Integrate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies into your workplace
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) should be at the top of the list for companies when it comes to priorities. Diversity brings different voices together and multiple perspectives, although there is still room for improvement.
The Power of DEI during a crisis
Diversity and inclusion have recently gone through a priority change for companies as they are more concentrated on potential hazard estimations and business recovery. The fact of dispersed workers could potentially cause diversity and inclusion issues as there is little-to-no communication between employees.
Here you can find 10 mitigating factors that might improve DEI:
Focus on creating an inclusive working environment
It is of the utmost importance to contribute to DEI within your working environment. This will help in making a comfortable and easy-to-operate workplace for every employee. First and foremost, acknowledge that differences of opinion are encouraged within your workplace. Make sure your team knows that their opinion matters.
Set Key Performance Indicators
It is important to take into account measurable factors.
- Representation: pay attention to the underrepresented members of your team and try to empower them by strongly integrating them within your system. Certain KPIs might require affirmative action on certain policies, such as the hiring of underrepresented groups.
- Retention: Analyze exit survey data to find trends for each group and compare the average employee tenure by demographics. Determine key performance indicators (KPIs) based on retention objectives and important areas of focus.
- Promotions: Promotions should be one of the priorities integrated into KPI, with a special focus on underrepresented groups.
Make your workers more actively engaged in the process
DEI is crucial for creating a healthy and opinion-driven working environment.
Make your workers part of the DEI process as their opinions carry vital value for setting up the correct DEI.
- Referring to candidates from underrepresented groups.
- Getting involved in employee resource groups.
- Attending unconscious bias training.
Set up a fair hiring process
As soon as DEI is filled with team effort and a multiplicity of voices, you can focus on underrepresented groups.
- Rewriting job descriptions.
- Blind resume reviews.
- Use structured interviews.
Make sure equal pay is served to every employee
Unequal pay is the real thing. Build a proper compensation strategy that will not be based on the previous salary of the employee, as it might lead to unwanted results, such as the widening of the wage gap. Being attentive to details and keeping an eye on equal pay will keep the wage gap from widening.
Sponsor employee resource groups (ERG)
The ERG is tasked with building a bond between employees based on common interests and issues they might have. That has the potential to increase reciprocity, understanding, and ultimately support between two individuals.
Find the worker’s feedback valuable and act on it
Try different communication channels to get the necessary feedback on the most important things in your company. With this practice, workers’ professional self-esteem and sense of value are going to increase exponentially. You can also present them with whatever change you have made based on their feedback, just to make them also visualize why their input was essential to your team.
Review employee benefits
Worker benefits are exclusive. This might entail Christian holidays or benefits. You should reconsider and revise employee benefits to make them more compatible with DEI.
- Make holidays to be chosen by employees so they can celebrate a day important to them.
- Offer a healthcare plan that fits and supports sexual minorities. Choose a flexible schedule that will improve the balance between work and life with a large focus on individuals needing special treatment or medical attention.
Offer DEI education
Being subjective is a natural occurrence, but it can also damage DEI efforts. Extensive training and focus on eradicating these biases might include:
- Unconscious bias training, especially for interviewers.
- Series of lunchtime lectures.
- Sponsorship for an outside event.
- DEI conference budget.
- Leadership Development.
Talk about DEI
- You can improve DEI by making it one of the top priorities of your policy. Disseminate information on your DEI commitments as much as you can. Such areas could include.
- Meetings: Employee feedback, KPI, employee information.
- Website: Utilize the website as your sharing tool.
Onboarding Inform your employees about DEI programs during the onboarding process
Bonus
Review and Adjust
DEI process is not set in stone; this is a live process contributing to the establishment of fair policies all over the company. DEI must be under constant check and assessment to make sure it is reaching its goals of creating a healthy and all-around inclusive environment
Final thoughts on DEI improvement
Every business will handle DEI in a different way. Give your team members a chance to lead the process, deliver feedback, and keep you updated on any details that might need rework or refinement.
Make sure you are honest with your workers about how you see the company’s vision and everyday tasks serving the overall goal. This will positively affect your intention to make progress.