The workbook uses the mechanism of a hypothetical county facing the problems of jail overcrowding, fragmentation of the criminal justice system, and persons inappropriately placed in criminal justice and related human service programs. This case approach demonstrates some of the issues involved in using alternatives to incarceration and maximizing coordination and cooperation among criminal justice and human service agencies. The systems analysis approach considers the effects of policy options on the entire system and related human services. The planning process involves identifying issues and goals, gathering and analyzing information, formulating policy, developing an action plan, and monitoring and evaluating any changes. The manual explains how to organize a planning group and gather and analyze the data needed to assess a community's service needs. It recommends identifying pertinent data, choosing appropriate data collection methods, identifying data sources, and deciding whether to use manual or computer analysis. The guidelines also cover policy statement development related to community goals. The manual gives instructions for developing written action plans, soliciting community feedback, and presenting an action plan to the appointing authority. The authors suggest an outline for writing progress reports and an evaluation framework. A glossary and a reading list of over 200 sources are provided. Appendixes present additional information regarding technical aspects of the planning process, including system load analysis, system cost analysis, data elements, and a community tolerance questionnaire.