The myriad of different benefits conferred by establishing a truly diverse workforce are well reported. According to one Glassdoor survey, 67% of job seekers favor companies that are more diverse. By embracing and nurturing diversity, businesses not only diversify their workforce. They bring individuals with different experiences, skills, and talents to the table. They also benefit from the opportunity to recruit from a broader talent pool, helping them to access top talent and find the right person for their open role.
A diverse workforce is more creative, bringing together a wealth of perspectives informed by different cultural experiences. This helps organizations to better understand and target a multitude of different demographics, with diverse workplaces better aligned with the demographic makeup of modern America. Diversity also helps to boost customer satisfaction, with a diverse team of employees better equipped to interact with a more diverse clientele.
Despite multiple studies revealing that diversity not only benefits the bottom line of businesses, but society at large, we still have some way to go in terms of leveling the playing field for underrepresented demographics, particularly at the leadership level. In this article, we look at different tactics that organizations can adopt to promote diversity at every level of a company.
Awareness of Unconscious Bias
Learning to recognize unconscious bias is the first step towards meaningful change in corporate culture. The term “unconscious bias” typically describes feelings and connotations that lie hidden below the surface. Unconscious bias need not necessarily align with an individual’s conscious thoughts and beliefs, making it even more important to pay attention.
Leaders can start addressing unconscious bias within the workplace by helping employees to understand how people are impacted by it. One way of building awareness is by encouraging employees to review, question, and analyze their own assumptions and personal biases.
Overhaul the Hiring Process
According to a report by Forbes, a staggering 80% of jobs are never advertised online, but instead are filled through internal hires or referrals. In organizations where the majority of the staff fall within the same demographic, this hamper’s the ability of the business to establish a diverse and inclusive workforce, leaving the organization culturally skewed.
The reality is that communities remain largely homogenous, with a survey from the Public Religion Research Institute revealing that 75% of white people identified as only having friends within their own racial group. Against that backdrop, when a manager asks for referrals from a largely white team, it follows that the majority of referrals will be white.
In addition, a growing body of research reveals that the hiring process is fraught with inequities and unconscious bias. A candidate’s name alone can have a huge impact on their hiring prospects as several studies show, with candidates with white sounding names, like Greg or Emily, being 50% more likely to be invited to interview than candidates with black-sounding names, like Jamal or Lakisha, according to one study. Although much of this bias is unconscious, if left unchecked, it can do considerable damage to a business.
3. Be More Transparent
Raising awareness about wage disparities is a way that companies can actively give back to society. Businesses should consider publishing job titles along with typical salary ranges for each position, communicating clearly what defines outstanding results and qualifies employees for high-performance compensation brackets.
When a business can effectively convey this information on a large scale, it fosters awareness, enabling leadership to identify inequities and make adjustments where needed. Business leaders should analyze compensation and performance at every level of a company, looking at gender, race, and ethnicity to gauge how diverse and inclusive the company really is.
Acknowledge Intersectionality
The term “intersectionality” was coined by the scholar and activist Kimberlé Crenshaw, who used it to describe a person’s various social identities—for example, their gender, race, class, religion and sexuality—and how these overlap to deny or confer privilege according to cultural norms.
Addressing intersectionality provides businesses with a more nuanced understanding of how people experience discrimination, and is essential for fostering inclusivity. Companies must acknowledge the unique contributions and needs of employees with multiple historically excluded identities to avoid their DEI efforts perpetuating deeply ingrained inequities.
Acknowledge the Holidays of All Cultures
One way to boost cultural awareness and foster greater diversity and inclusivity within a company is to celebrate all religious and cultural holidays. Asking colleagues how they plan to celebrate the holiday when closing a team meeting or call helps to build awareness among employees.
In addition, a company’s intranet can be an effective means of helping employees to keep track of multicultural holiday celebrations. It is prudent for management to be respectful of the holidays of all religions when scheduling team meetings, recognizing that employees may have different needs that could call for flexibility. Adding global holidays to the company’s digital calendar is an effective way of helping employees to avoid scheduling meetings on important religious and cultural holidays.