Delivering Public Service for the FutureHuman Services

Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Children and Families: Forging a new model for a mobile-enabled workforce

The Department of Children and Families (DCF) is the Massachusetts state agency responsible for protecting children from abuse and neglect. By taking steps to maximize the potential of mobile human services technology, DCF is enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of its social workers and other staff. The strategic initiative has also put the agency in the forefront of human services agencies nationally.

OverviewDCF employs more than 2,500 social workers. On any given day, these resources work with more than 50,000 Massachusetts children and their families.

OpportunityEarly in 2014, the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) conducted a quality review of DCF’s capabilities and resources in response to a high profile and tragic incident involving a child under the Department’s supervision. The review identified several critical improvements and reforms needed to strengthen the safety net to keep children safe and families strong

DCF swiftly adopted many key CWLA recommendations. Among them: the distribution of 2,400 iPads designed to improve contacts and engagement between social workers and families and to give social workers immediate access to information about a family’s case. The iPads were also intended to increase compliance and communication by enabling workers in the field to enter data in real time into the state’s web-enabled SACWIS system, iFamilyNet.

It soon became clear that more could be done to maximize the benefit of the devices. Social workers had many ideas for applications that could be helpful in their work and had identified potential new features. They also wanted to collaborate more with colleagues, and needed help knowing how to use the devices effectively with families. In addition, agency leaders and supervisors, also armed with new devices, needed support to adapt to leading and managing in a mobile environment.

Recognizing the need for a strategic approach going forward, DCF teamed with Accenture to help maximize the potential of its mobile-enabled workforce.

Copyright © 2014 Accenture All rights reserved.

Accenture, its logo, and High Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture.

Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.

Accenture, its logo, and High Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture.

Why We Won Accenture brought a combination of expertise and experience across government strategy, child welfare, and mobility to support DCF on its mobile journey.

Through a long-standing collaboration with the Commonwealth’s Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS), the Accenture team already had a deep understanding of the local health and human services environment, programs and priorities. The Accenture Health & Public Service practice had worked for decades with government agencies globally to achieve better Child Welfare outcomes through integrated service delivery. As a recognized leader in enterprise mobility, Accenture Digital provided technical expertise.

SolutionThe team began by assessing DCF’s existing mobile capabilities and the effectiveness of the initial roll out. This analysis involved field office visits, focus groups with social workers, supervisors, and field leadership, and interviews with central office staff and external (including union) stakeholders, as well as an agency-wide survey.

The analysis revealed broad social worker and management support for the new mobile devices, especially as enablers of efficiency and effectiveness, as well as for their implications for flexible work arrangements. 74 percent of the DCF workforce was comfortable with the mobile devices and 66 percent felt more efficient using them. In addition, 87 percent of supervisors thought that social workers were more effective with the devices.

However, the data also revealed wide variations in how (and how comfortably) workers were using the iPads in their work with families. In part due to confusion around the possible and allowable uses of the devices, 66 percent of daily work was still done on desktops, 14 percent remained paper-based, and just 20 percent was being completed on the iPads.

Some social workers were using their devices creatively, but without formal channels for collaboration they couldn’t learn from each other and best practices were not being shared. As a result of siloed innovation, most device use was focused on such routine, low-value tasks as checking email (reported by 89 percent of users) and recording dictation (reported by 80 percent of users). Given the speed of the roll out, operational and financial support was ad hoc and needed to be institutionalized and strengthened.

DCF and Accenture used these insights to develop an actionable blueprint and roadmap designed to maximize the possibilities of a mobile-enabled workforce. The blueprint defined the program’s goals and metrics. It specified a future-state governance model integrated with the DCF’s underlying IT and operational infrastructure. It defined the capabilities required to develop and maintain the model. And it is now being brought to life through a prioritized set of activities and initiatives intended to enhance the program: technology investments, policy adjustments, and communication and training programs.

Accenture worked with key stakeholders at DCF to obtain buy-in on primary recommendations and suggest ways to integrate the roadmap into agency operations.

ResultDCF’s mobility blueprint and roadmap positions the device deployment as a meaningful component of the agency’s future operating model. By implementing the roadmap, the agency is committed to providing families with timely and efficient access to information and services, and to equipping its workforce with effective tools. DCF is also contributing to the responsible stewardship of Commonwealth information and resources.

For more information contact:Sean Toole Managing Director, Accenture Child Welfare sean.d.toole@accenture.com

Matthew Burnham Accenture State and Local Government Strategy matthew.g.burnham@accenture.com

About Accenture Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 336,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$30.0 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2014. Its home page is www.accenture.com.