DEI Discovery
Through our DEI Discovery process, YW Boston helps our partner organizations identify diversity, equity, and inclusion successes, challenges, and opportunities to drive DEI impact. We work with clients to build an organizational analysis process that leverages surveys, interviews, focus groups, and document review to develop a set of recommendations that can be used to design a DEI strategy and action plan.
DEI Pulse Survey
The DEI Pulse Survey assesses an organization’s current diversity, equity, and inclusion state by asking respondents about their perceptions and experiences of their own and the organization’s efforts to advance DEI. The survey is designed to take approximately 15 minutes to complete, and will lead to a summary report and recommendations that the organization can pursue as it continues on its DEI journey. Learn more about our NEW DEI Pulse Survey here.
Action Plan Development
YW Boston works with partner organizations to create an action plan to move the organization toward their equity and inclusion goals. A typical action plan focuses on a 12-month period and includes three major goals, intended outcomes, detailed action steps, accountable parties, performance measures, and potential roadblocks, with a preview of ways to extend the action plan into future years.
The Action Plan Development process includes a series of Dialogues as the mechanism by which we help organizations arrive at an action plan. In these sessions, participants engage in facilitated discussions and activities designed to deepen their understanding of systemic inequities and identify existing strengths, opportunities for growth, and DEI aspirations.
Our usual process involves Dialogues as the mechanism by which we arrive at an action plan, but organizations that meet certain criteria may have the option to bypass the Dialogues process.
Action Plan Implementation
The Action Plan Implementation phase features two primary goals: provide support to the organization and serve as an accountability partner as they take steps to achieve the goals and outcomes articulated in their DEI Action Plan, and help them build the capacity to continue to advance their diversity, equity, and inclusion priorities after our partnership has ended. We meet monthly with representatives from the organization to discuss and celebrate progress, develop solutions to address obstacles that have arisen, identify resources to inform the work, and adjust the action plan as needed. YW Boston will also host Equity Labs, targeted sessions designed to address specific goal areas and challenges during this implementation phase.