Jason Grow

My first career was in the construction industry, specializing in the air conditioning and refrigeration sector. In 2021, I pivoted after a long career in that industry. I wanted to do something different for my second career. Now I’ve been in public service for a little over 4 years – I started in April 2021, just after the pandemic.

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I’m an analyst in the California Department of Public Health, where I work to improve processes related to the delivery of services and products. Public health is our main priority. That means we focus on the overall health of populations, not individual health so much. Although of course individual health contributes to the overall health of populations. 

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There was recognition that we were not prepared for a pandemic. 

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Afterwards, there was a focus on making sure that we had adequate public health services. Part of that included an expansion in public health, and my first position was funded by that expansion. Recognizing that we were not prepared, and making sure that if another pandemic comes, we will be ready for it. 

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I work in quality improvement, improving the processes that deliver the products and services to the citizens of California. That includes internal processes such as improving our infrastructure, creating visibility, learning how to track metrics, and setting objectives. There’s also a great focus on being a learning organization and a healing organization, meaning we’re working on becoming more trauma responsive and informed.

We’re undergoing a Lean transformation, which means applying the strategic Lean philosophy based on the Toyota production and management systems. 

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Now we’re applying this to public health. Learning Lean philosophy is the next long-term goal for me. That means taking one step at a time, learning the entire way, pivoting, and adapting when needed. Never losing sight of that big objective. As they say, the river might wind but it’s still going to reach the sea.

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I don’ have to be a doctor, but I can certainly help that doctor be the best doctor they can be.

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My daily North Star is helping everyone have the systems in place so they can work at their highest level. I’m fortunate in that our director places a high importance on developing those systems, and we’ve added more people to work towards this. The department is receptive to the work, they’re willing to change. My role is to help them with processes to be a guide in the improvement process and systems thinking, to help them apply those principles sat the end of the day, they’re able to accomplish their goals. 

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In public health, we want everyone to extend their lifespan, to have quality of life. That mission is noble. 

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Public health is impacted by natural disasters, climate change, vaccinations and novel diseases. We’re facing new challenges these days. A lot of what I do is helping navigate those changes. Putting systems in place that will allow the department to be adaptable and flexible. What we do here in California travels. If there’s a disease, an epidemic here in California, it can leave our borders and have a greater impact. 

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I’m proud of the culmination of small moments. 

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I work with great people, have great coaches, business partners and leadership. We’ve had wonderful consultants that have helped build the department’s capacity. Looking back over the past four years and seeing how much development has happened, is an impactful moment.  I’m proud when I see that light bulb happen, where people recognize that these lean principles and methods work. When they take a step back and see the big picture. And then that alignment comes, and then the progress really starts accelerating. I think that, for me, is a key thing.

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I’m also proud when I see them sharing their progress with others, when I see the spread. When they start sharing this is what we’ve done and it’s working, we can help you replicate what we’re doing. We learned it from them, and we can teach it to you, or you can go to them, and you can learn it from them also. So, I’d say that’s something that’s rewarding.

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My advice for younger generations is: Patience is key. 

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I think people become frustrated when looking for instant results. Progress is made with small steps. It’s a marathon, with a few sprints in it. Sometimes success is not visible daily, sometimes it’s going to be measured in months or years. Any failure is a learning opportunity.

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I have seen the frustration that comes with trying to change the bureaucracy, make a big difference in a short period of time and big changes are similar to steering a battleship. It won’t make a tight turn, those turns have to be planned for, they take time. You see those small wins and look back and see how the small wins added up to something much larger. 

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I often hear it’s hard to get into the state service, and my misconception was that state work and public service work was being chained to a desk and for people who went to college. I went into the trades instead of college. I’ve found the reality has been much different. In my first career, I enjoyed training and developing people, such as training technicians on installation and service and troubleshooting. I also worked in project management. I was able to transfer those skills over to my career in public service. Even though I don’t have academic credentials, my work experience and skills have taken me pretty far. 

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At the end of the day, hopefully I can look back at a career and say I did something good, and I left something behind that will help future generations continue.

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What does public service mean to me? 

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Assisting the greater good.

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