Data Matters

Using data-driven approaches to support evidence-informed social services

Human services are complex — we can help you make sense of the complexity

Our mission is to improve decision making in human and social services by supporting cutting edge data-driven and evidence-informed approaches. We are a diverse and experienced team of social welfare researchers, data analysts and engineers who bring content knowledge together with technical expertise across a range of social service contexts including the use of complex administrative and service-level data. We partner with government, philanthropic and research organisations striving to improve their decision making and service delivery.

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What we offer:

  • We have domain knowledge across a range of social services.
    The data we work with is about real people who present a range of experiences in their interactions with service systems. As an integral part of our approach, we apply our lived experience, knowledge and expertise of the social service environment to the way we work with data.
  • We are experts in working with quantitative social services data. 
    We can provide advice on the types of questions that can be answered with the data that you have, and can provide a range of options for how best to answer those questions using rigorous and transparent approaches. We have particular strengths in:
    • Study design, including policy and program evaluations
    • Traditional statistical methods and advanced AI/machine learning approaches
    • Working with highly sensitive, large scale administrative datasets
    • A range of evidence synthesis approaches, including systematic reviews, evidence and gap maps, meta-analyses, and network meta-analyses.
  • We invest time in building research partnerships
    Over several years, our team has built positive, trusting and longstanding relationships across stakeholders in government, philanthropic and other organisations.
  • We manage data with sensitivity and with a high level of security
  • We have key strengths in analysis of implementation and scaling of evidence informed programs and services.
    Our team and our partners have extensive experience in program implementation from early planning through to analysis of program outcomes.

Monash Social Work is #1 for research quality and impact

This impact was recently recognised by The Australian 2025 Research magazine, which named Monash Social Work the leading Australian research institution in the social work field for the quality and impact of its work.

Monash Social Work recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with a special event to mark five decades of impact across its research, education and partnerships.

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