The Kansas Workforce Assessment

The Kansas Workforce Initiative completed multi-stage, multi-level comprehensive organizational assessments with the five major child welfare providers in Kansas in order to create a profile of agency and statewide workforce strengths, challenges and capacities in a privatized system. This assessment was aimed at informing the development of initiatives to increase recruitment and retention of a well-trained workforce in Kansas. We begin by describing the organizational and data collection phases of our assessment. We then describe the construction process of individualized agency workforce plans, based on these data. Each agency plan was then merged into an aggregate state plan, with strengths and challenges common to all agencies. Next steps involve the development of strategic tools to address these common problems in recruitment and retention. At the same time, individual agencies will also use these data as a guide in addressing issues that are idiosyncratic to the agency, or to the region of the state. As this work has proceeded, the established links between recruitment and retention and child safety, permanency, and well-being have provided the underpinning for this work. We will conclude with a section on some of our preliminary findings, their implications for workforce recruitment and retention, and study limitations. Planning and Implementing the Comprehensive Workforce Assessment We began this project by collecting information for “agency workforce profiles” for each contract agency. Each individualized profile included the following elements: (1) university staff-facilitated, team-based reviews of workforce practices and policies; (2) surveys measuring training, interagency communication, and organizational climate, administered online to staff, supervisors, and administrators; (3) Additional queries about intention to quit; and (4)) selected data on child outcomes. These data constitute our worker/ client outcome baseline. Data from each agency were then aggregated into a statewide profile. Conducting the process in this way allowed us to both share information that was unique to each agency with the agency only, while common themes, challenges, and strengths could be shared with all of the agencies. Results of these data collection efforts were presented to the agencies in Spring 2010. Priorities for agency-specific and systems-level workforce initiatives have been identified. An evidence review is underway which summarizes significant findings in the literature on topics such as recruitment, selection, professional development and work/family life balance. User-friendly evidence summaries with “how to” links will be available via the project website. Additionally, a systems of care family partners review, by the Kansas Family Advisory Network, has been solicited. Agencies are encouraged to select workforce development strategies that are “family-endorsed” and have research evidence of their efficacy. University staff will provide ongoing training and technical assistance to support implementation of workforce development strategies.