Written By Linda Hughes – Dynamic Coach and Jonna Mundy – You HR Consultancy
But in many cases, progress isn’t just slow – it’s stalled, with a 50% decrease in participation in Diversity & Inclusion programmes year-on-year according to research data. We believe that’s because too often, Diversity & Inclusion programmes focus on changing processes rather than mindsets. And often, they focus exclusively on the underrepresented groups rather than bringing everyone along on the journey.
A true culture of inclusion can only happen when everyone is on the dancefloor. Because real change happens when you give people the tools to start a movement. And a movement starts when everyone gets on the dancefloor.
We asked our members to participate in a questionnaire with the opportunity to share their thoughts to create discussion and action, and they identified these top three priorities:
100% of respondents believed that employees should receive Diversity & Inclusion training to develop their understanding and raise awareness
What Next Steps Can Organisations Consider:
- Make D&I a corporate initiative through senior leaders scoping their vision for the organisation
- Assess where your organisation stands in its journey toward a diverse and inclusive workforce – this includes assessing data, surveying employees etc.
- Review the gaps to develop where you need to exert focus and deliver a learning experience that takes employees on a journey from unconscious bias to conscious action by embedding daily habits of inclusion as daily routines
- Set measurable goals and recognise that a culture shift is an evolutionary process
- Make an organisational commitment through your internal communications, surveys, and initiatives, share your success stories
What Next Steps are B4 taking to support their members:
- Workshop: Engage with members, voluntary sector to help deliver “How to develop a diverse organisation and create an Inclusive culture”
- Research: Set up a research group into the competitive business advantage of diverse workplaces
100% of respondents believed that organisations should evaluate opportunities for internships and apprenticeship roles across organisations, to encourage representation from specific groups
What Next Steps Can Organisations Consider:
- Look at how your organisation could engage an intern or apprentice – investigate the different levels and funding available
- Reach out to other organisations to understand how they recruited from specific groups and what feedback they can give you
- Use your network or employees to reach communities or specific groups
- Recognise employees who are focussed on the engagement and development of interns / apprentices ie the people who are promoting what you are doing
- Develop other learning opportunities for interns / apprentices to develop life skills ie Princes Trust, Duke of Edinburgh
What Next Steps are B4 taking to support their members:
- Promotion: Engage with members, other bodies to help promote interns / apprenticeship opportunities across specific groups
100% of respondents believed that taking positive action to address any imbalance of opportunity or disadvantage that an individual with a protected characteristic had was the right thing to do
What Next Steps Can Organisations Consider:
- Assess your organisation though collecting data and understanding current practices, gather insight as it may not be obvious without intersectional evaluation
- Review the gaps and make commitment to your workforce to provide equal opportunities through positive action, ensuring you are transparent in the actions you take
- Set measurable goals and recognise that a culture shift is an evolutionary process and that your employees feel comfortable and aligned with the positive actions you propose
- Make an organisational commitment through your internal communications, surveys, and initiatives. Share your success stories.
What Next Steps are B4 taking to support their members:
- Articles: sharing best practices, videos, podcasts that support positive ED&I practices
- Discussion: create occasions for sharing experiences and provide learning opportunities to build a broader understanding of ED&I
The Next Steps are by no means comprehensive, but it’s a start. Some of these are easy action items that can be implemented today. Many will take the effort of a thoughtful and committed community of diverse individuals with engaged senior leadership.
I hope this jumpstarts the conversation at your organisation. If you need support to really get going please get in contact with either Linda Hughes – Linda@dynamiccoach.co.uk or Jonna Mundy – Jonna@youhr.co.uk who conducted the research on behalf of B4.
Watch the Linda Hughes interview Video at the B4 One: EDI Event: https://youtu.be/PPOfcccDuAE
Watch the Jonna Mundy interview Video at the B4 One: EDI Event: https://youtu.be/BVqMZOQmI7c
Watch the Survey Results Video at the B4 One: EDI Event: https://youtu.be/OcPU4OVvwIk
