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Browse by kind of work: New program or service concept

New program or service concept
New program or service concept
We're planning a new digital application for benefits renewals. What equity questions should we ask before the design is settled?
Published answer
New program or service concept
You have a program idea and want a clear way to consider equity and access before the design is settled. By the end, you will have a completed equity and access checklist for your program, with clear responsibilities and a review date. You can usually complete routine planning without a consultation, use the same approach for future work, and seek another perspective when added judgment would help.
Questions this topic covers
- We're planning a new digital application for benefits renewals. What equity questions should we ask before the design is settled?
- What access assumptions should I consider while the idea is still taking shape?
- Who should be involved before the design is fixed?
Download this checklist:Word Excel PowerPoint PDF Web page Plain text
Open the New program or service concept path · Explore Minnesota Communities · Launch equity and access checklist · Journey and burden questions · Partner map
If this connects to a change you want to make
Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.
Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →
New program or service concept
Inclusive hiring and selection
We are rewriting a position description. How do we test whether the degree requirement is really job related?
Published answer
Inclusive hiring and selection
You are responsible for a hiring process and want it to find capable people the current process may be screening out. By the end, you will have an inclusive hiring plan for a specific position: job-related requirements with alternatives, accessible outreach, a structured rubric and interviews, accommodation offered to everyone, a bias check built into deliberation, and a plan to review stage-by-stage outcomes with your HR partner.
Questions this topic covers
- We are rewriting a position description. How do we test whether the degree requirement is really job related?
- What should be in our interview rubric so we are not relying on culture fit?
- How do we offer accommodation at every stage without making anyone disclose a disability?
Download this checklist:Word Excel PowerPoint PDF Web page Plain text
Open the Inclusive hiring and selection path · Explore Minnesota Communities · Inclusive hiring lifecycle · Is this requirement job related? · Accessible and culturally responsive meetings
If this connects to a change you want to make
Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.
Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →
New program or service concept
Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan for staff with disabilities
We are redesigning our lead-worker pathway. How do we make it work for staff with disabilities without asking anyone to disclose?
Published answer
Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan for staff with disabilities
You shape how people move into lead and leadership roles and want the pathway to work for staff with disabilities without asking anyone to disclose. By the end, you will have a leadership pathway or sponsorship plan: a transparent pathway map, leadership criteria tested for job-relatedness, sponsors with decision power, an owner for accommodations across every transition, accessible cohort events by default, program-level measures with suppression, and a review date. No one is identified as disabled anywhere in it.
Questions this topic covers
- We are redesigning our lead-worker pathway. How do we make it work for staff with disabilities without asking anyone to disclose?
- Which of our leadership criteria are proxies, and what would replace them?
- How do we make sure accommodations carry across a rotation or a cohort?
Download this checklist:Word Excel PowerPoint PDF Web page Plain text
Open the Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan for staff with disabilities path · Explore Minnesota Communities · Accessible leadership pathways and sponsorship · Leadership criteria: are they job related? · Accommodations across transitions · Mentoring, sponsorship, and reverse mentoring
If this connects to a change you want to make
Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.
Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →
New program or service concept
Equity Pause for a routine decision
I am sending a division-wide meeting invitation. What should I check before it goes out?
Published answer
Equity Pause for a routine decision
You are about to make a routine decision and want a short, honest check of who it affects and what you might change before it goes out. By the end, you will have a short record of the decision: who is affected differently, who can change it, the access needs you checked, what you know and do not know yet, one alternative you considered, and your next step with a review date. You can complete routine decisions on your own and recognize when a fuller analysis applies.
Questions this topic covers
- I am sending a division-wide meeting invitation. What should I check before it goes out?
- Is this small change to our intake schedule something that needs an equity look, or can I go ahead?
- Which routine decisions deserve an equity pause before they go out?
Download this checklist:Word Excel PowerPoint PDF Web page Plain text
Open the Equity Pause for a routine decision path · Explore Minnesota Communities · Plain language and accessible documents · Language access checklist · Equity Analysis Toolkit companion · Record this pause in the open register (optional)
If this connects to a change you want to make
Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.
Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →

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New program or service concept

You have a program idea and want a clear way to consider equity and access before the design is settled. By the end, you will have a completed equity and access checklist for your program, with clear responsibilities and a review date. You can usually complete routine planning without a consultation, use the same approach for future work, and seek another perspective when added judgment would help.

Questions this topic covers

We're planning a new digital application for benefits renewals. What equity questions should we ask before the design is settled?
What access assumptions should I consider while the idea is still taking shape?
Who should be involved before the design is fixed?

If this connects to a change you want to make

Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.

Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →

Inclusive hiring and selection

You are responsible for a hiring process and want it to find capable people the current process may be screening out. By the end, you will have an inclusive hiring plan for a specific position: job-related requirements with alternatives, accessible outreach, a structured rubric and interviews, accommodation offered to everyone, a bias check built into deliberation, and a plan to review stage-by-stage outcomes with your HR partner.

Questions this topic covers

We are rewriting a position description. How do we test whether the degree requirement is really job related?
What should be in our interview rubric so we are not relying on culture fit?
How do we offer accommodation at every stage without making anyone disclose a disability?

If this connects to a change you want to make

Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.

Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →

Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan for staff with disabilities

You shape how people move into lead and leadership roles and want the pathway to work for staff with disabilities without asking anyone to disclose. By the end, you will have a leadership pathway or sponsorship plan: a transparent pathway map, leadership criteria tested for job-relatedness, sponsors with decision power, an owner for accommodations across every transition, accessible cohort events by default, program-level measures with suppression, and a review date. No one is identified as disabled anywhere in it.

Questions this topic covers

We are redesigning our lead-worker pathway. How do we make it work for staff with disabilities without asking anyone to disclose?
Which of our leadership criteria are proxies, and what would replace them?
How do we make sure accommodations carry across a rotation or a cohort?

If this connects to a change you want to make

Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.

Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →

Equity Pause for a routine decision

You are about to make a routine decision and want a short, honest check of who it affects and what you might change before it goes out. By the end, you will have a short record of the decision: who is affected differently, who can change it, the access needs you checked, what you know and do not know yet, one alternative you considered, and your next step with a review date. You can complete routine decisions on your own and recognize when a fuller analysis applies.

Questions this topic covers

I am sending a division-wide meeting invitation. What should I check before it goes out?
Is this small change to our intake schedule something that needs an equity look, or can I go ahead?
Which routine decisions deserve an equity pause before they go out?

If this connects to a change you want to make

Consider whose experience could deepen the answer, what you could try, and how you would know whether it helped.

Find a guided pathway from understanding to practice →