The Casebook Blog

In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems. In parallel with the evolution of technology, policy and practice models continue to change to meet both regulatory requirements and best practices as understood through quantitative and qualitative research. We asked Elisha Gilliam, Director of Practice Integration, Casebook PBC / Senior Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation about the challenges and impact of new technologies. Since the implementation of major IT systems for child welfare and other human services, have practice models changed? Practice models and approaches in child welfare are ever changing. Research, federal policy changes, and societal shifts make it necessary for practice models to shift to meet the needs. These new practice models aim to produce good outcomes for vulnerable children, families, and communities. IT systems have made it possible to gain access to data in order to evaluate what works and what’s not working in the field. What challenges do personnel have with their legacy systems and implementing new practice elements within them? When I speak to both agency leaders and frontline staff, they often complain about how cumbersome it is to input data into their legacy systems. They also express concerns about the validity of the data they can retrieve. The current IT systems don’t allow for easy changes as policies change. Often to accommodate shifts in a policy, they tend to build workarounds to capture data until changes in their system can be made. These workarounds can be a big challenge in our county-administered systems since they have must send those requests up to the state level IT department to make adjustments. By the time that change is made, the local jurisdiction may have moved on to a new practice change. When agencies must accommodate policy changes with rigid legacy systems, what operational impacts can occur? When IT systems can’t be easily adjusted to support practice changes, it takes a toll on staff and the financial resources of the agency. They often have had to purchase additional software products to create what’s needed to capture data, which also requires staff to use multiple products. One of the most significant sacrifices for child welfare front line workers is time away from working with the families and children who need their support, because the worker spends substantial time completing administrative duties on often inflexible systems.

As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors. As nonprofit organizations grow, it's inevitable that efficiency will plateau along your journey to help others. There are several ways you can increase the efficiency of your case managers. As an added benefit, these five suggestions can also help reduce turnover, a constant concern for human services leaders. Here are some of the fundamental suggestions that can help organizations that help others overcome decreased efficiency. Provide regular training and support: Regular training and support can help case managers stay up-to-date on best practices and new developments in the field, and can also provide them with the tools and resources they need to be more effective in their roles. Streamline processes: Identify and streamline any redundant or unnecessary processes, so that case managers can focus their time and energy on the most important tasks. Start by mapping out your processes internally or by hiring a short-term consultant from a services like Upwork. Encourage collaboration and teamwork: Case managers can be more efficient when they work together and share information and resources. Encourage your case managers to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. Regularly review and assess performance: Regular performance reviews can help you identify areas where case managers can improve their efficiency and effectiveness, and can also help you provide them with the support and resources they need to succeed. Invest in technology: Human services software with case management functionality can help Case Managers manage their workload more efficiently, by automating routine tasks and providing easy access to client information. These 5 suggestions can help set your human services organization up for long-term success and growth so you can continue to make an impact. While these aren't groundbreaking suggestions, they are essential to improved efficiency without sacrificing the experience of your clients. If you'd like to learn more about how to improve your team's efficiency, talk with one of our advisors.

So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en So, how do we build trust? You build trust by ensuring that you’re following through on your commitments and promises to funders. This is partly why the engagement phase is so important, each follow-up, touch point engagement moment underline commitments and builds trust. As you’re moving through the initial cultivation process or renewal phase, funders will often be interested in your current accomplishments and what you intend to do if awarded funding. This is where deliverables come in as central to communicating and building to trust with donors. Simply put, deliverables are goods or services produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered. These goals need to be concrete but they almost must be within the organizations field of interest and realistic to their giving patterns. Field of Interest is what it sounds like! —the scopes of work funders are interested in funding, usually defined in categories like Health Care, Technology Innovation, Youth, Families, etc. Sometimes these fields of interest have sub-categories and fancy titles such as Equity in Hospitals or Future of Work(ers). However, an institution’s giving pattern shows how large, frequent, and the scale of the investment funders make within those sections. A funder can distribute funds across multiple fields of interest, but how deeply (such as 85% of their giving going towards Healthy Children & Family v. Research) and how much (1M average grants v. 10K) is the structure of their giving pattern. Keep this in mind as you think about your engagement and trust-building with funder—the field of interest and potential giving request should all be aligned with the scope of work you’re proposing. Best practices teach us that deliverables need to follow a specific format —SMARTIE—to articulate that they are equitable, tangible, and actionable actions. SMARTIE goals often resonate best with program officers as you work to convey your organization’s trustworthiness. When creating outcomes for your work, use the below prompts to determine if the deliverable is a SMARTIE goal? Strategic - Is the deliverable consistent with our priorities? Measurable - Can you quantitatively or qualitatively measure it? Ambitious - Does the deliverable meaningfully progress our work? Realistic - Can the deliverable be achieved with a set amount of resources and time? Time-bound - Is it tied to a specific date/time? Inclusive - Does the deliverable afford power to those who are marginalized? Equitable - Does the deliverable address systemic injustice? Of special note, it is easier to write a grant proposal when you have deliverables to frame it around. Having clear deliverables ahead of moving into the cultivation phase also makes it easier to answer funders’ questions during meetings. Deliverables are a roadmap for not just the funder but also for you. When executive leadership, development teams and program staff are co-developing deliverables it helps improve collaboration and productivity. Key to the success of grant programs and deliverables development is maintaining a solid database. Because you’re reading this, your organization is likely at a stage where it has (or desires to have) multiple on-going grants and cultivation opportunities. Customer relationship management (CRM) tools are also key to keeping track of all the touch points needed to stay the course on the pathway to funding success. CRMs are cloud-based platforms that support data management. Without an effective platform, it can be difficult to remember which deliverables are for which projects -- as well as when they are due. Effectively tracking en

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best? In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the great resignation, businesses across many industries have experienced an uptick in employee turnover. This trend has been especially prominent in the nonprofit sector, where limited budgets and resources often make it difficult for organizations to retain their top talent. As it has for every kind of enterprise, software for human services organizations has developed prodigiously in a few short years. Volunteers and workers who confront disease and deprivation on a daily basis, however, are still ill-equipped to defeat these enemies which drive their efforts and guide their missions. As you consider the range of options available to suit your organization's purposes, there are some fundamental questions that should be answered. Features can vary dramatically, offering divergent functionalities and many degrees of user-friendliness. Read on for a better sense of the software choices available to support your organization. 4 Key Advantages of Software for Human Services Organizations The technologies in common use by human services organizations have consistently been decades behind those in other fields. Widespread adoption of software applications for essential processes has been a long time coming, putting the most vulnerable people in society at greater and greater risk. Providers increasingly need real-time access to data regarding their clients as well as internal matters, and so software solutions are constantly updated to meet the evolving needs of human services organizations. Besides the gains in efficiency that the right software brings to your organization, other advantages include: Cleaner, more reliable data resulting from fewer manual processes and reduced likelihood of human error Analytics to provide actionable insights on your clients, staff, funding sources, and more Less paper and material infrastructure to maintain, creating less cumbersome and more sustainable processes Improved user experiences for everyone involved — your staff, administration, and your clients The increased visibility into your internal resources made possible by software also leads to fewer interruptions for your staff in the event of shift schedule changes and work absences. However, considerable contrast exists in the available types of software for human services organizations. Before wading into individual software options, your organization will want to come to a decision on a fundamental question: would an on-premise or cloud-based solution serve you best?

What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms. What is the meaning of human services? The question seems simple enough. Though disciplines like social work and counseling have been around since the 19th century, the broader category of human services didn't emerge as its own field of study until the 1960s. You may have a comprehensive, up-to-date definition of the term straight out of the latest edition of the leading textbook on the subject. Beyond what a book could tell you, though — how familiar are you and, more broadly, your organization, with the complete meaning of human services? What specifically does human services entail? What is a human service, and who carries it out? There are whole industries and a large group of professions that are dedicated to the field of human services. The term "quality of life" is often heard in connection with this group of professions, but what exactly does that mean? Persistent Human Problems For a hint about what the meaning of human services is, you could look at the issues that these professions exist to address: Poverty Drug abuse/addiction Disease and disability Mental illness Discrimination Accidents and disasters With a list such as this, you can begin to understand the depth and breadth of the problems that face human services professionals on an exhaustively persistent basis. Insight into the lives of people in these professions can shed some light on the meaning of human services. The best way to gain that insight, naturally, is to get it from the source. Making Human Connections Tremendous opportunities exist for mutually beneficial interpersonal connections when human services are delivered face-to-face. There is no substitute for direct contact with others. Human beings need to be seen, heard, listened to, and included as part of a larger unit to be truly free of need. That contact fosters relationships which, when taken together, form the foundation of whole communities and so on throughout the entire human sphere. The meaning of human services rests in these human connections, which form the definition of the world at large. Whether you are guiding patients through physical therapy or analyzing data to refine public health policy, the ultimate goal that human services professionals are out to achieve is the betterment of the lives of their fellow human beings. Professionals in Many Forms So, what makes a human services professional what they are? What kinds of roles do they fulfill within the spectrum of human services? Ranging from drug abuse counselors and mental health aides to social service technicians and child advocates, the common thread among them all is the overall purpose of changing people's lives for the better. A thorough list of professions would be exhausting to read, but the general fields that comprise the bulk of human services include: Social work Psychology Therapy Counseling Sociology Correctional treatment Emergency management The skill sets that these areas of employment call for run the gamut, as the intensity of what a crisis counselor faces every day differs dramatically from what a policy analyst must regularly endure. However, certain common qualities may be found even amongst the professionals of the many disparate areas of experience within human services. These include: Active listening skills Attention to detail Cultural sensitivity Interpersonal skills Empathy and compassion You might say that the qualities shared by the workers in the field help to further identify the meaning of human services. These professionals are careful, sensitive, and compassionate doers who strive to prevent or fix problems, heal the wounds of the injured, and empower people to enjoy rich, rewarding lives. Just like the various kinds of human services, the professionals who provide them come in many forms.

Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less.. Searching for a new human services platform can turn up a host of options, leading to confusion or even analysis paralysis. Should you pick a familiar name-brand platform and spend the time (and consulting fees) conforming it to your specific needs? Or are there more appropriate choices for your organization that can help you save those resources for your mission-critical projects? To find the human services software solution with the best time to value, your search should begin with purpose Select a Purpose-Built Software Solution If efficiency is your goal, you’ll find that the best human services software solution is designed expressly for human services. Adapting a customer relationship management (CRM) solution like Salesforce for human services may seem expedient, but it’s far from ideal. CRMs provide more than what’s needed in the human services space, resulting in a distracting experience. Plus, configuring them for the unique needs of human services professionals can be time-consuming, negatively impacting their time to value. That’s why choosing a platform that’s purpose-built for human services is the best course of action. Cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) options are few, but they offer the most value given the accessibility, affordability, and security they offer. The first and only pure SaaS platform for the human services industry is Casebook. With Casebook, you have the advantage of a data model and interfaces that are crafted specifically for this field, making it ideally suited for the wide range of human services. The organizations that benefit the most from using Casebook are leaders in the fields of: Child welfare & foster care Social work Case management Community services Victim services & advocacy Homeless services By choosing an intuitive, accessible SaaS platform like Casebook as your human services software, you can maximize your operational efficiency while improving your client experience. Make Configuration Quick and Painless As you consider new solutions for your organization, it’s important to note the difference between configurable and customizable software. To customize a software platform, the vendor has to make changes to it on behalf of the user. Besides the monetary costs this method often incurs, its lengthy customization process can significantly impair your operational efficiency. That’s why opting for a configurable software package is advisable if you’re serious about saving your valuable resources and maximizing your time to value. Configurable platforms are typically purpose-built for the audience they serve and give you, the end user, more control so you can avoid expensive consulting services not included in standard purchase or setup costs. Configurability empowers you to adjust prebuilt capabilities in the way that’s best for your organization, providing lots of freedom and flexibility when it comes to shaping the platform to fit your needs. Since Casebook is built for human services in particular, the platform has about 80 percent of what your organization would need preloaded, giving you an intuitive user experience (UX) that streamlines the configuration process. The four areas where Casebook offers the greatest opportunity for configuration are: Dynamic data Workflows Forms Reporting Regardless of the type of services you provide, the Casebook platform comes with just enough out of the box to allow for precise tailoring to your unique requirements while still promising a breezy setup period that can go by in less than a day. How quickly you configure and implement Casebook depends on your organization’s readiness for digitization and any data migration needs. For most organizations, implementation takes about 30 days or less..

Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today. Of all the software platforms you can use for human services, one stands out as an ideal solution for organizations that fill this pressing need: Casebook. Now available in most of Canada, Casebook is the first and only pure software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform for human services. Case managers, social workers, and other workers who are on the go in the Great White North can now manage their caseloads, service referrals, and client relationships with ease from any device, anywhere. Software Built Precisely for Human Service The refreshing news has been met with excitement and hope among communities from St. John’s to the Yukon. Created by our team at Casebook PBC, the configurable software is designed for nonprofits, private and public agencies, and other bodies like the First Nations that work to serve the most vulnerable among us during times of need. Casebook is not like the other software that’s often deployed for this purpose. Its unique data model and interfaces are crafted specifically for the wide field of human services, and in particular: Child welfare and foster care Social services Case management Community services Victim services and advocacy Homeless services The effects of placing an intuitive and accessible software in the hands of dedicated professionals have been profound. Our secure, multi-tenant cloud-based SaaS solution supports critical operations like call-center services and domestic violence programs, promoting closer collaboration and driving operational efficiencies within organizations of all sizes. The resulting boost in productivity has enabled these professionals to better carry out their organizations’ missions. Energizing Human Services in Canada Casebook provides a single data source for users, streamlining communications and workflows especially for organizations with workers in the field. The industry-leading platform is accessible from any mobile device, providing ongoing updates to the security controls needed for safe and easy compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). It also offers valuable analytics and user-friendly reporting features that help these organizations find greater success with their fundraising efforts. Included with Casebook is a suite of handy tools to equip human services organizations for success, such as: Online courses for educating users about platform functions An extensive knowledge base to access information quickly Instructional videos that are recorded or live for user convenience Friendly technical support for those who need ongoing assistance Regular training sessions to build and maintain expertise among users Casebook PBC’s ongoing efforts afford us direct access to the latest research and thought leadership regarding best practices, policy, and changes in human services and child welfare. As our company continues to evolve, we are proud of attracting and retaining top talent across highly specialized disciplines, all of whom uphold our values and mission to provide person-centric and purpose-built software. With the expansion of our platform’s availability into Canada and beyond, we look forward to being of even greater value to the committed helpers who work on and off the front lines of human services everywhere. To learn more about Casebook and how it’s making a difference in Canada and the rest of the world, reach out to our team today.

This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best. This causes recruiters to source the community for prospects, heartfelt PSAs to be playing on media outlets, and foster parent certification personnel to train and approve foster parents with haste. That’s not to say that they are negligent in any of those actions, but having spent nearly 13 years in that very field, it makes me extremely nervous when looking at the process from the outside. Even when I was the Assistant Director for a fairly large foster parent and adoption program, certifying a new parent was perhaps one of the more perilous decisions what we would make on any given day. Foster Parents Certification is Rarely an Obvious Decision As long as I worked with youth and parents, I wanted to think that I’ve reached sort of the Farmers Insurance level of intelligence. You know the commercials with the tagline, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” In 13 years working these youth and families, I had indeed seen a thing or two. However, that rarely manifested itself in any kind of predictive ability as to how a particular foster parent was going to turn out. The variables were just too many and human nature rarely followed a predictable course. Foster parents who seem to check all of the boxes in what you would think would make an ideal foster parent often fail in spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, foster parents who are not always the most compliant or textbook can produce some of the most loving homes and in fact, wind up adopting with great success some of the most difficult youth. Agency compliance, it would seem, is not synonymous with a loving and therapeutic milieu. Who knew? We worked with excellent parents who seemed very focused on the per diems and yet, took excellent care of the youth in their homes. Meanwhile, rich homes in the suburbs thought they could buy affection and behavior compliance only to find out this was a path riddled with folly. However, foster parent performance is now what kept me up at night. Certifying a home was a frightful experience for me because I knew that every child welfare agency from coast to coast has certified a home at some point that led to terrible abuse. Any private provider or state agency can deny this all they want, but those in the industry know this to be true. The Right Tools Are Needed to Make the Right Decision Now, I was blessed to work within an agency that truly attempted to equip us with the best tools available and was very dedicated to outcomes and safety. I shudder to think of smaller agencies with smaller budgets trying to make these consequential decisions with less tools or less time. Yet, all of us were faced with the need to place youth. An urgent need as quite often, the youth is sitting in your office and you have no idea where he is going to go tonight. That’s ultimately pressure that drives the certification process. You need homes and you need them yesterday. Personally, I hope that advancements in artificial intelligence will come about that will be more accurate and predictive of foster parent success than us humans. Let the robots feel the ethical and moral responsibility for a change. In the meantime, the child welfare industry would do well to examine what tools are currently available that will buy frontline workers, foster parent recruiters/trainers and administrators more time to make the right decision. Tools that will aid the recruitment and certification process so that foster parents can be recruited in large enough numbers to ensure that the first placement is the right placement. The First Placement Can Be the Right Placement I know that child mental health and welfare services are complex, but if I could swing an ax and chop down just one tree it would be the one that makes that above statement true. Namely, that the first placement is the right placement. So much would be alleviated if we could make that a reality as an industry. It doesn’t get a lot of press, until it goes terribly wrong that is, but certifying a foster parent is one of the most consequential decisions in child welfare. That we can all labor to get that decision right with the best tools in the industry at our disposal would truly transform the face of child welfare. I didn’t always get it right and I’m guessing that neither did you. Yet, we both know the kids we serve deserved our very best. So a final salute to those out there on the frontlines making these decisions right now and I sincerely hope you are equipped with all the tools and time it takes to do your very best.

It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down. It was a scene that I would see play out time and time again during my 13-year career, serving some of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. A child comes into care needing foster care, and the youth and their caseworker shows up with a couple of black garbage bags full of everything the child owned in the world. Now, I’m not really trying to play on your sympathy by asking you to imagine what it must feel like for a child to be removed from their family and watch their clothes and toys bagged up like trash. That such a scene requires empathy is self-evident, but not the point of this article. I Tried the Obvious Only To Fail Lest you think I was incompetent, let me reassure you that I tried all of the obvious answers. As a private provider, I didn’t have access to the youth prior to their arrival in state custody and their placement with our agency. So in that regard, there was nothing I could do to stop children from showing up with all their belongings in a garbage bag. Starting where I could, we put out the call for donated luggage, and the public readily supplied us with enough baggage to get the job done. My next step was to issue the directive that any child who showed up in our building with garbage bags as luggage was to be issued proper luggage. As a seasoned manager, I knew how to deliver the message with the appropriate intensity, and as a Marine veteran, my directions were rarely ignored. Moreover, I knew this was taking place as I would see staff helping the youth with luggage, and so it was a win in my mind. I’d solved the problem, or so I thought. I Kept Seeing Garbage Bags Over and Over The first time I knew that I had a bigger problem on my hands was when I started to notice youth, who I personally knew received luggage, sitting in our lobby with their belongings in black garbage bags. I question the staff and the foster parents, and no one seems to know what happened to the luggage. You see, it is common for youths placed into foster care to occasionally have to replace from one home to the next. Somewhere between them leaving our office for their first home and returning to the office to go to another new home, the plastic garbage bag came back to life. In some cases, it was just that their personal belongings grew in number, and thus, they had a nice piece of luggage next to two or three garbage bags full of belongings. So we would give them some more luggage, and lo and behold, the garbage bags kept coming back. A National Problem with No Easy Solution In doing some basic research, I realized that I was not alone with regards to this problem. It’s a nationwide issue in the foster care system, and there are actually countless nonprofits that exist solely for the purpose of providing foster kids with luggage. There was actually no shortage of luggage in the foster care system, and rather, a lack of a functional answer seemed to elude us all. Towards the end of my time in foster care, I had finally settled on the belief both the adults and youth involved were just overwhelmed. As much as I tried to impute the importance of a piece of luggage on foster parents and staff, the truth of the matter was that when a child is disrupting a home, the luggage isn’t your primary concern. Sadly, and perhaps most tragic, no matter how much we try to impress upon the youth that they have value, as does their belongings, they don’t believe it enough. The youths themselves readily load up their belongings in a garbage bag as they feel a garbage bag is indeed where their property belongs. I don’t accept defeat easily, but Hefty and Glad would be thrilled to know their garbage bags were sturdy enough to take me down.