Organizational Analysis: Department of Human Services
Francine Jackson
Wayne State University

Official and Operative Goals of the Organization
Department of Human Services (DHS) is a human service organization meant to help individuals and families with temporary services in their time of need. The mission statement is: “Improving the quality of life in Michigan by providing services to vulnerable children and adults that will strengthen the community and enable families and individuals to move toward independence.” (Michigan.gov) DHS provides an array of services to individuals and families, these include: food assistance, cash assistance, health care assistance, children services, adult services, and many more.
Since there are so many services under the umbrella of DHS, I will focus on a part of the organization that I am familiar with, Foster care services. Approximately 14,000 Michigan children are in foster care at any given time (Michigan.gov). Foster cares mission statement is “Families first”, meaning the goal is for children to have reunification with their families. So when children cannot be returned to their homes, relatives or foster parents are often asked to provide permanent homes. Foster families provide children in this situation with the consistency and support they need to successfully transition to adulthood (Michigan.gov).
In terms of operative goals, there are seven that encompass DHS and represent what the organizations day-to day goals are. The operative goals include: Safety, children’s needs, family’s needs, communities, placement, reunification and permanence, and services. Let me expand on each of these goals. Foster cares first priority is to keep children safe. So when parents/families can’t or do not fulfill this necessity, DHS has been delegated the authority to intervene on behalf of the child. Children’s needs: