What is natural supports mapping?

• A. Creating a new set of paid coaches for every client.
• B. Identifying who in the client’s network and workplace can provide ongoing support and how to mobilize them.
• C. Replacing informal networks with formal services only.
• D. Documenting natural disasters that might affect employment.

Answer: (B)

Natural supports mapping is about identifying the people in a client’s life who can provide ongoing, everyday support at work and in pursuing employment, and figuring out how to mobilize them into a reliable network. This means looking beyond paid staff to the informal helpers already around the client—family, friends, coworkers, supervisors, mentors—who can offer guidance, encouragement, feedback, task support, transportation, or advocacy as needed. The process involves listing who could help, what kind of help they can offer, when they’re available, and any boundaries or considerations. Then you design a plan to engage them: share goals with the client and supporters, obtain consent, clarify roles and limits, provide any needed brief training so supporters know how best to assist, and set up regular check-ins or updates. The aim is to weave a sustainable, low-cost support system into the client’s everyday environment, supporting independence, job performance, and retention. This approach isn’t about creating new paid coaches, nor about replacing informal networks with formal services, and it isn’t about documenting unrelated events like disasters.