This guide explains how to design and implement financial work supports in order to improve family and child well-being. The information provided draws heavily from the study of these three programs that increased employment and earnings while improving employment stability, boosting income, and reducing poverty: Minnesota Family Investment Program, Canada's Self-Sufficiency Project, and Milwaukee's New Hope Project. An introduction covers why financial supports for work have been attempted and explains the organization of the guide. The remaining chapters are in these three sections: (1) The Promise of Making Work Pay (overview of work supports, three innovative programs, research findings); (2) Designing Financial Supports for Work (whether and how to target supports, providing supports inside or outside the welfare system, program cost and other budget issues, linking supports with other policies and services); and (3) Implementing Financial Supports for Work (promoting access to existing work support, overcoming barriers to participation, marketing and explaining work support, verifying employment and developing a payment system, staff training and interagency collaboration). Appendices include an estimated cost of refundable state earned income tax credits table, a state earned income disregard policies table, and projected costs and effects of various earnings disregards. There are a list of programs, organizations, and contact information; 29 references; a list of recent publications on MDRC projects; 13 boxes; and 3 tables. (MO)