Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of information practices of welfare workers and how they fit into daily work of welfare work within a small community sector organisation in Victoria, Australia. Design/methodology/approach – The study was constructivist (interpretivist) in its underpinning philosophy, drawing on both personal constructivist and social constructionist theories. The research methods used, with a sample of 14 welfare workers and two clients, were organisational ethnography and grounded theory. Data collection techniques were interview and participant observation, along with limited document analysis. Data analytic techniques, drawn from grounded theory method, provided a thorough way of coding and analysing data, and also allowed for the development of theory. Findings – Key findings centre on the role of information in welfare work. Welfare workers mostly used resources to hand, “making do” with resources they already had rather than seeking new ones. They also recombined or re-purposed existing resources to make new resources or to suit new circumstances. Their information practices were found to be fluid, consultative and collaborative. The findings of the research have led to a deep exploration of bricolage as a way to describe both the use of resources and the processes inherent in welfare worker information practices. Originality/value – The fact that there is a paucity of research focused on information practices of welfare workers in Australia makes the research significant. The bricolage theoretical framework is an original contribution which has implications for exploring other groups of workers and for the design of information systems and technology.

Based on research in Australia, this article offers explanatory concepts about how welfare workers deal with contradictions between the rationalising 'informationalisation' of welfare system governance and the demands of people-centred welfare practice, or 'technologies of care' . While the situation in Australia with respect to the relationship between government, funders and welfare workers may not be mirrored in other places, the concepts are relevant for the development of local research, insights and practice. Suggestions are also made for further action to bridge the gap between information systems design and welfare practice through the adoption of a dialogic and representational system for more effective interoperable design that reflects the needs of the major parties involved, including funders, designers and particularly welfare workers.

Purpose -This paper aims to address the need for responsive methodologies to investigate how information and communication technologies (ICTs) are used in non-business and non-corporate environments. Design/methodology/approach -The paper presents a case study on developing an IT strategic plan in a community organisation using the process modelling and analysis methodology called "Co-MAP". Findings -Co-MAP as a methodology is significant in being a participatory, responsive, and non-obtrusive tool to work with welfare workers in getting to articulate information, knowledge and technical issues for decision making.Research limitations/implications -The research provides a way of obtaining knowledge about structuring of social-technical relationships in a welfare organisation through a sympathetic approach to its business and culture. Practical implications -Co-MAP could be fruitfully used in other organisations, though whether this needs an external facilitator to carry out the process and manage the complex data analysis process is a moot point. Originality/value -The significance of this case study is that it develops a model for adaptation of how to research and represent data, information, and knowledge flows within a social services organisation, for which there are few other detailed case studies.

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