DICE Framework Matrix

ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL (WHERE)	DECIDE Formal Authority	INFLUENCE Collaborative Leadership	CONTRIBUTE Active Value-Adding	ENGAGE Receptive Participation
MEGA National/ International/ Sector	Board & Standards • National board membership • Standards body authority • Policy-making decisions • Sector governance Ex: EDUCAUSE board member setting priorities	Networks & Partnerships • Vendor advisory councils • Cross-institutional partnerships • Association leadership • Conference organizing Ex: D'Arcy co-chairing 2026 Conference	Thought Leadership • Publishing research • Conference presentations • Building knowledge base • Sharing innovations Ex: TI's badge program as sector model	Professional Learning • Attending conferences • Reading sector literature • Monitoring trends • Learning from field Ex: Following sector discussions on AI
MACRO Institutional/ University-wide	KEY Governance • Platform selection • Budget allocation • Policy approval • Steering committees Ex: D2L SC deciding retention policy	KEY Advisory & Strategy • Advisory committees • Cross-unit coordination • Strategic input • Evidence-building Ex: LTAC providing platform guidance	System Feedback • Documenting gaps • User testing • Providing evidence • Pilot participation Ex: Faculty testing new features	Institutional Awareness • Attending info sessions • Understanding strategy • Monitoring announcements • Learning about changes Ex: Attending platform update sessions
MESO Department/ Faculty/ Unit	KEY Unit Leadership • Team decisions • Priority setting • Resource allocation • Hiring & structure Ex: D'Arcy setting LTDT priorities	CRITICAL Community Building • Learning communities • Faculty coalitions • Cross-unit collaboration • Translating between levels Ex: LTAC community of practice	Local Innovation • Sharing practices • Documenting needs • Creating resources • Supporting initiatives Ex: Faculty sharing innovations at dept meetings	Unit Participation • Attending meetings • Listening to colleagues • Learning from unit • Understanding context Ex: New faculty attending dept discussions
MICRO Individual/ Personal	KEY Personal Autonomy • Own teaching/learning • Course design • Professional development • Tool selection Ex: Choosing D2L features for own course	Peer Mentoring • Informal mentoring • Modeling practices • Peer conversations • Resource sharing Ex: Sharing Gradescope approach with colleague	Personal Innovation • Experimenting • Documenting • SoTL inquiry • Creating resources Ex: 1,408 instructors contributing to TI knowledge	Professional Learning • Attending workshops • Reading resources • Seeking consultation • Learning new tools Ex: Attending TI workshops on new tools

Four Distinct Modes of Leadership & Participation:
The DICE Framework recognizes that not all participation is the same:

DECIDE: You have formal authority - you make decisions that happen
INFLUENCE: You can shape decisions through persuasion, facilitation, coalition-building
CONTRIBUTE: You actively add value through doing, modeling, documenting, creating
ENGAGE: You participate receptively - learning, being influenced, staying informed

All four modes are legitimate forms of participation. Not everyone needs to Contribute or Influence - sometimes Engage is the right mode.

Developmental Pathway:
People often move through modes as they develop expertise and relationships: Engage → Contribute → Influence → Decide

New faculty member: Engage with department discussions, learn culture
Growing confidence: Contribute innovations, share at meetings
Building trust: Influence colleagues, facilitate initiatives
Formal leadership: Decide as department chair or committee member

The Critical Connector: Meso-Influence
The "Meso-Influence" cell remains the most critical for educational change. This is where communities of practice, learning networks, and collaborative initiatives function. Strong Meso-Influence work connects individual innovation (Micro) with institutional policy (Macro). Without it, innovations stay isolated and policies fail to implement.

Your Multiple Positions (D'Arcy):

Micro-Decide: Personal work priorities & professional development
Meso-Decide: LTDT team leadership, structure, priorities
Meso-Influence: Cross-TI collaboration, building faculty networks
Macro-Decide: D2L Steering Committee decisions
Macro-Influence: Digital Learning Plan, AI strategy input
Mega-Influence: Conference co-chair, vendor relationships
Mega-Contribute: Presentations, thought leadership
Mega-Engage: Following sector trends, learning from field

Recognizing Different Levels of Involvement:
The framework helps distinguish between different forms of participation. For example, in LTAC:

LTAC member who mostly listens: Engage (learning from community)
LTAC member who shares practices: Contribute (adding to knowledge)
LTAC member who facilitates discussions: Influence (shaping direction)
LTAC leadership: Decide (setting agendas, making structural decisions)

All four are valuable! Not everyone should be in Decide or Influence mode.

Strategic Energy Allocation:
Where you focus depends on your role and capacity:

Senior leaders: Heavy on Decide & Influence, some Contribute, minimal Engage
Mid-level leaders: Balance of Influence & Decide, regular Contribute
Individual contributors: Heavy on Contribute, some Influence & Engage
New members/learners: Heavy on Engage, growing into Contribute

Common Frustration Points:
People experience frustration when they try to Decide where they can only Influence, Contribute, or Engage. The framework helps identify your actual mode at each level and redirect energy productively. It's also important to recognize that Engage is a valid mode - not everyone needs to be Contributing all the time.

COVID-19 Case Study - Multi-Level Coordination:
TI's successful 48-hour Zoom deployment (March 2020) demonstrated coordinated action across multiple modes:

Macro-Decide: Platform selection and deployment (TI-IT leadership)
Meso-Influence: Faculty support networks, department liaisons
Micro-Contribute: 6,000+ instructors adapting courses with TI support
Micro-Engage: Instructors attending workshops, learning tools

Success required all four modes operating simultaneously at appropriate levels.

Using the Framework for Planning:
For any initiative or your own involvement, ask:

What level am I working at? (Micro/Meso/Macro/Mega)
What mode am I in at this level? (Decide/Influence/Contribute/Engage)
Is this the right mode for my goals? (Am I trying to Decide where I can only Influence?)
What's the appropriate action? (Make decisions vs. Build coalitions vs. Model & share vs. Learn & observe)
If I want to shift modes, what's needed? (What would help me move from Engage to Contribute, or Contribute to Influence?)

Theoretical Foundation:
The DICE Framework integrates multiple research streams:

Organizational levels (4M): Simmons (2016, 2020) and colleagues - Scholarship of Teaching and Learning framework
Leadership modes: Integration of Paulhus's Spheres of Control (personal/interpersonal/sociopolitical), Fairman & Mackenzie's Spheres of Teacher Leadership Action, and Lazarus & Folkman's work on control, stress, and coping
Engage mode: Recognizes that receptive participation (learning, being influenced) is distinct from active contribution, honoring the original "Aware/Concern" zone while making it active rather than passive

DICE Framework for Educational Change Leadership

Framework Definition

Key Insights from the DICE Framework