Building Equitable Thinking and EQUITABLE INNOVATION into Project Management | Tidal Equality

“They’re on the floor and don’t have access to a computer,” she realized. “So how would they be able to submit a request for support?”

She came up with a short-term and long-term solution. Short-term, they’ll modify the submission form to allow a user to submit a request on behalf of another person. After the initial product launch, they’ll install iPad stations on the warehouse floor.

“It raised the question of how equitably we had set up the plan,” she admitted. “Once we roll this out and have the iPad stations working, we will add further, continuous improvement components. We’ll add a section to look at alternative ways to make the support portal even more accessible and inclusive.”

An audible version for ticket submissions is on the list of considerations. So, too, are versions of the portal translated into additional languages, to better serve their diverse workforce.   

“We’re adding in these extra components,” she said, “which, honestly, we didn’t originally plan for.”

It’s an example of a small-scale equitable innovation, because individuals who would have been disadvantaged–inadvertently–by the original plan, will now benefit along with their colleagues. For these people who can now submit a request, this small equitable innovation is a meaningful one. However minor, it results in a more inclusive, equitable outcome.

An equitable innovation can trigger exponential change 

Moving on, it was our discussion of Marnie’s large-scale plans that REALLY got her animated. And it got me thinking about the universal relevance of her ideas.

Marnie is overseeing a BIG initiative at Busch® Systems. She’s helping create a Project Management Office (PMO). This PMO will serve as a central hub for the company. It will establish guidelines and set ground rules for any future project, large or small. 

Yet what struck me was how much of what she described could apply to ANY project, ANYWHERE.

Sitting on our zoom call, I could almost see Marnie looking out over an imaginary blank canvas. It was as though she was envisioning endless possibilities for how Equity Sequence® could be applied.

“There are tons and tons of ideas of things we could do,” she said.

She used the term exponential growth to describe the scope and breadth of change she envisioned. “I think there’s huge potential.” 

As I learned, Project Managers go through a certification process to become certified in the profession.