Want to increase workplace diversity? Here’s how

Want to increase workplace diversity? Here’s how

You’ve got a problem, and you’re not afraid to own up to it. Your company isn’t diverse.

You know you can do better, and you want diversity and equity to be a priority in your organization. So, what now?

Let’s jump right into this important topic and get clear about:

· What diversity in the workplace really looks like

· Practical practices you can start implementing

· Your goals and timeline to increase workplace diversity

· Some mistakes you’ll want to avoid

· Diversity, equity and inclusion: a business strategy

When we think about workplace diversity, usually, we think about the demographics of our employees.

We ask ourselves if we have diversity based on factors like:

· Race

· Gender

· Age

· National origin

· Physical ability

· Religion

· Sexual orientation

· Socioeconomic background

· Veteran status

· Parent or family caregiver status

This is called representation — simply who is represented within your organization. And while representation is foundational to workplace diversity, it’s actually just the ground level of what we should be aiming for.

The next important piece is inclusion — assessing whether or not you have an environment that accepts, appreciates and acknowledges all job applicants and employees.

But diversity in the workplace should be more than just a staffing or HR consideration. Diversity, equity and inclusion should be part of every single component of your company’s business strategy.

This means when you’re developing your:

· Marketing strategy

· Recruiting strategy

· Vendor relationships

· Corporate and social responsibility policies

· Finance strategy

You’re also thinking about how diversity, equity and inclusion can play a role in all of the related decisions and goals.

For example, when you’re marketing your product or service:

Are your communications geared toward one particular audience, or are they inclusive of all audiences?

Do your messaging and deliverables ensure that no one feels isolated, less than or marginalized?

When you’re establishing vendor relationships:

Are your suppliers diverse?

Or do you only deal with vendors who look just like you?

When you’re designing your corporate and social responsibility programs:

Are you donating to organizations that also support diversity, equity and inclusion?

Or are your contributions geared toward organizations that appear to only support a certain group of people?

Companies who lead in the diversity, equity and inclusion space bring that commitment into every component of their overall business strategy and goals.

Recognizing where you can improve

You can become a more diverse workplace following the same strategy you would use for any other type of business initiative.

Step one: Assess your current status.

Representation is easy to measure. Whether you run simple reports or have access to in-depth people analytics, you’ll know fairly quickly how you’re doing in terms of representation.

However, inclusion is harder to assess. Most companies use surveys to find out if their employees really feel included. You can conduct surveys yourself or through a third-party, which may help some of your staff open up more.

Here are some statements you can ask your employees to rate in a survey on a scale from 1 to 5:

I feel valued at my organization.

My manager makes me feel that my contributions to the organization are valuable.

I’m comfortable talking to my manager about my concerns within the organization.

There is adequate representation of people who are like me within the organization.

There are opportunities for me to advance.

My company is committed to increase workplace diversity, equity and inclusion.

Step two: Determine your desired status — where you want to go as an organization.

This is what we talked about above, applied to your organization and what you feel is attainable.

You may also want to look at diversity factors in your local community and customer base to help you determine where you want to be in the future.

Step three: Build an action plan that helps you reach your goals.

Read on to learn how to build an action plan.

Practical steps to increase workplace diversity, equity and inclusion

Let’s consider some actions you can take to help your organization move toward your goal of increasing workplace diversity, equity and inclusion.

If your business has a representation problem

You can:

Audit your recruiting practices. Are you always recruiting from the same pool?

Reach out to minority and underrepresented organizations when you have job openings.

Look into how your hiring managers are recruiting. Do they tend to hire and promote people who mostly look like them?

Reconsider having an employee referral program. These programs aren’t always beneficial to diversity efforts because people tend to refer others who are just like them.

When your employees don’t feel included or valued

You can:

Create employee resource groups (ERGs) or affinity groups.

ERGs are made up of co-workers who share common demographics, backgrounds or interests.

They are voluntary and employee-led.

These groups align themselves with the company’s overall business strategy and goals, and then work alongside leadership to help them understand how that group of people can execute on the organization’s goals.

Create diversity in your leadership positions.

What may look like only a representation goal is also an opportunity to bolster inclusivity.

It’s common to assume your company is diverse when diversity actually stops above your entry and mid-level positions.

But when there’s diversity among top leaders, those “at the table,” it signals that all voices, all perspectives and all types of people are being considered when decisions are made. So, diversity in leadership is a matter of inclusion, too.

Create a diversity task force.

Give these individuals the responsibility of becoming more familiar with concepts related to diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace.

Ask them to help your organization apply best practices.

Avoid approaching inclusion initiatives with a defense posture.

Be willing to look inward and show empathy.

Setting realistic goals

When setting goals for your organization, again, this is just like any other business initiative.

It may take you three-to-five years to reach your desired status as a diverse organization, but you can set benchmark goals along the way.

Here are some examples of measurable goals:

Within the first six months, we want to identify three new sources from which we can begin recruiting more diverse candidates.

Within the next year, we want to make sure our workforce population is representative of X.

In the next two-and-a-half years, we want to make sure that 25 percent of our leaders are women.

Mini goals like these ensure you’re taking steps, moving progressively toward your long-term goals.

Final considerations

Increasing workplace diversity, equity and inclusion is not a sprint.

It’s a marathon.

Know that change doesn’t happen overnight — this takes work.

If you’re not where you want to be as an organization today, that’s okay. Just start the work, and start today.

For more insight into how to build a better workforce, download our free e-book: How to develop a top-notch workforce that will accelerate your business.

How to Develop a Top-notch Workforce That Will Accelerate Your Business

0 responses to “Want to increase workplace diversity? Here’s how”

Andrea Cook

by Andrea Cook | Human Resource Advisor Florham Park, New Jersey

Regulatory compliance

2 Comments

Managing diversity in the workplace: 7 tips for success

Remember the last time you went to a lively dinner party? One with a mix of different people with plenty of interesting things to say?

You may not have noticed, but the host was busy bringing people together, making them feel welcome and moving the conversation along.

Managing diversity in the workplace is much the same as hosting a lively dinner. Assembling the right mix of employees on your team and in your business is the first step, but you’ll need to be vigilant and committed to make it a success.

What is workforce diversity?

Before you can start managing diversity in the workplace, you have to know what it is. And the definition may surprise you.

Diversity is anything that makes people different from one another. I’m sure you know you shouldn’t discriminate based on race, gender, national origin or disability. But there’s more.

Religion, age, sexual orientation, citizenship, political affiliation or opinions, military service, mental and physical conditions, personality, education, favorite sports team — all of these fall under the umbrella of diversity, which, if not managed correctly, can open the door to charges of discrimination or employee relations matters.

What are the benefits of managing diversity in the workplace?

Building a diverse environment and team has some challenges, but the advantages far outweigh them. Employing people with various backgrounds has the potential to give your company a leg up because it can:

Spark creativity with an infusion of new ideas and perspectives

Give you a head start on innovation because you’re drawing ideas from different types of people

Help you relate better to your target audience

Align your culture more closely with the reality of our nation

Broaden the appeal of your sales pitch and provide insight into client demographics

Improve how your team interacts with clients and the public, and increase customer satisfaction

How do I create and manage workplace diversity?

In order to create and maintain a diverse workplace, you first must learn to:

Identify with others who are different from you

Be willing to take other perspectives into account

Be able to embrace those very traits that make us different

Recognize everyone’s contributions

Now what about those challenges? How do you handle them?

1. Hire the most-qualified people

Sounds like a no-brainer, right? But it’s often hard to look beyond the “this is the way we always do it” mentality to get to the true qualities of the person sitting across from you during the interview.

First of all, your goal should not be to force a diverse environment or impose any artificial rules. If you hire the most-qualified people, those with the right education, experience and skill set, a diverse workplace will naturally follow.

Level the playing field by putting uniform and equal practices in place. Are you documenting every interview in a consistent manner? Are all applicants for a position asked the same type of questions?

Managers may need to be trained in the basics of interview techniques, documentation and what can and cannot be asked. For example, questions about an applicant’s personal life, such as how many kids they have or where they go to church, are strictly off-limits.

2. Recruit outside the box

Finding candidates who have different backgrounds and experience can be difficult in some industries or areas. If that’s your situation, look for better, more creative ways to recruit.

For instance, if you’d like to include highly qualified engineers who are women, expand your recruiting efforts to professional organizations in which they might be members. Try job fairs in other parts of town or other cities.

3. Put your policies in writing

Confirm that all of your personnel policies include documentation about equality, including hiring, pay and promotions based solely on performance. Your employee handbook should address diversity in the following sections:

Code of conduct should outline the company’s policy toward diversity

Communication plan should detail non-discriminatory communication

Non-discrimination policy lets people know about the laws and exactly what is not allowed

Compensation and benefits policy

Employment and termination policy

4. Enforce a zero-tolerance policy

Off-color jokes about people’s differences or stereotypical slurs have no place in today’s workplace. Put policies in place to handle transgressions and let it be known they will not be tolerated.

Encourage employees to report any instances of this type of behavior. Establish formal grievance policies and procedures so that employees know exactly how to report issues and managers can respond promptly. Managers must be responsible for holding people accountable.

5. Stay current

Keep abreast of changing employer-related laws and trends. Be sure your human resources policies, especially those around harassment and equal opportunity, reflect the most current information.

Remember laws vary from state to state, and they can change at lightning speed. What’s accepted this month may not be the next.

Good resources to stay abreast of news are websites for the Society of Human Resources Management and Bloomberg BNA (Bureau of National Affairs) and for India stay connected with HRD.

6. Secure executive buy-in

Executives and upper management need to be on board and model open-minded behavior. For example, they should:

Treat all employees with respect and not show favoritism toward a particular group

Act swiftly if there is a diversity breach, such as an employee making jokes about a pregnant woman’s weight gain

Communicate about the value of diversity at company-wide meetings

If you meet resistance, you may want to counter with a list of ways that diversity in the workplace can be good for business and a reminder of the legal consequences for ignoring it.

7. Invest in sensitivity training

Some people might be reluctant to get on the diverse workplace bandwagon, especially in an industry or business that has been a particular way for a long time.

Even if this is not the case in your business, sensitivity training is a good investment in your culture, and in some states it’s required. It can help employees.

I completely agree with you Aisha T. on various points and like we promised at Growth Jockey we will be building this from Day-1.