Working together, identifying challenges and co-designing solutions
IDEA is a collaboration between researchers, disability community organizations, employers, unions, governments and other stakeholders. These partners are coming together through IDEA to identify challenges and co-design solutions to increase the capacity of employers for inclusive employment.
We are a social innovation lab
Social innovation labs (SILs) aim to solve a persistent social problem by bringing together diverse stakeholders—including those most affected by the problem—to identify, co-design, test and implement innovative, yet practical solutions and approaches.
The SIL model recognizes that complex problems require flexibility, broad stakeholder involvement and a systems-based approach. It recognizes that effective solutions must consider the context, complexity and connectedness of systems, that no one stakeholder groups can solve the complex problems involved, and that those most affected by the problems hold the key to better solutions.
At IDEA, the persistent social problem we address is the underemployment and other poor job outcomes of persons with disabilities in Canada. Our partners include persons with disabilities, researchers, employers, employment support organizations, unions, disability organizations and governments.
IDEA’s researchers come from a wide variety of disciplines, from rehabilitation science to disability and social policy, from design and technology to economics and program evaluation. They work closely with the other partners to identify challenges and co-design solutions and evidence-informed resources that support inclusive workplaces.
IDEA is carrying out this work through subject-matter hubs, supported by expertise-driven activity areas.
The work of the IDEA SIL is carried out through five hubs and five activity areas. The subject-matter hubs are each tasked with identifying, developing, evaluating, and scaling up solutions through a partnered, knowledge-to-practice approach. The hubs are supported by five expertise-driven activity areas.
Our hubs
Hub 1: Workplace Systems and Partnerships
Hub 2: Employment Support Systems
Hub 3: Transitions to Work and Career Development
Hub 4: Inclusive Environmental Design
Hub 5: Disruptive Technologies and the Future of Work
Our activity areas
Activity 1: Evidence Syntheses
Activity 2: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility
Activity 3: Training and Skills Development
Activity 4: Communications and Knowledge Mobilization
Activity 5: Measurement and Evaluation
The projects carried out under the IDEA umbrella use a signature five-step methodology. This methodology, shown in the diagram below, takes an integrated knowledge translation approach within a knowledge-to-action framework.
Step 1: Rapid Synthesis
For a given IDEA research question or project, the process begins by taking stock of current knowledge and approaches to gain a global understanding of the topic and identify both what is already working and gaps in knowledge. Rapid synthesis includes conducting environmental scans to identify existing approaches, resources and innovations that have some evidence of success. Sources of information for this step include national and international academic research papers, as well as grey literature such as books, websites, corporate documents and think-tank reports. Field knowledge is also gathered through key informant interviews with experts as part of the rapid synthesis process.
Step 2: Stakeholder Consultation
IDEA stakeholders, provide input to IDEA project teams, from the time of research priority-setting, through to design, evaluation and implementation of solutions. Within the five-step methodology, stakeholder consultations involve discussions with diverse groups. Stakeholders review and discuss rapid synthesis findings, leading to a shared understanding of the key challenges requiring guidance and the tools necessary to increase the capacity of employers to build inclusive workplaces. They also help identify local issues and potential barriers and facilitators for customizing the knowledge and approaches to different geographic regions, jurisdictions, sectors, types of disabilities and more.
Step 3: Rapid Prototyping
Through a co-design process that involves interdisciplinary teams of researchers, persons with lived experience of disability, employers and others, the information gathered from Steps 1 and 2 is synthesized and translated into a prototype solution. This prototype is a first or preliminary guidance document or resource, with accompanying support materials such as implementation tools. Where local guidance and tools already exist, the research team can bypass the prototyping phase and move directly to Step 4.
Step 4: Implementation and Evaluation
Implementation begins with small-scale trials to field-test prototypes and/or existing programs and practices, as well as their supporting tools and materials. This helps to operationalize, refine and evaluate the outcomes of resources. Stakeholder input, as mentioned above, is also a key part of this step, and helps ensure the real-world implementation and evaluation of the guidance and tools.
Step 5: Scaling Up
Local innovations that are shown to be successful in small-scale trials are ready to be scaled up in other contexts, such as different workplaces, sectors and jurisdictions and, if applicable, for different types of needs. Within this step, knowledge is disseminated through a cross-Canada knowledge mobilization strategy that include champions within and beyond the IDEA initiative.
IDEA’s lead investigators are Dr. Emile Tompa, Senior Scientist, Institute for Work & Health, and Dr. Rebecca Gewurtz, Associate Professor, McMaster University. Tompa and Gewurtz have expertise in the areas of disability, inclusion and employment, and have years of experience working with persons with disabilities and other key partners in this space.
Tompa and Gewurtz lead the IDEA National Office team, Tompa as IDEA’s Executive Director and Gewurtz as IDEA’s Director. The National Office team provides centralized and coordinated operational support. Housed at the Institute for Work & Health in Toronto and McMaster University in Hamilton, the National Office ensures that the hubs and activity areas successfully fulfil their mandate to build employer capacity for accessibility, and inclusion.
IDEA receives direction from the IDEA Advisory Committee, which includes international, national and regional leaders in the disability community, industry, labour, government and applied research. The Advisory Committee provides advice, as needed, on research priorities, potential stakeholders to be consulted for specific IDEA projects, dissemination of guidance and tools, strategic partnerships, and strategic direction and sustainability.
Monthly operations governance meetings of Hub co-leads and Activity Area leads are held to ensure that all projects are making timely progress. The monthly meetings also support cross fertilization of ideas.
IDEA also reports to its core funder, New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF), on an annual basis and has an extensive mid-funding period review to ensure it is achieving its milestone targets in a timely manner.