The FAMCare Blog

Few Americans can look at "human trafficking" with clear vision. The legacy of slavery in America is so distasteful that we prefer to remain in denial and look away from this modern iteration of slavery. Latin American countries, however, where many of the victims are preyed upon, take a much harder look at this criminal depravity and proactively strive to curtail its devastation.

On a recent call with a professor in the social work department at a large Eastern university, we asked him what he saw as the human race's most vexing social problem. His answer was fascinating and quite unexpected. Below find excerpts from that conversation.

The climate change debate has centered on global warming for the last 10 years. Because the science tends to be arcane and somewhat opaque, the debate has become clouded with opinion rather than fact. However, the impact of severe weather events cannot be ignored.

As social service agencies grow and new case management software is introduced into the market, finding the right software to fit your agency’s size and mission can be a daunting task.

Much of the current political debate centers around:

• The loss of jobs and opportunities for the middle class-
• Whether college should be free for all Americans-
• How the Millennials can be expected to pay back the $ 1.3 trillion of college debt they have accumulated when they are left to default to jobs in McDonald’s-
• The job flight to third world countries causing the plight of our rust belt industrial inner cities-
• The cycle of crime and destitution that imprisons undereducated minorities-

My daughter recently competed in an oratorical competition titled “How my best brings out the best in others”.  As I watched her list out traits she thought influenced others to be their best and listen to her practice her speech, I thought “What is my best”?   Am I doing my best to bring out the best, the “talent”, in my family, my friends, even my co-workers?  How do my actions influence those I work with?

No one wants their project to fail or go over budget however, this is a common occurrence due, in part, to poor planning at the onset of the project planning process.  Identifying the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How are the first steps to creating a successful Project Team and Project Plan. Taking the time to ensure that you pick the right team, ensure that your team has the appropriate knowledge, providing a clear communication process and timelines will certainly put your project on the right path.

The software industry is still a relatively “young” industry- think car manufacturing, steel manufacturing etc. begun more than a hundred years ago versus software starting in the 50’s but only becoming widespread in the late 80’s/early 90's. There is also the creative side of software design that enters the picture. Because of this there are many temptations to have a homegrown system built just for your organization.

While working on an implementation at a customer site, I observed a caseworker in Michigan entering data into a SACWIS (State Automated Child Welfare Information System) computer system, then immediately enter the same data (plus some that SACWIS didn’t have) into the agency’s own system.