Building a multi-Abacus structure
On first encounter, the PIE Abacus may seem to be essentially a more sophisticated version of the Pizzazz on paper; and it is true that all the feedback from the initial pilots confirms that it does that job very well. (See: What are they saying about the PIE Abacus? HERE)
In addition, because the PIE Abacus puts your assessments and plans on line, each Abacus created can be viewed at a distance, by your opposite numbers in other services, and by 'Head Office', to get an overview of progress across the agency or network as a whole. But this is not yet half of the potential in this software.
An initial PIE Abacus licence comes with not just one but three Abacuses; and you can use these for different areas or focusses of your work. But you can then add more, to suit the more complex structures of a larger agency or network, to give a far clearer picture of what is happening in each area.
You can think of these as being like Lego blocks; with them, you construct a framework that reflects your services. Except that, unlike Lego blocks, here any one Abacus can speak to any other - not just the ones they are in closest contact with.
For an illustration of this in practice, do see:
NB: there is a small additional cost for each additional Abacus over and above the initial allocation of three. (See typical licence costs, HERE) This helps to ensure that the larger agencies pay a little more for their use of the software; which in turns helps to bring down the costs for others.
(For more on the principles behind this costings approach, see 'Costs and sustainability': HERE)
The simplest, most effective way to evaluate and improve your PIE from Daniel O'Brien on Vimeo.
For applications in particular settings, see:
The PIE Abacus – in medium to large agencies, HERE.
The PIE Abacus – in local practice networks, HERE.
The PIE Abacus – in small and local services, HERE.
The PIE Abacus – in research and communities of practice, HERE.
The PIE Abacus – in service user-led assessments, HERE.
The PIE Abacus – with services using PIEs1, HERE.
FAQs: HERE