Engaging with the Mouse and the Elephant means bringing an intensive, interactive experience to your company. In other words, this is not 100-people-in-a-lecture-hall programming—we don’t believe that complex goals and objectives relating to issues of diversity and inclusion can be reached by treating your employees as empty vessels to be filled with knowledge. People need to get up, participate, engage multiple learning systems, and get to know their fellow participants in new and unexpected ways.
Because of the highly-interactive nature of our programming, we use a cohort model. This means that participants in the program:
- Participate in a common experience
- Can learn and share in a safe, controlled environment
- Are expected to participate throughout the course
- Will work on solutions individually and as a cohort
When participants graduate, they will be prepared to act as leaders, catalysts, and change agents in the organization on issues of diversity and inclusion.
Cohort Size and Composition
The ideal cohort size is between 24-48 participants. Within each cohort, participants will also be divided into small groups (usually 6 or 8 participants per small group). Each small group will have a dedicated facilitator who will work with their small group throughout the course of the program, so they will be able to build the trust and rapport necessary for honest, productive dialogue and reflection.
Cohorts can be composed of a variety of participants, though the most impact is generally gained when the class includes a diversity of experience (a mix of newer and seasoned employees), responsibility (individuals with different job descriptions or from different divisions), and/or background (diversity of race, religion, age, gender, etc.). This in-class diversity enables the cohort to serve as a microcosm of the organization, and allows participants to experience and examine difference within the organization first-hand.
A Standard Engagement
A standard relationship with the Mouse and the Elephant is a year-long engagement that includes an initial baseline assessment, quarterly on-site work, support programming in between on-site functions, and quarterly reporting and follow-up with leadership.
In the first year of a relationship, the cohort would go through a baseline version of the program.
Should you choose to continue the relationship into a second year, in Year 2, a new cohort of 24-48 would engage in the initiative, with some participants from the first cohort tapped to serve as small-group facilitators for the second cohort. We would also follow up with all Year 1 participants periodically throughout the year to provide additional support, to keep topics of diversity and inclusion on their mind, and to learn from their experiences in applying what they learned from their experience. These check-ins allow us to continually update and improve the Year 1 experience to best meet the needs of your company.
Program Outcomes and Benefits
We customize our program to address your unique organizational culture, objectives, and needs. However, all initiatives are constructed in pursuit of these target outcomes:
- Increased employee engagement, satisfaction, and retention.
- Improved workplace communication, collaboration, and productivity.
- Healthier workplace environment and stronger teams.
Additional benefits of this programming include:
- The organization is better prepared to navigate complicated issues of diversity.
- People in the organization gain a better understanding of people in the organization.
- Employees will feel included, heard, validated, and valued.
- Employees will feel more welcome and comfortable at work.
- Employees will feel comfortable with, and be able to discuss, issues of difference.
Program Snapshot
The year-long curriculum includes:
- Initial baseline assessment to identify needs and measurable outcomes.
- Quarterly in-person trainings with experienced presenters facilitating innovative and interactive activities.
- Activities and assignments between trainings to reinforce and build on knowledge learned, and foster continuous development.
- Post-program assessment to compare participants to a non-participant peer group and measure program impact.
See what clients have to say about working with The Mouse and the Elephant.
