CWDS Glossary

A federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United States. The DOJ provides child welfare agencies with up-to-date criminal history of clients and caregivers.

The process of designing, developing, and implementing a software solution. Design is the planning phase of software development, Development is the build phase, and implementation is the act of connecting IT solutions together to support the business process.

A design approach where the purpose is to provide the answer or solution that previously could not be estimated until the Development Team conducted actual work to resolve a design problem.

A self-organizing, cross-functional team of people who collectively are responsible for all of the work necessary to produce working, validated solutions.

An organizational practice that emphasizes the collaboration and communication of both software developers and other information technology professionals while automating the process of software delivery and infrastructure changes. It aims at establishing a culture and environment where building, testing, and releasing software can happen rapidly, frequently, and more reliably.

An Agile Development Pre-Qualified (ADPQ) vendor pool labor category that provides support in the following areas: continuous integration, continuous deployment, automated testing, server configuration scripting, process automation, and operating system administration support.

An approach that allows child protective services to respond differently to accepted reports of child abuse and neglect. Differential Response services are provided by community-based organizations and can either be provided to the family in lieu of Child Welfare Services (Path 1) or as a supplement to Child Welfare Services (Path 2). A Path 1, Differential Response is chosen when allegations do not meet statutory definitions of abuse or neglect, and the family is given an opportunity to embrace community services. A Path 2 Differential Response is chosen when reports meet statutory definitions of abuse or neglect, and assessments indicate that with targeted services a family is likely to make needed improvements to improve child safety.

The delivery of digital information (data or content) and transactional services (e.g., online forms, benefits applications) across a variety of platforms, devices, and delivery mechanisms (e.g., websites, mobile applications, and social media).  Digital services may be delivered to internal customers, external customers, or both.

An organization’s method of regaining access and functionality to its IT infrastructure after events like a natural disaster, cyber-attack, or even business disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. A variety of disaster recovery (DR) methods can be part of a disaster recovery plan. DR is one aspect of business continuity.

The Disaster Recovery Guide is intended to be a launch pad for those seeking help with the business continuity planning process.