BUILDING NEW-FOUND CAPACITY
A Focus on Equity in Outcomes to Achieve Racial Equity in Social and Economic Mobility
The strategic vision of the Next Generation of Human Services Organization Initiative cohort was to build organizational capacity and activate new strategies and solutions that achieve racial equity in social and economic mobility.
Building this new-found capacity means expanding services and solutions to address multi-dimensional community-wide challenges and opportunities and intentionally building equity for all people into the attributes of well-being, such as health, social capital and resilience, safety, dignity, and economic security and mobility.
To further this vision, the cohort set an intentional focus on equity in outcomes, and established a definition of racial equity:
KEY INSIGHT
Racial equity is the condition that would be achieved if one’s racial identity no longer predicted in a statistical sense how one fares. Building racial equity means providing greater resources to compensate for past and current exclusion and discrimination and eliminating structural and systemic barriers to ensure that all people have equal opportunity and power to pursue and achieve social and economic well-being.
To achieve this vision of not only improved human services outcomes, but also increased racial equity in those outcomes, the NextGen cohort developed an action plan to achieve a collective vision in three ways:
1.
Improve each organization’s capacity to design and deliver equity-centric services and solutions
2.
Enhance each organization’s capacity to impact community advocacy, policy, and perception
3.
Bolster the capacity of each organization’s leadership to effect change
Strategically, the cohort leveraged the Human Services Value Curve (HSVC). The Human Services Value Curve is a transformation framework and system-wide theory of change that helps leaders at all levels of an organization and community envision and create a path for achieving better person-centered outcomes for individuals, families, and communities, as well as improve and accelerate human services social value for society.
The cohort built on the Human Services Value Curve by designing action plans to deliver greater race-based equity in social and economic mobility along four dimensions: Governance and Structures, Insight & Evidence, Services & Solutions, and People & Culture.
The Health and Human Services Value Curve
To help human services leaders make progress on their capacity-building journey, Leadership for a Networked World reviewed best practices and worked with practitioners as part of the Human Services Summit at Harvard University to develop a framework referred to as the “Human Services Value Curve.” As an organization advances along the curve, the enabling business models support new horizons of outcomes.
The Human Services Value Curve is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but rather a framework to help leaders envision and create a path for their organization. In addition, the levels of the Human Services Value Curve are fluid, meaning that you may see your organization at various levels depending on the program.
To achieve this vision of not only improved human services outcomes, but also increased racial equity in those outcomes, the NextGen cohort developed an action plan to achieve a collective vision in three ways:
1.
Improve each organization’s capacity to design and deliver equity-centric services and solutions
2.
Enhance each organization’s capacity to impact community advocacy, policy, and perception
3.
Bolster the capacity of each organization’s leadership to effect change
Strategically, the cohort leveraged the Human Services Value Curve (HSVC) The Human Services Value Curve is a transformation framework and system-wide theory of change that helps leaders at all levels of an organization and community envision and create a path for achieving better person- centered outcomes for individuals, families, and communities, as well as improve and accelerate human services social value for society.
The cohort built on the Human Services Value Curve by designing action plans to deliver greater race-based equity in social and economic mobility along four dimensions: Governance and Structures, Insight & Evidence, Services & Solutions, and People & Culture.
The Health and Human Services Value Curve
To help human services leaders make progress on their capacity-building journey, Leadership for a Networked World reviewed best practices and worked with practitioners as part of the Human Services Summit at Harvard University to develop a framework referred to as the “Human Services Value Curve.” As an organization advances along the curve, the enabling business models support new horizons of outcomes.
The Human Services Value Curve is not a one-size fits all solution, but rather a framework to help leaders envision and create a path for their organization. In addition, the levels of the Human Services Value Curve are fluid, meaning that you may see your organization at various levels depending on the program.
Summary of Cohort Action Steps Infographic
The NextGen Initiative aspired to new levels of outcomes and impact that help individuals, families, and communities thrive.
Integral to this aspiration was intentionally connecting and advancing racial equity in social and economic mobility and the outcomes that create the conditions for thriving communities.
To inspire and guide other leaders in this critical equity work, the NextGen Initiative documented the top five action steps along each of the four dimensions of the Human Services Value Curve: Governance and Structures, Insight & Evidence, Services & Solutions, and People & Culture.
Summary of Cohort Action Steps Infographic
The Next Generation of Human Services Organizations aspired to new levels of outcomes and impact that help individuals, families, and communities thrive.
Integral to this aspiration was intentionally connecting and advancing racial equity in social and economic mobility and the outcomes that create the conditions for thriving communities.
To inspire and guide other leaders in this critical equity work, the Next Generation of Human Services Organizations documented the top-five action steps along each of the four dimensions of the Human Services Value Curve: Governance and Structures, Insight & Evidence, Services & Solutions, and People & Culture.