ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the results of a 10-month experiment in functional sub grouping by the staff of one department in a social service agency during that agency’s monthly all-staff meetings. This experiment was initially designed to decrease the staff’s frustration during these meetings. With the subgroup system serving as a container for their frustration, staff became more energized and curious about the system dynamics that were being enacted in these meetings. The chapter presents the importance of working from a systems perspective. It highlights the importance of paying attention to the layers of systems— the clients’ families, neighborhoods, schools, justice system, and general culture— that helped to shape the clients’ beliefs and behaviors. The chapter discusses how the agency existed in the larger context of the mental health field which was being funded by managed care companies and that services were being reimbursed at a lower rate which weakened the financial health and the stability of the agency.
