Inclusion and diversity best practices

Shirley Engelmeier explains some of the best practices top companies employ for successful and sustainable inclusion and diversity programs.

Having worked in the inclusion industry for nearly 20 years, what are some of the best practices top companies use to develop successful and sustainable inclusion and diversity programs in the workplace?

In my experience, successful inclusion and diversity programs have five main characteristics that ensure their effectiveness and sustainability in the workplace. First, an inclusion program is identified as a mission critical need to support the organization's stated business objectives. Second, a comprehensive formal assessment is conducted to analyze the current state of the organization and inform the strategic development of an inclusion program.  Third, relevant metrics beyond representation are identified and benchmarked, and a scorecard is developed to report organizational progress as the program unfolds. Fourth, inclusion programs are crafted and implemented with regard to employees at all levels of the organization. Finally, any training that is undertaken incorporates proven adult learning techniques to affect the behavioral changes required to truly progress the organization toward its goals.

What information is typically uncovered during an assessment, that isn’t already available to the organization?

Companies may be tempted to skip a formal assessment process due to the resources required. Because they typically include a representative sample of employees, assessments have proven decidedly worth the time, expense and managerial requirements for companies that use them. By helping executives uncover and prioritize highly specific areas of organizational need, assessments allow the organization to conserve resources. And because we believe the assessment phase is so critical to inclusion program development, our company offers a whitepaper on the topic on our website.   

You spoke about establishing “metrics beyond representation” for inclusion programs. What metrics do you recommend?

Typically, the metrics used in I&D programs are the basic diversity metrics such as race and gender. But what's the impact of those metrics on the bottom line of the business?  Through strategic consulting, the relevant metrics needed to measure support of the company's stated business objectives are identified; then the assessment process establishes a benchmark for those metrics. We take it a step further for clients, by developing a scorecard to help report progress over time to stakeholders throughout the organization. In recessionary times, even the best inclusion programs may be deemed a “nice to have” if unable to demonstrate measurable improvements to organizational challenges, ultimately running the risk of losing funding or elimination. 

You referenced inclusion at “every level of the organization” as another best practice. How does that differ from mainstream inclusion programs?

Shouldn't inclusion be for everyone? It just makes sense, yet many programs are designed to meet the needs of executives and key managers, with little or no involvement of front-line employees. Yet, employees interact with other employees and even customers, who may have different styles of communication, language proficiencies or cultural influences. With the appropriate engagement strategies for each level of the organization, sustainable cultural change can occur.

What types of “engagement strategies” are appropriate for line-level employees, and is it cost effective to train every employee in the company?

A common approach to training is what I call the “dip” method, where employees are involved in a half-day workshop and then sent back to their jobs, expected to have absorbed the information and changed their behaviors accordingly. Adults learn best with multiple, brief exposures to information, alternated with opportunities to apply what they’re learning. Our organization promotes a Learning Over Time approach to training, using multiple forms of media to increase the number of exposures to training content, along with application modules to practice the new behaviors. Because of the technologies used, it is highly cost-effective for our clients to provide multiple learning opportunities for employees at all levels of the organization. 

Biography

Shirley Engelmeier is CEO and Chief Inclusion Strategist at InclusionINC, and specializes in helping Fortune 1000 companies and emerging organizations develop and implement inclusion initiatives that positively impact the client’s bottom line.