Adjacency Methodology

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Typically when a consultant talks about their methodology, they describe what a client can pay them to do. But in our case, it’s much more appropriate to describe how we think.

Gaining this understanding can help describe what we CAN do together. We apply the principles of human-centered design to achieve deep community impact. That means we need to pursue a different consulting model: one that builds public will to share both knowledge and resources. We employ the power of this collective perspective to build organic, sustainable and impactful networks.

Our goal is to bring together the most relevant experience to build those networks. So our methodology, though it may seem linear here, reflects that as well. We continually reference the iterative phases we’ve described below as we design solutions.

DEEP DISCOVERY

  1. Framing

    • What are the challenges and opportunities our community is facing?

    • How has the changing world created NEW opportunities?

    • What are the root causes of the challenges?

      • Mental models

      • Power dynamics

      • Relationships/Connections

      • Policies

      • Practices

      • Resource flows

    • How do we build in an equity perspective from the start?

    • What stories can we collect that help to frame the challenge?

    • How do we ensure sufficient financial, social and intellectual resources are brought to bear?

  2. Research

    • What’s been done before? Who were the individuals and organizations involved?

    • What was learned? What barriers had they identified?

    • What have we learned about current and future needs?

    • What did our community tell us at the time, and how have things changed (e.g. COVID)?

    • What can we learn from other communities or systems?

IDEATE

  1. Convening

    • Who needs to be part of this process, and at what points?

    • Who will be involved in an ongoing way, and what are the group’s expectations?

    • What skill sets, standard and non-standard, need to be gathered?

    • How are we including those with lived experience, those closest to the problems we’ve identified?

    • How have other community initiatives achieved lasting success?

    • How do we jointly recognize when we as team members are a part of the problem?

  2. Ideation

    • What conversations, skills or tools are necessary to work toward resolving these issues?

    • What do those closest to the problem or opportunity need to make progress?

    • How do we design sustainable processes and tools that will help in the long term?

    • What communication objectives and media are needed to deliver messages/calls to action?

    • What skills and resources are needed to prototype, test and implement these ideas?

TEST & IMPLEMENT

  1. Prototype, Test and Reflect

    • How do we build, test and assess quickly and inexpensively?

    • Have we socialized the solutions fully, both inside and outside of our convened group?

    • How have we accounted for diversity, equity and inclusion?

    • What have we learned, and how do we apply this to revisions?

    • What resources are necessary to fully implement?

  2. Understand Constraints

    • What constraints draw the boundaries for our partners?

    • How do we use the talents of each individual to carry out this work?

    • How do we design the concept framework for flexibility going forward?

AMPLIFY

  1. Build Skills

    • How do we build capacity and momentum with our partners even as we prepare to step away?

    • What do our partners need to fully employ these new skills and tools?

    • How best to disseminate the knowledge we’ve developed together over time?

  2. Maintain Momentum

    • What resources are needed to continue the momentum over time?

    • How do we assure that all voices are heard, so that the inevitable changes can be factored in?

Jonathan Pool