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Social worker burnout and turnover have always been a significant problem in human and social services. Turnover in child welfare has ranged from 20-40% annually for the last two decades. But today the stakes are higher than ever. Frontline workers are mentally, emotionally, and physically drained.

Editor’s note: We originally published this post in March 2020—just days after the start of the pandemic as many caseworkers and agency leaders were still navigating the transition to remote work. Nearly two years later, we’ve learned that remote and hybrid work models are now here to stay.

Social services agencies have found benefits in hybrid and remote options for their workforce and clients alike and have begun to implement permanent flexible work polices to stay competitive to applicants. Despite the benefits, the task of fundamentally shifting work models is still a challenge. The same tips are still applicable, but the impact has changed, especially now that the social services workforce is in crisis.

As human services agencies have grown more comfortable with the idea of cloud technology, the conversation has shifted from “what should we do?” to “how do we get it right?”

In our experience, your agency will be more successful if you have a solid answer to that second question from the very beginning. If you recognize the difference between moving to the cloud simply to check a box and doing it in a purposeful, thoughtful way, you’re more likely to find a solution that provides long-term value and return on investment for both your agency and the community you serve.

“If we can use our resources to prop the family up and mitigate risks to keep the children in the home, that's an agency win for us at all levels—financial, resource support, workload management. That's what we strive to do as an entire child welfare division.”

Hannah Webster, child welfare manager at Mesa County Department of Human Services, is one of many customers we’ve spoken to over the years to learn why their agency has invested in our document management, forms management, and mobility software, Traverse®, in child welfare.

As another year comes to a close, it's time to recap our top blogs of 2021.

Below is a countdown of this year's posts that our readers found most insightful. Remember, you can subscribe any time to make sure you never miss out on future content.

You want to read up on the important topics and trends impacting human services, but that’s much easier said than done when you’ve already got so much else on your plate.

Sound familiar? If so, we’ve got you covered.

Cars. Coffee. Computer chips. Ketchup. There’s no shortage (pun intended) of items that have been hard to find, or more expensive to buy, over the past few months due to global supply chain disruptions that have resulted from COVID-19 and other factors.

But there’s one thing that human services agencies should be keeping an eye on as it could significantly impact your operational budget over time: paper and printing supplies.

Change is hard, even for people in human services whose entire jobs are affecting change in others. Change is hard for everyone, maybe especially for social workers (and the people who support them) whose jobs are already so difficult.

If you work in IT, the words “data loss” likely send shivers down your spine. If you work in IT for a human services agency, the stakes are even higher. No one wants to be responsible for a security breach or data leak that compromises your system integrity, threatens your clients’ privacy, or delays your agency’s ability to deliver services to the people who rely on you.

Of course, there’s the financial aspect to consider as well. Did you know ransomware victims in United States spent an average of $2.09 million in remediation costs in 2020?

How do you plan for the “new normal” when normalcy no longer exists?

Yes, it’s a bold question and a tough concept to consider. But it’s reality. As I have continued to meet with numerous directors of local and state agencies throughout the country, there is still a lot of uncertainty and confusion.