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Managing Knowledge for Impact

APHSA National Summit

Washington, D.C.

May 24, 2016

Christine Tappan

Director of Strategic Management, APHSA

&

Lee Biggar

Director, Knowledge Management

Georgia Division of Family and Children Services

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What we’d like to do is:

• Explore our understanding of Knowledge

Management (KM) & Mobilization (KMbz)

• Look at KM and KMbz challenges and

opportunities in human services

• Consider ways to manage knowledge for impact

• Hear about one state’s journey towards managing

knowledge for impact

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Why did you want to join this conversation?

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Creating a common understanding

So we can manage knowledge for impact

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An APHSA Priority Area

"Knowledge

management and

mobilization are

the processes of

capturing,

distributing, and

effectively using

information.”

@aphsa1Our Value Proposition

• integrated, outcome-focused policy and practice that best positions our members to positively impact the lives of the people served and meet the expectations of taxpayers

Influence

• knowledge by advancing and sharing state and local innovations and evidence-informed practices that strengthen our members’ work and help them achieve sustainable and effective results

Build

• members with each other, with key partners, and with national experts to collectively leverage transformation at local, state and national levels

Connect

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Our “Collaborative Center” Platforms

National Collaborative for Integration of HHS

• Healthier / Stronger Families and Communities

• Population-based health focus

• Interoperability and IT supports for integrated HHS systems

Center for Employment and Economic Well-

being

• Gainful employment and independence

• Leveraged connections to education and workforce sectors as well as businesses / employers

Center for Child and Family Well-being

[to be launched 2016]

• Sustained Well-being of Children and Youth

• 2 Gen approaches to prevention, child care and child welfare

Organizational Effectiveness, Knowledge Management & Innovation Center

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Challenges and Opportunities

in Human Services

To manage knowledge for impact

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Organizational & Staff

Reactions to

“disorganized” data

Data smog

Data coma

Analysis paralysis

“Floating” data

Anecdotal

Decision-Making

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Knowing the difference between…

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Decision-Making and Learning

Knowledge

Information

Data• Storing

• Organizing

• Collecting

• Analyzing

• Synthesizing

• Summarizing

• Evaluating

• Sharing

• Translating

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Key areas for a KM assessment

• Leadership

• Culture/structure

• Processes

• Explicit Knowledge

• Tacit Knowledge

• Knowledge Hubs and

Centers

• Leverage

• Measures

• People/Skills

• Technology

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Components of KM

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Four reasons for KM

failure:

1. Technology

2. Project

Management

3. Content

4.Culture

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Challenges and Opportunities

in Human Services

To manage knowledge for impact

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Two possibilities within the health and

human services context…

1. Creating or strengthening

linkages across KM

“related” functions to

enhance capacity to

manage knowledge for

impact

2. Selecting, implementing

and evaluating effective

strategies for knowledge

dissemination

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Linkages across functions

• Data/research/evaluation

• Technology

• Programs/Practice

• Policy and Regulations

• Workforce Recruitment &

Development (HR)

• Performance Integrity

QA/CQI

• Stakeholder engagement

• Communication

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Creating knowledge

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How human service professionals want to get information

Timely, relevant information they can trust• Up to 3 – 5 years “new”

• “Speaks to them”, i.e. you understand my job

• Peer reviewed, practitioner tested, consumer validated

Easily “accessible” and widely applicable• Not too academic, not too long/too much, can apply to multiple needs

Practical and user friendly formats• Web, digital, mobile, searchable, hard copy (tools, resources, articles)

See/hear the voice of experts, practitioners, consumers • What does best practice/research tells us, what have “I” experienced in my practice,

and what do individuals and families say works for them?

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And measuring impact

Look to evidence based models…

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The RSTP/ISF approach…

• Extensive review of literature

– research, field resources,

tools, materials

• At every stage, end-user

experts and practitioners are

involved

• Authentic engagement of

consumers

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Applying the HSVC to…

Knowledge Management& Mobilization

Regulative…Collaborative…Integrative…Generative…

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Knowledge Management ForwardGeorgia’s Story

A Rocky Past

• Successive leadership & staff turnover

• Budget cuts coupled with increased demand for service

• Organizational changes/mandates that were under resourced

• Excessive caseloads and backlogs

• Poor perception of training

• Inadequate recruitment and selection process

• Inconsistent practice across Georgia’s 159 counties

• On-line policy manual continuously out-of-date

• Silo’ d State Office Functions

• ‘It’s all about the numbers’

• Poor safety, permanency and well-being outcomes

• In 2014, Governor Nathan Deal formed a

Child Welfare Reform Council for the express

purpose of “completing a comprehensive

review of the Division of Family and Children

Services”

• The Council completed and submitted its

report in January 2015

• Many opportunities to improve safety,

permanency, and well-being were introduced

into legislation through Senate Bill 138 in

May 2015

It’s All About Perception

– State Office is not aware of what the field does

– Lack of role clarity– Different standard of

expectations– Lack of authentic engagement– Negativity– Lack of consistent customer

service– Communication gaps (at all

levels)– Value-added is unclear if not

unknown

Time to ‘Rewire’

No more ‘business as usual’

• Two new ‘Sections’ established

• Assessment conducted

• Cross-functionality a must!

Knowledge Management’s Evolution

Assessment of current state of KM – findings…

– Right people but somewhat silo’d

– Cross-functionality limited and informal

– Some fear and anxiety about change

– Repurposing of staff a real potential

– Lots of good clay– No need to reinvent

the wheel

Knowledge Management

“Charge” of KM Section

Strengthen capacity of Field Operations

by

providing value-added support and services

to

achieve desired performance outcomes related to safety, permanency and wellbeing.

Education & Training

Data

QASHINES

Policy

Knowledge Management Section is committed to serving as a catalyst to the development of a true learning organization, where continuous learning, practicing and mastering of skills

leads to a competent workforce and positive outcomes for children and families in the state of Georgia.

To provide leadership, training, business information, analysis and reporting, tools, and services necessary to develop our workforce and achieve positive outcomes for children and families.

To be the best Knowledge Management System serving Child Welfare.

Staying focused on our goals

• Highly competent and stable workforce

• Positive performance outcomes for children & families

• Strong collaboration with internal and external stakeholders to discover, disseminate and utilize information for effective knowledge transfer

Being clear about objectives• Build and operationalize a Child Welfare

learning academy for new workers• Establish mentoring and coaching opportunities

for case managers and supervisors• Provide impactful new supervisor training• Ensure availability of advanced training• Utilize state-of-the art information management

technology/software• Enhance SACWIS functionality• Implement a policy development and

dissemination process• Maintain an up-to-date and user-friendly policy

manual

• Execute Quality Assurance reviews • Build and maintain a division-wide CQI

system • Establish a fidelity review process for

Georgia’s Practice Model• Identify and provide performance and

workforce related data required by business

• Establish information feedback loops and streams

• Maintain purposeful engagement with our internal and external partners for ongoing assessment of knowledge-related needs

• Continuously search for and disseminate information about workforce and performance-related best practices

Cross-functioning Units

• Education and Training

• Data

• Quality Assurance

• SACWIS - SHINES

• Policy and Regulations

Education & Training

Data

QASHINES

Policy

Targets for Results• Alignment of policy and training-related deliverables which fosters

consistency in practice, clarity about performance expectation and development of a knowledgeable and skilled workforce

• Integration of SHINES application and subject matter training which results in substantive documentation of case planning, justification for key decisions, and availability of useful data to generate performance management/improvement reports

• Fully informed SHINES enhancements leading to improved usability and less time needed “on the computer”

• Development of training interventions that address performance deficits identified through multiple quality assurance reviews and trend analysis processes

• Continuous quality improvement efforts informed by accurate, relevant and visually appealing data

• Timely development and dissemination of policy that is reflective of best practice and the agency’s vision, mission and guiding principles

• Shared capital (human and material) resulting in the ability to manage projects of increased scope

• Wide breadth of knowledge brought to bear during the development and execution of system and performance improvement strategies

• Effective communication (internal and external) ensuring the transfer and application of useful information

• Culture that values the importance of selecting and developing ‘right people’, the power of relationship, creativity and joint accountability for all outcomes produced

Targets for Results

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Ultimately, it’s all about the outcomes…

Confident, competent, and committed workforce

Safer and healthier children and families

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