ACF’s Employee Well-Being Team centers the “human” in human services staff

It is hard to believe that four years have passed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. In these unprecedented times, human services agencies across the country faced unique challenges to adapt services to meet new needs while supporting the staff delivering these services. The impact of this period is still felt today, with families adjusting to ending pandemic programs and communities experiencing human services workforce shortages. However, these challenges also spurred innovation in how we support each other. At the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), the pandemic catalyzed a new employee-centric program that has helped define our agency culture and advanced our work in communities.

Focusing on employee well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic

For ACF, transitioning to remote work required a dramatic pivot in part because we had to adapt much of our program guidance to support the needs of communities most impacted by the pandemic. We had to adapt technology solutions and find new ways to communicate with grantees and across teams. And we had to do that while caring for our families, our neighbors, and ourselves. Although ACF employees had access to critical government-wide resources like Federal Occupational Health (FOH) and the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), there was no comprehensive framework for employee well-being readily available.

To address this, ACF launched an employee well-being program aimed at reducing staff burnout, fostering an environment where every employee can succeed, and ensuring we meet our mission with dedication and commitment. We created a new Chief Wellbeing Officer position, making ACF the first federal government agency to have a position focused on internal employees’ well-being. Working with agency leaders, the Chief Well-being Officer leveraged their experience in the care economy to develop a comprehensive strategy to support staff needs. This included launching initiatives such as mental health first-aid training, quarterly New Employee Experience sessions, and “Courageous Conversations” to discuss important well-being issues. Additionally, the Chief Well-Being Officer developed and delivered much needed pre-deployment training and post-deployment support for staff supporting demanding missions, including at the Southern border.

The pandemic made it clear that ACF staff wanted a workplace that allowed them to bring their whole selves to work while caring for children, youth, and families nationwide and navigating a new world. Our well-being program helped ACF meet this call for action and become a leader across federal agencies in supporting staff. 

Investing in well-being programs that address changing needs

A key feature of ACF’s well-being program is its focus on employees’ health and safety, ensuring staff remain engaged, productive, and satisfied. In the program’s first year, agency leadership saw a marked positive impact on the retention of high-performing employees while also helping to attract passionate new talent.

As we transitioned to a post-pandemic world, ACF sought to understand how prioritizing employee well-being could further increase job satisfaction. Through discussion groups and interviews, we learned that employees wanted more growth and leadership development opportunities, recognition for outstanding performance, and stronger connections with colleagues.

In response, we revitalized our leadership and professional development programs by creating ACF University, offering all Federal employees learning and development opportunities to lead, grow, and innovate. We enhanced our internal recognition programs, creating a new Assistant Secretary’s Honors Program, and launched a mentoring program that successfully matched 117 mentees with 80 mentors in its first year. Additionally, we introduced weekly informal “Switzers Who Lunch” gatherings to foster cross office connections among staff based at our Headquarters in Washington, D.C., the Mary E. Switzer Federal building. 

This work demonstrates ACF’s commitment to not only listen to employee feedback but also to act on that feedback to prioritize our staff’s experience. It is part of our effort to be an employer of choice in the federal government and a center of excellence around employee engagement. 

Translating employee wellness and satisfaction into mission-focused results

Our employee well-being program, born out of the early pandemic experience, has become central to how ACF operates day-to-day. We know that an engaged, well-supported, and happy workforce leads to tangible success for our organization and positive outcomes for those we serve.

Looking ahead, we plan to further study how our efforts translate to more effective program delivery for the communities we serve. There are many examples of how workplace satisfaction leads to better program delivery and seek to build the evidence case in the human services field. We look forward to sharing more about these initiatives in the future.

This blog post is part of our “Investing in Operational Excellence” series which highlights how ACF is enhancing  day-to-day business practices to better empower the children, youth, families, and communities we serve.