A key feature to keep in mind regarding the drivers is their integrated and compensatory nature.

Integrated – means the philosophy, goals, knowledge, and skills related to the new program or practice are consistently and thoughtfully expressed in each of the implementation drivers.  For example, if the use of data for progress monitoring is an important key feature of the innovation, then comfort and experience using data will show up in the selection process, be part of training, focus on coaching, and be measured in fidelity protocols.  Similarly, the decision-support data system will function to provide timely, reliable data; the building and district administrators will ensure that resources are allocated to the data function, and barriers to creating such systems that are beyond the school level are communicated to the district and from the district to the state as necessary.

Compensatory – means that the skills and abilities not acquired or supported through one driver can be compensated for by using another driver. Let's continue with the example of data-based progress monitoring. If teachers and other school staff do not have experience with data at the point of hire but are enthusiastic about learning to use data, training can compensate for skills not present.  Similarly, only so much can be learned during training, no matter how well done. Coaching and fidelity monitoring can compensate for the different skill levels that are achieved through training.

Activity: Implementation Drivers
Getting started with Implementation Drivers

So, how could you leverage the Implementation Drivers framework in your work? Discuss these questions with your team and/or write down your responses. Thinking about a specific innovation (practice or behavioral) may make this exercise more meaningful for you.

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