Bernhard Hilkert examines the practice of activating actions by case managers in two differently situated social agencies based on the method of case management in a longitudinal study. It becomes evident that the support aimed at the development and use of the self-help resources of employable individuals must be provided within an asymmetric tension between system-oriented and client-oriented approaches. Depending on the local production conditions of social welfare administrations and indirectly the basic security providers, either varying degrees of self-help opportunities can be opened and utilized, or they can be restricted and obstructed.