Building Capacity from the Inside Out:
Engaging Insiders to Enhance Disability
Inclusiveness
U. S. Business Leadership Network
Dr. Antonio Ruiz
Dr. Hannah Rudstam
Disability & Business Technical Assistance Center--NE
Providing training and technical support in New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and U. S. Virgin Islands
1 www.edi.cornell.edu

Plan for session …
1. Why this? Why now? Challenges in building capacity for disability & employment programs
2. Understanding barriers to employing people with disabilities: The DBTAC Barrier Intervention Model
3. Building capacity from the inside out: An overview of the ADA Trainer Network Program
4. Reaching employers: Lessons learned thus far
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1.
Why this? Why now? Challenges in building capacity for disability & employment programs
The conceptual lens:
How have disability issues been framed for businesses?
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4

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The Americans
With Disabilities
Act
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Why is it still a journey?
Why haven’t we arrived?
…Because the main stakeholders in the disability and employment landscape have not operated from the same world map.
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Maps of the world
Businesses
Disability
Service Providers
People with
Disabilities
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Each world has its own language, needs and culture
Businesses
Language of value propositions
Need to make a profit
Culture of performance
Disability
Service Providers
Language of program building
Need to make placements
Culture of service
People with Disabilities
Language of equal treatment
Need to make a living
Culture of justice
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These worlds don’t have to converge.
They just need to find a few sweet spots.
Businesses
Disability
Service Providers
People with
Disabilities
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Businesses
Need to see service providers as any other suppliers/contractors
Need to see people with disabilities as an untapped source of talent instead of as a risk
Disability
Service Providers
Need to see themselves as business partners
Need to see people with disabilities as individuals with unique talents and aspirations that are valued in the workplace
People with Disabilities
Need to see themselves as providing a valued contribution to business goals
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To build capacity, we need to see from the inside of each other’s world maps…
• Business community insider
• Disability community insider
• Local or regional insider
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To build capacity, we need to see from inside each other’s world maps
The ADA Trainer Network program is an attempt to deliver the message by recruiting…
•Insiders from the disability community
•Insiders from the local/regional community
•Insiders from the business community
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2.
Understanding barriers to employing people with disabilities:
The DBTAC Barrier Intervention Model
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Collective —Organizational
Climate Barriers
Can’t Barriers
Shared Behaviors:
Policies/Practices
Can’t Barriers Won’t Barriers
Individual
Behaviors
Individual
Attitudes/Beliefs
Won’t Barriers
Shared Attitude
Systems
Individual
Barriers
Don’t know
Barriers
Individual
Knowledge/Information
Don’t know Barriers
Shared knowledge
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Can’t Barriers
Shared
Policies/Practices
√
We have needed information systems
√We have a compelling shared vision
But we lack effective organizational policies/practices around diversity and disability
Collective/climate--based barriers
Can’t Barriers Won’t Barriers
Behaviors Attitudes/Beliefs
√
I have needed knowledge
√I am willing and committed
But my behaviors are in the way
√ I have the right behaviors
√ I have needed knowledge
But my attitudes and beliefs are in the way
Individual barriers
Don’t know
Barriers
Knowledge/Information
√ I have the right behaviors
√I am willing and committed
But I lack knowledge
Don’t know Barriers
Shared knowledge
√We are willing and committed
√We have organizational policies & practices
But we lack shared knowledge systems around diversity and disability
Won’t Barriers
Shared
Attitudes/Beliefs
√ We have right policies/practices
√ We have needed knowledge
But we lack a compelling shared vision around diversity & disability
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The DBTAC Barrier Intervention Model:
Examples of Barriers
Individual
Level
Don’t know
Barriers
Individual gatekeepers/decisionmakers’ knowledge:
• lack accurate knowledge of disability laws
• lack of knowledge of market, population, customer trends
Can’t
Barriers
Individual gatekeepers/decisionmakers’ behaviors:
• discomfort in interacting with employees with disabilities
• unable to manage accommodations
• hiring behaviors —”hire those who are just like me”
• ineffective mentoring of employees with disabilities
Won’t
Barriers
Individual gatekeepers/decisionmakers’ attitudes:
• Lowered expectations of people with disabilities
•
Fear of lawsuits
•
Fear of negative impact on customers
Collective
Climate
Level
Shared organizational knowledge:
• Organizational knowledge sharing systems exclude any consideration of disability
Shared organizational practices/policies
• Obvious dis-incentives (e.g. no organization-wide accommodation budget, diversity/disability-inclusiveness not part of leaders’ performance expectations)
• Hidden dis-incentives (e.g. unrealistic productivity demands)
Shared organizational vision
• No compelling vision/mission around disability or diversity
• No compelling business case made for disability-inclusiveness throughout organization
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Interventions
On-line or inperson training
Knowledge dissemination
— e.g. briefs, newsletters, articles, etc.
Interventions
Changing performance expectations for managers
Coaching for managers: leading for disability inclusiveness
Don’t know
Barriers
Can’t
Barriers
Individual
Level
Collective
Climate
Level
Most of our interventions are here
But many of the barriers are here
But many of the barriers are here
Interventions
Create resource groups or communities of practice around disability
Build disability inclusiveness updates into shared conversation spaces
Barriers
Interventions
Give leaders real-life experience with employees with disabilities
Exposure to success stories of other
But many of the barriers are here
But many of the barriers are here
But many of the barriers are here
Interventions
Eliminate disincentives —e.g. create centralized accommodations budget
Examine work routines & job designs —eliminate rigidity, introduce flexibility
Interventions
Craft a compelling organizational vision around disability inclusiveness & the business case
Match vision to mission
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3.
Building capacity from the inside out:
An overview of the ADA Trainer Network Program
To enable “insiders” to deliver the disability message…
•By providing high quality, inter-active programs across a range of customer-driven disability topics
•By supporting a network of qualified “insider” trainers with trainthe-trainer sessions, program plans, materials and web-based support
•By enabling people with disabilities to be seen as experts—as viable trainers
•By standardizing a program approach so that we can better assess impact
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Program 9
Accessible
Websites:
Everyone Benefits
Program 1
Disability
Awareness Program 2
Getting Hired and
Moving Ahead in a
Job When Working with a Disability
Program 8
Accessible
Technology in the
Workplace
ADA Trainer
Network
Offering
Program 3
Tapping into Talent:
Best Practices in
Employing People with Disabilities
Program 7
Accessibility for
Private Sector
Businesses
Program 6
Accessibility for
Government
Entities
Program 4
Program 5
Hidden Disabilities
Serving Customers with Disabilities
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4.
Reaching employers: Lessons learned thus far
• The power of message is enhanced by using trainer-experts who themselves have disabilities
– Walking the talk
– Seeing someone with a disability as an expert
– Human experience with disability enriches the material (but with some caveats)
– “The devil’s in the details”
• Balancing program consistency with customization
• Encourage trainers to use training session as initial entry to build upon local networks —get away from a “one shot deal” and toward a sustained partnership
• The need to get beyond a sole reliance on legal compliance
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Activity…
1. As a group, read the scenario
2. Discuss your response to the questions in the small group
3. Debrief as a large group
• Disability inclusive business strategies
• The return on investment of disability inclusiveness
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Finally, remember this …
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