Learning path · I'm building a leadership pathway or sponsorship plan

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, cohort events that are accessible every time, program-level measures with suppression, and a review date. No one is identified as disabled anywhere in it.

Hiring, advancement, pay, and retention

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Your path

Six steps to work through in order

Test the pathway, not the personUse Ask to work through the criteria, the transitions, sponsorship, and how the division would see the pattern in its data. Answers will say what needs leadership, HR, or the Equity Director.Ask a question
Consider community contextIf relevantIf the pathway also aims to reach staff from particular Minnesota communities, read the relevant brief for what not to assume.Explore Minnesota Communities
Choose practical resourcesUse the accessible leadership pathways note, the leadership criteria check, the accommodations-across-transitions aid, and the sponsorship note.Accessible leadership pathways and sponsorship · Leadership criteria: are they job related? · Accommodations across transitions · Mentoring, sponsorship, and reverse mentoring
Draft your pathway or sponsorship planComplete the plan. Do not name anyone or record who is disabled. Use the downloaded checklist to write your answers in a tool you normally use. This page does not save them.
Review your workConfirm the pathway map is written, each criterion is tied to leadership work, accommodations have an owner at every transition, cohort events are accessible every time, sponsors hold decision power, measures use aggregates with suppression, and no individual is identified.
Take it to the right peopleBring the plan to division leadership and your Equity Director. Individual accommodation matters go through the confidential process with HR. DSD staff can also request a consultation.Find the right person

Make the work meaningful

What a useful result looks like

Still needs work:

A mentoring program with no sponsorship
A cohort that is accessible on request
A plan that lists who is disabled

Ready to use:

The pathway map is written and public
Criteria are tied to leadership work
Accommodations have an owner across every transition and sponsors hold decision power

Privacy: Never record who is disabled or any accommodation history. Describe the pathway, not people. This page does not save your answers or progress. Notes saved through an earlier version may still be in this browser's site data; this page does not show or delete them.

Published checklist

Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan

Browse and download only. This published checklist is not a form. Staff notes are not saved here.

Browse and download only. This checklist is published from the knowledge base. Staff notes are not filled in or saved on this page.

Pathway, cohort, or sponsorship effort and its ownerIn the published checklist
The pathway, not a person.
What the lead or leadership role requires, which experiences count, and how to get themIn the published checklist
Write the pathway map so advancement does not depend on informal networks.
Leadership criteria and the leadership work each one predictsIn the published checklist
One line per criterion, including unwritten ones. Replace proxies such as executive presence or always-on availability with observable leadership behaviors.
Transitions and the responsible role or office at eachIn the published checklist
Nomination, interview, acting assignment, cohort, new team, return from leave. Identify the responsible role or office at each; keep individual accommodation details in the confidential process.
Accessible every timeIn the published checklist
Materials in advance, captioning, flexible participation formats, no timed or drag-based activities, accommodation offered to everyone in the same sentence as logistics.
Sponsorship with decision powerIn the published checklist
How sponsors are matched with people who want them, what sponsors commit to, and how you will know whether sponsorship leads to assignments, using aggregates only.
How you heard from disabled staff without forcing disclosureIn the published checklist
Aggregate listening, employee resource groups, trusted intermediaries, and how you will report back.
Reviewing roles or offices and their authorityIn the published checklist
Identify the reviewing roles or offices, such as division leadership, HR, the Equity Director, or an employee resource group. Keep individual names out of these notes.

These optional practice paths are for reading and downloading. This page does not save your answers or progress. Notes saved through an earlier version may still be in this browser's site data; someone using this computer could see them. This page does not show or delete those older notes. Nothing you read or download here is sent to your supervisor or used to evaluate you.

Participation and course completion in this program do not count toward DHS-required training credits unless management, a director, or DHS leadership expressly approves an exception.

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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.

Six steps to work through in order

Test the pathway, not the personUse Ask to work through the criteria, the transitions, sponsorship, and how the division would see the pattern in its data. Answers will say what needs leadership, HR, or the Equity Director.Ask a question

Consider community contextIf relevantIf the pathway also aims to reach staff from particular Minnesota communities, read the relevant brief for what not to assume.Explore Minnesota Communities

Choose practical resourcesUse the accessible leadership pathways note, the leadership criteria check, the accommodations-across-transitions aid, and the sponsorship note.Accessible leadership pathways and sponsorship · Leadership criteria: are they job related? · Accommodations across transitions · Mentoring, sponsorship, and reverse mentoring

Draft your pathway or sponsorship planComplete the plan. Do not name anyone or record who is disabled. Use the downloaded checklist to write your answers in a tool you normally use. This page does not save them.

Review your workConfirm the pathway map is written, each criterion is tied to leadership work, accommodations have an owner at every transition, cohort events are accessible every time, sponsors hold decision power, measures use aggregates with suppression, and no individual is identified.

Take it to the right peopleBring the plan to division leadership and your Equity Director. Individual accommodation matters go through the confidential process with HR. DSD staff can also request a consultation.Find the right person

What a useful result looks like

Still needs work:

A mentoring program with no sponsorship

A cohort that is accessible on request

A plan that lists who is disabled

Ready to use:

The pathway map is written and public

Criteria are tied to leadership work

Accommodations have an owner across every transition and sponsors hold decision power

Leadership pathway or sponsorship plan

Browse and download only. This published checklist is not a form. Staff notes are not saved here.

Browse and download only. This checklist is published from the knowledge base. Staff notes are not filled in or saved on this page.

Pathway, cohort, or sponsorship effort and its ownerIn the published checklist
The pathway, not a person.
What the lead or leadership role requires, which experiences count, and how to get themIn the published checklist
Write the pathway map so advancement does not depend on informal networks.
Leadership criteria and the leadership work each one predictsIn the published checklist
One line per criterion, including unwritten ones. Replace proxies such as executive presence or always-on availability with observable leadership behaviors.
Transitions and the responsible role or office at eachIn the published checklist
Nomination, interview, acting assignment, cohort, new team, return from leave. Identify the responsible role or office at each; keep individual accommodation details in the confidential process.
Accessible every timeIn the published checklist
Materials in advance, captioning, flexible participation formats, no timed or drag-based activities, accommodation offered to everyone in the same sentence as logistics.
Sponsorship with decision powerIn the published checklist
How sponsors are matched with people who want them, what sponsors commit to, and how you will know whether sponsorship leads to assignments, using aggregates only.
How you heard from disabled staff without forcing disclosureIn the published checklist
Aggregate listening, employee resource groups, trusted intermediaries, and how you will report back.
Reviewing roles or offices and their authorityIn the published checklist
Identify the reviewing roles or offices, such as division leadership, HR, the Equity Director, or an employee resource group. Keep individual names out of these notes.