Here's Your Northwoods News, Friend!

Meeting Users Where They Are: Designing Technology for Enhanced Engagement

At Northwoods, our “why”—the reason behind everything we do—is simple: improve outcomes for children and families by empowering the practice. Turning this belief into something tangible starts with meeting our users where you are or building technology that works whenever and wherever you do.

To do this, we’ve observed caseworkers for hundreds of hours—going on ride-alongs, sitting in on home visits, shadowing them in the agency, and more.

As a 2019 Emerging Leader at ISM, Lauren Hirka, Northwoods product manager, shared how the insights we’ve gathered directly influence how we build technology that’s designed to enhance engagement in six different scenarios, which are just a few examples of how child welfare workers spend their day.

Read the full blog here.

Updated Customer Portal

Psst. If you’re a system administrator, check out our updated customer portal!

The portal has a new look and is easier to navigate.

You can still access our contact information and manage your cases. We will continue enhancing the functionality to improve your experience even more!

Please contact the Northwoods Support Center (NSC) with any portal questions.

Northwoods' New Address

Northwoods is moving in early 2020… just down the road! We are looking forward to our new building and the opportunities it will allow us to grow.

Our new address is 5200 Rings Road Dublin OH 43017.

Please update your records if you have our address on file!

Investing in Technology to Break the Burnout Cycle in Child Welfare

As many readers know, complex caseloads, inefficient systems, and time-consuming paperwork are just a few of the reasons turnover is a chronic problem in children and family services.

One way to combat the problem is providing technology that lessens administrative burden, which is exactly what Jefferson County Department of Social Services in New York is aiming to do. They have invested in Traverse® to give caseworkers more time to do high-value work with children and families.

Check out our interview with Commissioner Teresa Gaffney in NYSAC News magazine to learn more about what the agency hopes to accomplish.

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Readers' Choice Recap: Top Blog Posts of 2019

It's that time again! As each year closes, we like to recap the top blog posts from the last 365 days that our readers found most helpful!

This year's list is full of expert content, inspiration to help you stay motivated, and other resources to help you utilize social work technology.

Subscribe now so you don’t miss any of the 2020 blogs!

Machine-Assisted Social Work and the Future of Child Welfare Technology

During Northwoods’ session at ISM, we analyzed the current state of child welfare through three lenses—Are we informed? Are we collaborative? Are we safe?—to illustrate the key challenges workers currently face. We also discussed how technology has the potential to empower the child welfare practice in ways we’ve never considered before.

Read the full blog or watch the recorded session for key takeaways from our panel of experts, including what you can do today to start planning for the future.