At Harvard University, Taisha Crayton is the inaugural Associate Director of the Office for Economic Inclusion & Diversity (OEID) in Financial Administration. Her best practices include conducting research and analysis to identify underrepresented businesses, establishing clear goals and objectives aligned with the organization’s values and mission, and implementing a supplier development program to address informational and educational deficiencies. She also works with procurement to strengthen an inclusive process. Taisha pursues continuous improvement as a critical component of success, which requires assessing performance, gathering feedback from stakeholders and underrepresented businesses, and adjusting strategies as necessary to ensure programs and initiatives address current and evolving needs and challenges.
Technology enables Taisha to comprehensively evaluate the success of programming through qualitative and quantitative means. She uses data analytics to gain valuable insights into past performance, current standing, and areas for enhancement. This permits her to pinpoint strengths and areas for improvement, and also fosters innovation in strategies to address identified gaps and barriers. Taisha is proud of the strength and resilience exhibited by underrepresented businesses as they navigate daily challenges and barriers in the marketplace.