Policy & Practice October 2017

hen it comes to information technology IT human services agencies are at an inflection point There is growing recog nition that systems built using “big bang” waterfall approaches U N L E A S H I N G AGILE W Obstacles and Opportunities in Human Services BY RAFAEL LÓPEZ AND DOUG ROBINSON

have failed to deliver intended benefits or support intended outcomes Many have missed their schedule and budget targets as well All the while agencies are working to reshape their services to deliver “whole person” support to be er serve children and families To sum it up many are asking “Are we just doing it wrong? And how might we do be er?” For a growing number of states including California Connecticut and Tennessee the answer lies in the agile movement A recent study by Accenture and the National Association of State Chief Information Officers NASCIO affirmed that most state CIOs recognize the value of agile development yet still face some barriers