The following resources describe the steps involved in the strategic planning process and explore ways States can build child welfare agency capacity for effective strategic planning. Resources include State and local examples of child welfare agencies’ strategic plans.
Effective Strategic Planning for Child Welfare Agencies (PDF - 69 K)
National Resource Center for Organizational Improvement
Discusses the importance of assessing a child welfare agency’s resources and developing actionable steps towards improving outcomes.
Implementation Science in Action
Capacity Building Center for States (2015)
Presents information from three national leaders in implementation science who share the implementation strategies they have used as well as their successes, challenges, and lessons learned. A free login is required to access this information.
Strategic Planning (PDF - 220 KB)
National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (2016)
Summarizes articles related to the role of strategic planning in sustaining cross-sector partnerships.
Strategic Planning for Nonprofits
National Council of Nonprofits
Identifies strategies that assist in the development and implementation of a strategic vision, including identifying an organizations strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Strategic Planning Toolkit
Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center
Provides tools and resources to guide State and local organizations in learning about and implementing a strategic plan. Though designed for victim services organizations, these resources apply more generally to child welfare agencies as well.
Strategies to Stage and Scale Up Implementation in Child Welfare Systems [Webinar]
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Explores the application of implementation science principles to decisions about staging and scaling new programs and practices that have not been implemented statewide. This webinar examines the elements needed to scale effectively, and representatives from various States provide insights from their experiences with staged implementation approaches. Free registration is required to access this resource.
State and local examples
2015–2019 Strategic Plan (PDF - 285 KB)
Summit County Children Services
Shares Summit County’s mission and vision, including practical steps for achieving these in their service provision in Ohio.
2016–2020 Five Year Strategic Plan (PDF - 353 KB)
Arizona Department of Child Safety
Outlines strategic issues and respective goals and strategies for the Arizona Department of Child Safety.
Partnership for Strong Families’ Strategic Plan 2016–2017–2018 (PDF - 414 KB)
Partnership for Strong Families (2016)
Shares a Floridian nongovernmental organization's three year strategic plan related to quality improvement and out of home care services.
State of Michigan Child and Family Services Plan 2015–2019: Strengthening Our Focus on Children and Families (PDF - 3,942 KB)
Michigan Department of Human Services (2014)
Explains how the Michigan child welfare system is implementing a strategic plan in order to create a collaborative system for the support of families.
Strategic Plan SFY 2017-2018 (PDF - 589 KB)
Oklahoma Department of Human Services Child Welfare Services (2017)
Discusses four strategic goals for Oklahoma child welfare services and the steps necessary to achieve these goals.