FAQ

OUR WORK LEADS TO CHANGE

Still have questions? Our Team has the answers. Check out answers to the questions we get the most.

Our Process

• How do we benefit from one of your assessments?

  Our customized assessments are meant to understand your current capacities and identify potential boundaries or challenges to affecting meaningful change. Our assessments help uncover those challenging process points, fiscal barriers, and other potential roadblocks to focus on resilient responses and sustainable solutions.

• What if we just need an assessment and we’re not ready for implementation can you work with us?

  Absolutely we love clients who are thinking strategically about the way forward but also understand that it doesn’t happen overnight. Our assessments are designed to understand what the path toward your mission goals is. Our team can work with you on this first step and identify what resources your organization needs to have in place to support implementation – now or in the future.

• How long does an assessment take?

  Most of our assessments average six months from introductions to final report brief. Because we customize our approaches to your needs, our intake call captures key characteristics to understand your organization and develop a timeline that works for everyone.

• What can we expect from a site visit?

  See our site visit guide here to learn more.

• We’ve never worked with a virtual team before what can we expect?

  Our team translates our in-person facilitation and guidance to online meetings, virtual whiteboards and other resources that ensure engagement and keeps your project moving. We schedule routine phone or video calls to keep track of tasks and processes, periodic virtual workshops to facilitate collaboration, and provide you with virtual resources via our online network space.

• We’ve have worked with consultants before and already have a solution. Can you just help us with implementation?

  One of the benefits of IDEA analytics is our flexibility to pick up or put down at any point in the process. Whether you have priorities change, or other needs, we understand that the process of change takes time to be most effective. If you have already identified a solution, part of our work will ensure that it is the correction solution and fit, then we can move forward with implementation. Schedule a screening call with us to determine how we can work together.

Services

• What do you mean by Building Analytical Capacity?

  At IDEA Analytics, we see Building Analytical Capacity as a balance of human and technology resources supporting equitable and ethical data processes and outcomes informing your data-driven decision making. We have found many organizations believe that having a single person or technology platform is the solution, yet there are still challenges in answering to your stakeholders with data. Our five domain assessment of organizational characteristics enables you to understand current capacity and how to grow for the future.

• We are looking for a specific assessment, but I don’t see that listed, can you help?

  IDEA analytics uses human centered design processes and many other design methods to understand intent, know context and people, frame insights, and explore concepts to develop what your organization needs for the future. Whether you’re looking for a gap analysis, SWOT assessment, or some other type of evaluation, chances are we use that and much more.

• What’s the difference between a Technology Assessment and a Building Analytical Capacity assessment?

  Great question! This depends on your organization and organizational goals. The five domains evaluated for our Building Analytical Capacity process includes technology. This is focused on data storage and technology platforms that support your data processing and analysis. A Technology Assessment is a broader assessment that focuses on all technology used within the organization, in addition to supporting the planning phases for transforming your operations into an online environment. Digitizing your processes requires core capacity for your organization and your stakeholder or customer ability to connect. We leverage similar design processes in both assessments to determine best processes for implementing change.

• We’ve been running our program for a while, can IDEA help us evaluate it and suggest improvements?

  Congratulations! Sustainable programs and services are excellent for communities, and we are excited that you want to ensure you are providing the best services possible. We use both quantitative and qualitative research methods to measure program efforts and outcomes. Gather your program information and logic model(s) (if available) and contact our team for a screening call to determine how we can help.