2. Approaches to holistic welfare services

Approaches at the national level

Strengthen national and local coordination and cooperation by

• Implementing a national strategy with shared goals and roles across sectors.
• Establishing arenas for cross-sectoral and strategic dialogue.
• Developing cooperation models between municipalities, regions, and authorities.

Build a common language and knowledge base for cooperation by

• Developing a shared conceptual framework (e.g. a dictionary).
• Publishing long-term forecasts and indicators, and comprehensive guidelines
• Sharing effective initiatives and cooperation models via digital platforms
• Providing multilingual guidelines on the welfare system, individual rights, and support access

Coordinate government signals and requirements by

• Coordinating and prioritising the requirements and expectations for municipalities of the state level actors so that conflicting or overlapping requirements do not arise – to avoid contradictory guidelines. 
• Supporting both implementation and phasing out of initiatives.
• Establishing arenas where state and municipalities agree on goals, roles, and priorities focused on user needs.
• Offering financial incentives and long-term support for interdisciplinary municipal teams.

Support management and implementation

• Providing easy access to support materials, checklists, and sample collections for municipal strategic leadership.
• Creating arenas for long-term, cross-functional collaboration, e.g. targeted programs for frontline social work managers.

Approaches at the local level

Strengthen leadership for change and quality by

• Anchoring coordination and competence development in strategic management promoting innovation and flexibility.
• Changing incentive structures and ensuring coherence between citizen perspectives, strategic direction and methods in the strategic leadership.
• Ensuring cross-organisational and interdisciplinary collaboration through shared goals and strong leadership.

Prioritise cross-organisational collaboration, common goals and support by

• Building a shared mindset and strategic coherence across all management levels.
• Integrating coordination into management systems, budgets, and strategies as part of core operations.
• Supporting long-term efforts with financing models and reward systems, and clear responsibilities.
• Promoting shared understanding and experiences exchange across meetings, networks, and applicable tools, e.g. coordinators, mentors, and case managers.
• Fostering a culture of trust, openness and respect for professional skills to enable effective communication and knowledge sharing.
• Strengthening collaboration with joint plans, follow-ups and tools for coordination and dialogue.

Ensure strategic competence development and professional support by

• Developing long-term competence plans for both employees and managers, covering both organisational and individual growth.
• Prioritising broad competences, continuing education, and specialised support, including interdisciplinary cooperation, user participation, and relationship work.
• Supporting professional development through interdisciplinary supervision, sparring, and collegial communities.
• Establishing regional networks and arenas for reflection, learning, and sharing across disciplines and levels.
• Promoting interdisciplinary cooperation to ensure better solutions for citizens and their families.

Place the user perspective at the centre by

• Integrating the user perspective into management systems, strategies, and management practices as part of quality development.
• Using participatory methods that give citizens real influence in both interventions and decision-making.
• Creating arenas for citizen voices in both system design and individual cases.
• Providing services based on citizens' overall needs, goals, and life situations.
• Engaging citizens through trust, co-ownership, accessibility, and coherent plans.
• Reducing contact points creating coherence across departments, e.g. citizen consultants and coordinating case managers.