Equity Considerations for Active Contract Management
Consider who is at the table in the ACM process. Frontline staff, partners, and even participants can provide unique perspectives to inform or contextualize the work as well as unearth inequities that may exist. Consider, even if these individuals are not a standing participant in every meeting, what mechanism can be used to elevate their voices and address potential bias in the data or analysis.
Build in opportunities for qualitative data collection and analysis from representative populations as it often helps inform the quantitative data. See examples such as the Urban Institute’s Community Voice and Power Sharing Guidebook, which offers practical advice on community-engaged survey development, or Chicago Beyond’s Why Am I Always Being Studied?, which aims to level the playing field between researchers and communities, for ways to do so that are respectful of individuals and their lived experiences.
Explore the development of personas and user journeys, key methods in human centered design, as components of ACM work to help maintain alignment between the real individuals the work intends to serve and the results the intervention is producing.