In 1996, the Permanency Planning for Children Department of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) conducted research that identified existing statutes and actual court practices in the processing of child abuse and neglect cases. This bulletin discussed how information management played a critical role in improving child abuse and neglect case practice and effecting system change. Information management is the effective storage and communication of information to accomplish good practice and support and facilitate the key components to system change: judicial leadership; collaborative team efforts; openness to learning and change; and a concentrated focus on best practice and outcomes for children and families. The effective management of information offers the momentum for change and the means for achieving change. The bulletin is divided into three parts: the national picture -- lessons learned from the field; information management in the Model Courts; and the CIPP (context-input-process-product) approach to information management. In part one, specifics on current information management practices in the field and the lessons learned were reviewed and included the strengths and weaknesses of information in child abuse and neglect practice, the use of a case manager or court administrator responsible for tracking case progress, the use of a computerized data system for spotting cases that had been seriously delayed, and the effectiveness of current management information systems. In part two, a questionnaire was administered to judges on the use of information in decision making within designated Model Courts. Model jurisdictions were designated for the observation of improvement efforts in handling child abuse and neglect cases. In part three, an overview of the CIPP model program evaluation is provided. CIPP refers to the four phases of information assessment: Context evaluation; Input evaluation; Process evaluation; and Product evaluation. Lessons learned from the field indicated that information management is the "process" by which information is managed. It is the process by which discrete bits of information are made meaningful, relevant, and useful to the court, more than just data (more than computers). Technology is only a "tool" facilitating the overall process of managing information. The national study clearly illustrated that information management is a people-driven system, not a computer-driven system. It is the process of collecting, organizing, and combining data in a way that produces meaningful and relevant information for the court that signifies the importance of effective information management. The CIPP model provides an approach for systematically identifying the informational needs of the court or agency and evaluating whether those needs are being met by present information management practices. It also provides an overall approach to implementing changes and acceptability from system professionals. The model fosters organization learning and internal capacity building resting on the assumption that the goal is to improve what is being done to achieve best practice and better long-term outcomes. In summary, effective information management facilitates better decision making, organizational learning, internal capacity building, goal attainment, and systems change.