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Vol. 28, No. 2
July 2025
Successful Leaders Model Crucial Conversations
In child welfare, engaging in meaningful, high-stakes conversations is critical to our work with families, community members, and service providers. Integrating the crucial conversation framework into child welfare leadership practice strengthens communication, models accountability, and fosters a culture rooted in psychological safety and shared purpose. Practice Notes spoke with Kim Bailey, Program Manager with Onslow County Department of Social Services (DSS), to understand how she has crucial conversations with her teams and what she sees as the benefits of having them.
Bailey has nine years of experience overseeing Intake and Assessments in Onslow County. She has worked in multiple capacities within child welfare, including as a social worker and social work supervisor. These experiences give her a deep understanding of the field. Bailey emphasizes that one of the most valuable aspects of child welfare is relationships. She emphasizes that clear communication is a necessary foundation for building strong relationships with both staff and families.
Building Confidence, Accountability, and Psychological Safety
Bailey acknowledges that understanding different types of communication is a key element of her leadership style. She values having clear norms of communication within her team. One such norm is normalizing mistakes in practice.
"Don't be afraid to make a mistake," she says. "We're all human, and that's how we learn. Recognize and reiterate that this is a safe place for them. Everyone needs a place where they can say the things they need to say and then pick your head up, dust yourself off, and move on."
Bailey models clear communication through consistent case staffing check-ins and weekly supervision with her staff. This helps her learn more about their individual needs. She provides support based on the supervisor's needs. In turn, she expects supervisors to model their support for front-line workers in the same manner. She stresses the importance of knowing each member of her team well and creating a safe atmosphere for open communication.
Kim Bailey
Bailey recalls having to engage in one of the most difficult conversations of her career with a former supervisor who was experiencing burnout. "We all have trauma, and we all have parts of us that lead us to this career path," she says. "Sometimes that unresolved trauma can creep up on us. We see so much of the bruised and broken that we can't pretend that it doesn't have an impact on us...I think I saw, or heard someone say, 'Expecting us not to be impacted by trauma is like walking through water and expecting not to get wet.'"
A key principle and skill from the crucial conversation framework is Choose Your Focus. This skill is about being sure you hold the right conversation. Bailey approached this situation not as a disciplinary concern, but as a supportive conversation. The outcome was a mutual understanding that the best decision was for this supervisor to leave the agency. "I hated that because she was a stellar supervisor," Bailey says. She believes this conversation, though hard, was necessary for the care of the individual, the families we serve, and the organization.
Bailey also uses crucial conversations to build supervisor capacity. When meeting with a supervisor, rather than offering all the answers, she encourages critical thinking by welcoming their ideas, questions, and perspectives. This promotes autonomy and confidence in decision-making. That approach, combined with an open-door policy, supports two-level decision-making.
Bailey values her deep connection with supervisors and social workers. They seek her input and collaborate in joint staffing. She emphasizes the importance of balancing high expectations with psychological safety. She creates a space where staff feel empowered to speak up, make mistakes, and grow, while at the same time holding them accountable to be transparent and compassionate in their decisions.
Training and Development Bolsters Internal Practices
Internal training sessions on crucial conversations, combined with leadership coaching and ongoing professional development, have strengthened communication across Onslow County DSS teams. Having trainers on staff has helped reinforce crucial conversation skills throughout the department. Bailey also highlights her team's internal policy presentations, which feature a social worker presenting to their peers. She believes that this enables social workers to be accountable to learn and share policy in a more interactive format. While Onslow County DSS has offered various training to promote holistic approaches to child welfare, crucial conversations have provided a consistent, actionable framework that supports day-to-day communication and leadership.
Final Thoughts
When asked what advice she would offer to other program administrators, Bailey emphasizes the importance of self-reflection, recognizing personal biases, and leading with a clear plan for change. She encourages leaders to give credit where it is due, involve staff in decision-making, and lead with transparency, vulnerability, and accountability. For Bailey, the heart of effective leadership rests in relationships. Crucial conversations provide the language and structure to develop those relationships with intention and care.