Our child welfare systems can feel like we are in a game of Jenga. We are attempting to grow and expand our systems by moving pieces one by one - while stretching our limited capacity. But with each move, the entire system risks collapse, particularly with worker shortages.
Accountability systems rarely work as they affix blame instead of fix systems. They also produce devastating side effects including workers gaming the measurement system and increase fear. There is a better way.
188 million results. This is the number of hits you get when you Google “Human-Centered Design.” While obviously very popular, I have to wonder, “just how did we get so far off course that we need to be reminded to keep the humans who use our technology at the core of our design?”
It’s a little hard to remember what life was like before Amazon two-day shipping.
Despite years of investments worth billions of dollars, government has not seen the kind of radical results it expected from technology. A key reason why: States and localities first need to fix their capacity problem.
Agencies’ tendency to add more rules (and thus work) every time something bad happens prevents child protection workers from doing everything they can to keep kids safe.
Above all else, citizens want results. When they don’t get them, they morph into selfish people.
In the public sector, great customer service is nice. But there's something else that matters more.
Government is going Lean these days, and it should go without technology, at least for now.
