Services we offer:

The Improve Group is a worker-owned cooperative that helps government clients gain clarity and insight to make a greater impact. Our powerhouse team is experienced in managing complex projects. As needed for projects, we partner with community and subject matter experts. We work across topic areas to provide:

Evaluation: Partnering with clients and community members to apply tested and innovative qualitative and quantitative evaluation methods to learn from their work and deepen impact.

Community Engagement: Designing creative pathways for Minnesotans of all identities to give useful input on State programs and policies that affect them. We inform public sector leaders seeking to transform systems to achieve better results.

“Other consultants were fine to do the bare minimum but … IG was willing to do more work to get more interviews.”
-State of Minnesota client

Strategic planning: Aligning vision, strategy, and action to accomplish an organization’s mission. Our evaluation skillsets help us conduct useful environmental scans to inform strategic plans and craft realistic plans for measuring progress.

Facilitation and planning: Designing and facilitating accessible meetings of staff, workgroups, and task forces. We manage technology as well as serve as engaging facilitators.

“Your team was really able to help us think and move forward in a way that I don't think we would have been able to do without you.”
-State of Minnesota client

We understand and respond to common constraints:

  • State staff are busy. We focus time with your team on key milestones. We use productive check-ins to keep work moving without taking too much of your time.
  • We can work with your team to justify the need for incentives to increase participation.
  • We work with partners and apply our equity lens to reach people whose voices have been historically underrepresented.
  • We can contract quickly (see details about contracting vehicles below) and have capacity to complete work under tight deadlines.
  • We are well-versed in Minnesota's State Accessibility Standards and can produce products and services that comply with WCAG 2.1 and Section 508 guidelines. 
  • You might not be sure where to start. We facilitate you through identifying what is most useful to know. We interpret data with you and deliver reports that are clear and useful—not a data dump.

Would one or more of these supports be valuable to you? Reach out to Dan Goldstein and we can help scope out a workplan that is right for you and guide you through the contracting process!

Contracting with IG:

We are a Minnesota Certified Targeted Group Business. Here are some ways that you can efficiently, and directly contract (non-competitive) with our team:

Equity Select:

Contracts up to $100,000 using Equity Select within your agency.

Touch base with the Professional/Technical Services Coordinator at your agency and they can support you with getting this initiated.

Projects are not limited to any service categories.

MAD’s Master Contract:

Contracts up to $250,000 (a 6% service fee is added to the total scope).

To initiate a MAD contract, you can contact Beth Bibus at Minnesota Management and Budget. We can give you more guidance on this during the process.

MAD contracts are eligible for projects that fall under any of the following service categories:

  • Specialized program/public policy analysis and evaluation;
  • Qualitative and quantitative research and/or survey design;
  • Meeting design consultation and facilitation;
  • Specialized organizational development and consultation;
  • Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging consultation and facilitation;
  • Planning; Writing and communication;
  • Project management and process improvement.

Data Analytics Master Contract:

Contracts up to $250,000 (no service fee).

To initiate a Data Analytics Contract, contact Mark Haselman at the Minnesota Department of Administration. We can give you more guidance on this during the process.

Data Analytics contracts are eligible for projects that fall under any of the following service categories:

  • Data driven organizational change;
  • Customer/community-focused data analytics;
  • Strategic planning and data quality analysis. 

Work Examples:

DCYF: Engagement to explore potential re-structured child maltreatment reporting
Our team used a survey and listening sessions to hear from potential or mandated child abuse reporters about potential benefits and drawbacks of a centralized system.
 
MDA: Engaging food producers about licensing
We interviewed and conducted focus groups with those seeking to sell food products in Minnesota to inform the MDA in considering re-structuring food licensing.
 
MHFA: Administering the Olmstead Quality of Life Survey
To measure changes in quality of life for people with disabilities, we designed and implemented a longitudinal survey of people with disabilities who live in settings that may be segregating.
 
MDE: Evaluating the federal Preschool Development Grant
We worked with grantees, MDE, and community liaisons to evaluate the Preschool Development Grant, a cross-agency collaboration with blended funding.
“The Improve Group’s approach to the work balanced project co-creation with state staff with understanding the competing priorities of staff that result in capacity limitations. They were well prepared for any meetings, provided a clear work plan and exhibited adaptability as emerging needs and project nuances came to the surface.”
-State of Minnesota Client
MDH: Evaluating Safe Harbor Minnesota
We worked with MDH and consulted youth advisers to use surveys, focus groups, and quantitative analysis of program data to identify strengths and opportunities for Safe Harbor.
 
State of Minnesota: Facilitating statewide collaboration among employment supports services providers
We planned and facilitated 15 regional collaboration meetings with 50-150 participants each to help local areas expand collaboration tosupport Minnesota’s E1MN partnership.
 
MDE: Facilitating meetings and drafting a report for a task force on school finance
We provided meeting facilitation and report-writing for an MDE task force on financial supports for low-income students, multilingual learners, students of color, and Indigenous students.
 
MDE: Engagement to inform Kindergarten Fall Assessment
We gathered input from community members about the Kindergarten Fall Assessment. Over 2 months, we hosted 28 focus groups, four of which were in Spanish, Hmong, or Somali.
 
DEED: Improving processes and workflows
We worked with DEED’s business development team to improve processes. We interviewed key informants and facilitated workshops with staff to map current work and collaboration gaps; identify change priorities; and review best practices from other states as part of shaping strategies.
 
State of Minnesota: Interagency Facilitation and Planning
We facilitated an interagency collaborative between DHS, DEED, and MDE to develop an annual plan to move forward their collective work in promoting adoption of the E1MN Youth in Transition Framework among schools and employment service providers across the State.