Table 1.

Major Themes Regarding Perceptions of Implementation of the BV-PIPS for Home-Based Services

Outsourcing concerns	The BV-PIPS opened the bidding process to out-of-state companies, which many participants viewed as threatening to local economies and the provision of the home visitation EBI. Consideration of ill- prepared out-of-state bidders was described as a waste of time.
Disregard for “subjective” elements: Local expertise and government-CBO collaboration	The BV-PIPS blind bidding process prevented consideration of relevant variables considered “subjective,” such as CBO reputation, community relationships, and preexisting government-CBO relationships. CBO administrators generally felt that their expertise was not fairly evaluated and the complexity of the human services context was minimized.
Threat to home visitation EBI and other evidence-based programs	The BV-PIPS blind bidding process prohibited specification of the home visitation EBI in bids. The majority of participants feared the loss of a successful and well-established EBI in the study system.
Review team (in) expertise	The BV-PIPS reviewers were criticized for lack of knowledge about child welfare services in general and EBIs in particular.
Job insecurity and stress within CBOs	The CBO administrators indicated that a lack of communication and delays during bidding processes adversely affected staff and potentially contributed to staff turnover.