Learning Contract: Administrative Scenario/Case Illustration

Scenario:

XYZ Agency, a state-wide organization, has been challenged by its funders to demonstrate it serves the needs of a sizable percentage of the state’s population. Currently, the agency serves only 5% of the eligible service population. Withthe available staff already facing high caseloads and the challenge of serving a broad geographic area, and the unwillingness of funders to simply pay for more staff, it is clear that the agency cannot continue doing business as usual. Consequently, the agency’s Board of Directors has approved a move from a staff-based service model to a volunteer-based service model; as such, staff would recruit, train and support a cadre of volunteers who would provide para-professional services to members of their respective communities. The Advanced Practicum student has been asked to assist the agency in conceptualizing and developing the new practice model, preparing agency structures and protocols, and engaging staffin the change process; theintended launch date for the new program design is July 1 of the next calendar year.

Practicum project tasks (with related FC & IP practice behaviors enumerated in parenthesis)

  1. Understand the agency’s mission, deep history, philosophy, values and ethics
  2. Review and discuss with the practicum instructor the agency’s mission statement, founding charter, written history/public documents, Board meeting notes, etc.(1a)
  3. Interview selected ‘key informants’, including Board members, management and front-line staff, and previous and current service recipients, to understand the agency’s deep history (1a, 1b, 2a, 4a, 6a)
  4. Review the agency’s code of ethics, noting any key differences with the NASW Code(1a, 4a)
  5. Prepare a brief outline to summarize XYZ’s mission, values, ethics and core services(4b)
  6. Conduct research on evidence-based models for volunteer-service delivery
  7. Review the professional social work and business administration literature related to best-practice volunteer-service models(1c, 3a, 4a, 5a, 7a)
  8. Prepare a written summary of the prevailing models, with attention to their differences in structure and function(3b, 4b, 5b)
  9. Consult with other agencies that have shifted to volunteer-service models to identify implementation challenges, unintended gaps/weaknesses, and their recommendations for addressing these issues
  10. Identify 2-4 agencies which utilize volunteer service models; assess their comparability and differences with XYZ in terms of mission, structure, funding, and decision-making (2a, 3a, 4a)
  11. Interview with at least one key informant from each agency(3a, 6b,7b)
  12. Summarize the results in a written outline, presented to the management team(3b, 4b, 5b, 7b)
  13. Conduct focus groups with service recipients, service staff, and management subgroups to identify core values and mission-critical services, ‘sunk costs’/investments (physical, human, financial), commitment to the status quo vs. openness to change, recommendations for a change process, etc.
  14. Organize and conduct the focus groups -- prepare guiding questions for each group, schedule meeting dates, identify the method of data collection (written, audio or both), etc.(1a, 1b, 2a, 3a, 4a)
  15. Prepare a separate written summary of each focus group meeting(1c, 4b, 6b)
  16. Prepare a written integrative summary of key themes and insights (1c, 3b, 4b, 7b, 7c, 8a)
  17. Present the findings to the management team and the staff (4b, 5b, 7c)
  18. Develop the plan, in consultation with the management team
  19. Review key state and federal policies that may have a bearing on the services, funding, etc., provided by the agency(5a, 5b)
  20. Provide to the management team an integrative review of the of the available volunteer-service models, as they relate to the agency’s service commitments, and the issues raised by the focus groups; make a recommendation as to the best-practice approach for XYZ agency(4b, 5b, 7c, 8a)
  21. With the support of the management team, develop the plan – draft administrative and staff responsibilities, related tasks and practice protocols, as well as projected timelines(5b, 6b, 7c, 8a)
  22. Plan a series of education-and-discussion sessions to gain staff buy-in and critical evaluation(7c, 8c)
  23. As time allows, conduct a pilot test of the plan in a discrete geographic area; critique the results and refine the plan as needed(4b, 5a, 5b, 8b, 8c, 9b)
  24. Implement the plan on a statewide basis(8b, 8c)