting front, I want to share some great news about our workforce. As many of you know, finding and keeping qualified healthcare professionals has been one of the biggest challenges in behavioral health. While the demand still outpaces the supply, I’m proud to say that we’re starting to make real progress here at SOUND, especially when it comes to keeping our amazing team. Here are a few highlights:

• Annualized turnover was 35% this time last year and is now only 12% which is a significant improvement

• We’ve strengthened diversity at Sound, with 45% of our team now representing diverse backgrounds—an increase of 14% over last year.

• So far this year, we’ve hired 128 new staff members, along with 60 interns this last quarter alone – up from 35 in 2023

• We’ve grown from 550 employees in Q1 to 581 employees in Q3

It’s exciting to see these gains, and while we’re still figuring out all the factors driving this trend, I can tell you about some of the strategies we’ve been focused on in 2024:

• Improved caseload management—with more staff on board, workloads are becoming more manageable, which has a huge impact on day-to-day stress

• Better communication and transparency—we’re working hard to keep everyone informed, both about the good and the tough stuff

• Staying connected—we’ve added 30, 60, and 90-day surveys for new hires, along with stay interviews, so we can learn what’s working and what needs improvement

• Improved infrastructure—we’ve been listening to employee feedback and prioritizing the things that matter, like stabilizing our systems to create a better experience for both staff and clients

• Embedding DEJI—we’re holding regular Diversity, Equity, Justice, and Inclusion (DEJI)dialogues to help everyone feel supported and to give people the tools they need for their everyday work

• Investing in culture—we’re working to create the culture we want, starting from day one. For example, either I or another member of Executive Leadership meets with all our new hires during orientation to share our vision for what makes SOUND special

• A fair collective bargaining agreement—we worked hard to create a new agreement that’s fair and aligned with the market, and we gathered lots of input from the bargaining team to make sure it works for everyone

And I couldn’t wrap up without recognizing our internship program. Of the 60 interns we brought on this quarter, 17 came from the University of Washington (UW) and 22 from Seattle University—this speaks directly to the trust their schools of Social Work, Education, and Applied Child & Adolescent Psychology, and others place in SOUND to provide top-tier clinical supervision. It’s not just an honor; it’s a reflection of the strong, enduring partnerships we’ve built with these prestigious programs. Our partnerships with UW and Seattle University are a testament to the trust we've built over decades. These programs continue to send their best and brightest students to us, not just because of our size, but because of the close relationships we’ve nurtured with their faculty and staff. What’s even better is that many of our interns choose to stay. In 2024 alone, we’ve transitioned 21 interns into paid team members.

I’m proud of the workforce progress we’re making together and incredibly grateful for the dedicated, talented team we’re building at SOUND with your help. Thank you for assisting us in our mission; to strengthen our community by delivering excellent health and human services.

Sincerely,

Katrina Egner
SOUND President & CEO