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Organizational

transformation in

integrated employment

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Dan BurkeThe Arc of South Norfolk &

Lifeworks

Allison Hall, Institute for Community Inclusion,

UMass Boston

Amie LulinskiThe Arc

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• What’s necessary for successful

organizational transformation towards

integrated employment?

• How should providers prioritize activities?

• What are the most effective strategies?

• What practices are replicable within your

organizations?

Questions to guide this session

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Individual and family knowledge & engagement

Effective employment supports

Organizational change for community

rehabilitation providers

State-level policy and strategy

www.thinkwork.org

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RRTC on Advancing

Employment for

Individuals with IDD

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Supporting providers to evolve their service delivery framework

through:

• a model framework for building capacity

• a toolkit to guide organizations through the

process

• an efficient scalable strategy (a facilitated,

peer-to-peer learning community) for

supporting transformation across networks of

providers.

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Early ICI research

• Training and Technical Assistance for Providers (T-TAP) project

• Butterworth et al (2007). Community rehabilitation programs and organizational change: A mentor guide to increase customized employment outcomes.

http://www.ttap.org/documents/mentor_guide.pdf

• Case studies that identified 6 characteristics necessary for transformation

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Purpose of the Delphi Panel

• Method for getting a group of experts to

agree on a topic

• “What is most important for providers during

transformation?”

• 2 rounds (identify and then rank)

• See if feedback supports what the research

says …and what can it add?

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Who participated in the Delphi ?

• 36 experts in the field of organizational

transformation

• Represented a range of stakeholder groups

(provider staff and management, self-

advocates, families)

• Had knowledge of, or had participated in, a

transformation process

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Top 10 Characteristics of

Transformative CRPs

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Characteristic #1: Have clear and

consistent goals

Establish an explicit commitment to increase employment.

Goals should be:

• measurable

• flexible

• compelling and easy to grasp

• directly reflective of the core mission

• specific to an established time frame.

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Characteristic #2: Reallocate and

restructure all resources

• Reinvent job positions and expectations

to clearly focus on employment

outcomes

• continuous opportunities for staff

development.

• How organizations invest their

resources is a direct reflection of

priorities, and it has a significant

influence on outcomes.

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Characteristic #3: An active, person-

centered job placement process is

accessible to all, including those with the

most significant disabilities

• Find jobs for 1 person at a time.

• This “just do it” approach creates momentum

and enthusiasm; recognize and celebrate

achieved employment outcomes.

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Characteristic #4: Develop multiple and

diverse

community partnerships

• Create buy in to the change process

• Include local businesses, school districts,

state agency offices, faith-based organizations

• Effective partnerships:

- promote actions that improve outcomes

- foster positive change within systems

- meet local economic needs

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Characteristic #5: Embrace a

holistic approach throughout the

employment process

• Consider the whole person

• Include a career planning process that involves

multiple stakeholders (staff, parents, friends.)

• Pay attention to maintaining personal relationships

as well as developing new ones.

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Characteristic #6: Communicate

expectations often and to all

Internally, intent is communicated:

• By simple, visible practices and daily decisions,

• with employment as a clear and authentic expectation.

Externally, by:

• how money is spent,

• goals-based data tracking,

• policy initiatives,

• simple outreach activities such as newsletters, and

• conversations during all family meetings.

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Characteristic #7: Customer focus and

engagement

• Partner with stakeholders (including self-

advocates, families, and the business

community)

• Identify and solve workforce issues by

matching need with interests and skills for a

mutually beneficial outcome.

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Characteristic #8: Ongoing professional

development of staff

• Frequent and ongoing training, continuing

education, conference participation, and

mentorship opportunities lead to core

competencies and implementation of best

practices.

• Support employees at all levels to

meaningfully contribute their ideas and

energy to the mission.

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Characteristic #9: Agency culture

• Guides what the agency will do (support people

to work in the community) and not do

(sheltered work/subminimum wage).

• Values positive thinking, learning, creativity,

innovation and continuous quality

improvement.

• Transmitted through values-based training,

ongoing technical assistance, and mentoring of

staff that take calculated risks to support

positive outcomes.

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Characteristic #10: Employment

performance measurement, quality

assurance, and program oversight.

• Share accountability across all staff

• Understand baseline data

• Technology-enabled systems for tracking

individual outcomes and staff activities

"What gets measured, gets done."

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2015

National Council of

Executives of The Arc

Summer Leadership

Institute (SLI)

Forum on Employmentdownload it here:

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What they’ve learned…

• Shift to higher

expectations for

employment.

• Increased use of person-

centered approaches;

• Need for organizations

to evolve to meet the

demand.

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Moving forward…

• Messaging and guidance

• Information on

best practices

• Communications

planning

• Engagement strategies

• Funding resources

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Next step: case studies

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List of Candidates & Early

Screening Process• 28 individual organizations were nominated by Delphi

panelists, research team members and other individuals• Initial screening process: Internal conversations among

research team– Consideration of Delphi panelist notes

– Identification of outliers and low-hanging fruit

• Follow-up web research and follow-up with remaining providers using 3 inclusion criteria:

– (1) support at least 50% of persons with IDD; – (2) no longer finance sheltered work; and

– (3) underwent organizational transformation process within past 10 years.

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Screening process: Second Round

• Of the original 28, 9 were selected to go

through to the second round of screening

process

• 30-minute interviews scheduled with key

contacts of each organization

• Key areas covered during interviews

• Other considerations (geographic location,

size, milieu, etc.)

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The Finalists

• AtWork! - Bellevue, WA (Seattle metro)

• Work, Inc. – Dorchester, MA (Boston metro

and Cape Cod)

• The Arc of Westchester – Westchester County

(NYC metro)

• Penn-Mar Human Services - Glen Rock, PA

(rural)

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Words of Advice

• Plan, plan, plan!

• Culture of change

• Engage and empower stakeholders

• Communicate

• Organizational commitment

• It takes time!

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Dan Burke

President & CEO Lifeworks, Inc.

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Massachusetts Transition

• In 2009, our funding sources announced a commitment to Employment First as state employment policy

• In 2011, lawsuits and legal action in Oregon and Rhode Island prompted strong concerns over the future of sheltered workshops

• 2011- Commonwealth announced a Goal to close all sheltered workshops by 2015

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• Dept. of Development Services formed Employment Blueprint committee with funding source representatives, advocacy organizations such as The Arc, vendor agencies and elected /appointed state officials.

• Committee developed Blueprint plan, agreed to postpone closure date for one year due to delay in 2011 plan implementation and funding plan.

• Plan’s goals included Commonwealth providing $27.6 million over 5 years, including money for improved community Based Day Services to complement, enhance and supplement Employment goals.

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Total Number of Individuals Served

175

200

225

250

275

FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

Total Served

Total Served

Fiscal Year

Num

ber

of

Indiv

iduals

Serv

ed

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Individuals Served Under Each Contract

Service

Service FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

Sheltered 116 112 159 47 0

Competitive 59 66 83 92 104

Group 27 44 68 99 111

Community Day 0 0 14 137 198

Total Served 202 222 223 247 262

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Individuals Served in Each Service

Num

ber

of

Indiv

iduals

Serv

ed

Fiscal Year

0

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

200

225

FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

Sheltered

Competitive

Group

Community Day

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Number of LES Employees

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

Staff

Fiscal Year

Num

ber

of

Em

plo

yees

Employees

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Number of Employees

Fiscal YearNumber of

Employees

Individuals

Served

Staff to Client

Ratio

FY 2013 37 222 6:1

FY 2014 42.5 223 5.24:1

FY 2015 53 247 4.66:1

FY 2016 60.75 262 4.31:1

• There was a 74% increase in the number of

employees working in our Employment

Services from FY 2012 to FY 2016

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Contract Dollars

Service FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016

Sheltered $1158447.40 $1574227.20 $496836.00 $0.00

Competitive $670483.50 $356111.60 $229201.00 $291680.70

Group $330969.00 $555063.60 $636180.00 $703123.80

Community Day $0.00 $249718.00 $1658755.00 $2591564.00

Totals $2159899.80 $2735120.40 $3020972.00 $3586368.50

Grand Total: $11,502,360

• Funding increased 58% from FY 2012 to FY

2016

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Contract Dollars

Fiscal Year

Am

ount

(in M

illions

of

Dollars

)

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016

Sheltered

Competitive

Group

Community Day

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Employment Opportunities• Strong organized effort to develop job

opportunities

• Increased incentive program for all employees

to provide job leads

• Hiring of an additional job developer

• Hiring incentive for companies- agency will pay for first 2 weeks of person on payroll, with guarantee of an interview at completion and an exit interview if not hired, for both person and agency.

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Staff & Family Supports/Training

• Meeting with Staff- large groups, small groups and individually-conducted by agency leadership

• Training- provided by agency and in conjunction with the ICI, consultation provided by ICI

• Family Forums-hosted by our agency and others in 2014 with the Arc, schools and funding sources. Our agency continued to host these in 2016.

• Newsletters, e-mails and regular communication with families and staff

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Conversion of Existing Sheltered

Contractors

• Worked with all contractors for Sheltered Work. Began informing them in 2014 of this plan of conversion.

• Provided a 1-year written letter on July 1, 2015 that we would be ceasing activity on June 30, 2016 or earlier

• Converted 2 of 3 largest contracts to enclaves, 3 small contracts hired individuals on an as-needed basis hourly to do mailings at their site

• 2nd largest contractor attempted to do enclave- was not amenable to developing production goals, having a quality work area and developing at least a break-even pricing model. We terminated relationship on Jan. 1, 2016

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Issues/Challenges

• Future of 14 (c ) certificates for group employment

• Increase in Minimum Wage- $8 in 2013 in Mass. to $11 on 1/1/17- $15 minimum looming

• Role of the economy and production/assembly work vs. use of technology

• Ability to identify diversified work opportunities in the big-box store environment

• CMS guidelines and the development of acceptable levels of integration in Group Employment

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Issues/Challenges - cont

• Continued financial support and increased need

for transportation supports.

• Continued need for increased financial support

from the state. Currently have paid $9.5

million of $27.5 million promised 4 years ago in

the Blueprint. This money is primarily

designated to staff ratio in employment and

day services programs to achieve expected

levels of integration and size of groups.

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Questions?Dan Burke dburke@lifeworksma.org

Allison Hall allison.hall@umb.edu

Amie Lulinski lulinski@TheArc.org

www.thinkwork.org