The Results-Oriented Social Services Workplace

Social services jobs, whether child development, probation or substance abuse, are involved in a lot of detail. When social services people are so engrossed in the details of their jobs, it's easy for them, for anyone actually, to lose sight of the job's major contribution.

A Results-Oriented Social Services Job Description is different from a traditional job description because it focuses an employee on the several job results that answer the question: What results must this social Services affairs job accomplish for the organization?

Social Services Job Standards added to job expectations tighten management controls by clarifying how well and when results must be accomplished.

Social Services Job Objectives establish management and employee plans by highlighting important current and future results needed.

Job-specific Social Services Employee Management Forms maintain consistent and social Servicesly sound management actions by basing manager-employee interactions on job results.

The Purpose of Social Services Jobs

Stated in a results-oriented, three-line style, social Services affairs jobs--

ENHANCE INDIVIDUAL, FAMILY AND COMMUNITY WELL BEING by

identifying social service gaps; preparing and disseminating social policies, procedures, and protocols; advocating for social initiatives; providing consultative and informative services; resolving conflicts; expediting arrangements.

Types of Social Services Jobs

Social services jobs involving helping clients in a variety of circumstances from adoptions, to substance abuse, to prison counseling. Some jobs involve providing resources to clients while other jobs provide direct counseling. Still other jobs trying to teach clients new skills. And, of course, somebody has to manage and supervise the social services people and processes.

Social Services Job Management Tools

Here are actual job examples of how social Services affairs job actions can be focused on results and kept on track using each of our job management tools:

Results-Oriented Social Services Job Descriptions form the foundation of all job management tools. Our uniquely structured job descriptions focus on the result to be accomplished first and prominently, followed by the duties performed in order to accomplish the result. For example,

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Social Services Job Standards sharpen employee attention and management control by defining and communicating how well the social Services affairs results must be accomplished and what benchmarks will be used to measure job results. For example, for the job result above, the job standards might be:

• Social Services situations are correctly understood.
• All options are identified and evaluated.
• Social Services recommendations are ready when needed.

Social Services Job Objectives point the direction for employee actions by focusing job efforts on current and future social Services affairs issues. Job objectives are written in the three-line, results-oriented structure. For example, for the job result above, a job objective might be:

SPEED-UP DECISION MAKING by

reducing time to deliver social Services affairs recommendations by 10% by (date).

Social Services Employee Management Forms tied specifically to each social Services affairs job description are more helpful (and social Services) than generic forms used for all different kinds of jobs. Job-specific forms are used to state job qualifications, guide job interview questions, orient new employees, plan job training, and appraise job performance.

Social Services Job Qualifications are stated in the same terms used in the job description. They are not translated into generic (typically behavioral) terms. For example:

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Social Services Job Interview guide questions are inserted directly below each job result in the job description: For example:

• "What specific job responsibilities have you had in this area?"
• "Where did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "When did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "How did you go about accomplishing these responsibilities?"
• "What accomplishment in this area gave you the most pride?"
• "In this area, what were some of your biggest challenges?"
• "How did you overcome the challenges?"

The Social Services Job Orientation guide reformats the job description sequence so that job explanations, policies, protocols, processes, and procedures are logical and complete and can easily be checked off. For example:

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Here's the procedure and format we use to analyze and present social Services affairs recommendations."

The Social Services Job Training plan guides a thorough examination of actual job knowledge, skills, and abilities as described in the job description that need improvement or that might be enhanced. For example:

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Analytical skills would be improved by enrolling in a statistical analysis class."

The Social Services Job Performance Appraisal guide is a job-specific form. It is not a universal form used for all jobs. The guide adds an appraisal scale below each job result in the job description so that attention can be drawn to each job requirement and expectation. For example:

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

__ Great! Just want we wanted.
__ We have a problem.
__ Improvement is needed.
__ Much, much more than we asked for.

Comments: _________________

Social Services Résumé Template

Potential employers want to know what a job applicant has accomplished in his/her social Services affairs work career. They don't want to be bored with minor details. Our Résumé Template provides:

• an outline to help assemble personal background information.
• a Results-Oriented Job Description to provide the social Services affairs job language-focused on results-needed to write an effective résumé.
• Social Services Job Objectives to orient thinking in terms of accomplishments.
• instructions on how to use a Results-Oriented Social Services Job Description and Social Services Job Objectives to express job accomplishments.

Use the social Services affairs job description responsibility statement as a base:

RECOMMENDS SOCIAL SERVICES ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Select the social Services affairs job objective that fits your experience:

REDUCE COSTS 10% by

improving social Services affairs processes.

Combine the two into a résumé statement:

Reduced costs 10% by analyzing, identifying, and recommending new social Services affairs system controls.

Social Services Career Links

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Social Workers

Training and education needed for social worker jobs, earnings, expected job prospects, what social workers do on the job, and working conditions.

The Riley Guide, Social Work and Social Services

A directory of employment and career information sources and services on the Internet primarily intended to provide instruction for job seekers on how to use the Internet to their best advantage.

Wikipedia, Social Work

A multilingual, web-based, free content encyclopedia project written collaboratively by volunteers from all around the world.

The New Social Worker, Social Work Jobs and Career Development

Gives social workers information to help them start their careers on the right foot and/or advance toward their career goals, each issue of the print magazine includes job search tips and other career guidance information.

University of California, Berkeley, Career Library, Social Work Career Exploration Links

Occupational information about the nature of the work, working conditions, training and/or educational requirements, job outlook, and earnings, graduate, professional, and other educational programs, information of special interest to multicultural populations.

Washington University, St. Louis, Brown School of Social Work

Career and professional development, jobs on line.