Internet Explorer 11 is not supported

For optimal browsing, we recommend Chrome, Firefox or Safari browsers.

Making Sure New Systems Compute

Every so often, a handful of social service workers in Hennepin County, Minnesota, give away their pending cases and stop visiting families in need. Instead, they turn into technology liaisons.

Every so often, a handful of social service workers in Hennepin County, Minnesota, give away their pending cases and stop visiting families in need. Instead, they turn into technology liaisons.

These employees are known as "Bridgers." Their mission is to make sure that the technology projects being planned for social service workers make sense and are useful. "The last thing you want is to have systems that take three times as long as when you just wrote things on a piece of paper," says Steve Zorn, Information Technology supervisor for Children, Family and Adult Services.

The program started in 1999, when a new information system for the department was in the works. Computer-savvy social workers who were interested in learning the new system were selected to leave their regular jobs for a few months to help smooth the implementation. They helped the programmers and others on the technical side to understand how social workers do their jobs, and they coordinated training sessions for social workers.

The new system is in, but Bridgers continue to take six or nine months off to work with people developing the Internet and intranet systems. While they are on "leave," the Bridgers stay connected to their social work roots. They keep their desks, attend department meetings and continue to have lunch and coffee breaks with fellow workers. By staying in touch with their social worker peers, they are able to pass concerns on to those developing the systems. They also take what they are learning about the technology back to their co- workers. "We want people on the front lines giving as much information as possible," Zorn says.

Special Projects