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10 Practical Steps for Building Diversity in the Workplace
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By fostering an environment of inclusion and equity, a business can reap the positive benefits of diversity in the workplace, such as higher engagement and greater creativity among teams.
Inclusion in the workplace also helps companies become more diverse in the long run, as employees can feel safe to bring their full, authentic selves to work. What’s more, a 2018 study from McKinsey and Company also revealed that diversity in executive positions is directly proportional to greater profitability.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at 10 practical steps that can help you build a more diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters productivity, creativity, and innovation.
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1. Make a commitment to diversity and inclusion
Ensuring that diversity and inclusion are visible in organizational core values, holding leadership accountable for tackling diversity, equity and inclusion as key priorities, and supporting employees as they work to achieve these objectives helps build inclusive work cultures. Diversity should not be approached as a singular initiative, but rather as an ongoing conversation between all parts of an organization, including executives, management teams, supervisors and front-line staff.
2. Evaluate your DEI hiring practices
Diversity in the workplace is an increasingly important issue, and it is crucial that hiring practices be conducted in an unbiased manner. Conducting a review of current hiring practices is key to ensuring that any biases that may be present are identified and rectified.
This review should include analyzing job descriptions to ensure that they are inclusive and attract a diverse candidate pool. Additionally, steps should be taken to facilitate structured interviews that do not favor one type of candidate over another.
Not sure where to start? Help is at hand! In our assessments library you can find a range of tests to help make your hiring processes more inclusive from the get-go.
3. Focus on building a diverse candidate pool
In order to build a diverse candidate pool, businesses need to use a variety of recruitment channels and reach out to a wider range of people. Internships and apprenticeships are an effective way to provide opportunities for people from underrepresented minorities. By offering these pathways, businesses can bring in new perspectives and talent from all walks of life.
4. Train your team on diversity and inclusion
As a business, it is essential to provide training and resources to increase awareness and understanding of diversity and inclusion. This helps team members understand the different cultures, races, religions and backgrounds of their coworkers.
In addition, offering unconscious bias training is a good way to help team members recognize their prejudices or stereotypes. It’s important to acknowledge that we all have biases and to understand that this is completely human.
5. Create a diverse and inclusive culture
Creating a culture of inclusion and belonging that values diversity can be challenging, but it is vital to fostering a healthy workplace. One way to achieve this is by encouraging employee-led diversity and inclusion initiatives.
By encouraging employees to take part in these initiatives, businesses can demonstrate their commitment to valuing and respecting differences. Additionally, businesses should make sure that their policies and practices are non-discriminatory so that everyone knows that they are welcome and can feel comfortable being themselves.
6. Offer benefits that support diversity and inclusion
By offering benefits such as flexible work arrangements, parental leave, and access to diversity training, you can help create an environment that is welcoming and accommodating for employees of all backgrounds.
In addition, by ensuring that all employees have access to the same benefits and opportunities, you can help create an equal playing field for everyone.
7. Encourage open communication and feedback
Regularly soliciting feedback from employees is an important step towards creating a truly inclusive workplace. However, simply asking employees for their opinions is not enough; management must also be trained to be receptive to their feedback.
This means creating a safe environment in which employees feel comfortable sharing their experiences, good or bad. It also means listening carefully and taking what they say into account when making decisions. By doing so, managers can gain a better understanding of the issues facing their team and make necessary adjustments to create a more inclusive workplace.
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8. Build diversity into your leadership team
Setting goals for increasing diversity in leadership positions, and holding leaders accountable for progress, is an important way to create an inclusive culture and help more people from under-represented groups reach the top of the organization. Providing leadership training on diversity and inclusion can also help leaders develop the skills they need to lead more effectively in a diverse and changing environment.
9. Partner with diverse organizations
Collaborating with other organizations that are focused on diversity and inclusion can help you reach a more diverse audience and build your network. Whether you partner with non-profits, government agencies, or corporations, you can share resources and promote your services and products to a wider range of customers.
Furthermore, collaborating with individuals in these networks can also provide valuable connections, advice, and mentorship. By committing to collaborations with organizations that promote diversity and inclusion, you can make a genuine impact on society.
10. Measure your progress and hold yourself accountable
Regularly assessing your progress will allow you to track your progress, highlighting both successes and areas for improvement. It will also allow you to adjust strategies as needed, ensuring that you're always moving forward. Holding yourself and your team accountable for achieving diversity and inclusion goals goes a long way in driving successful outcomes.
By forming a clear strategy for achieving diversity and inclusion goals and holding yourself and your team accountable for executing that strategy, you'll undoubtedly make significant strides towards creating a more inclusive workplace.
Diversity, equity and inclusion
We’ve seen that diversity and inclusion are essential for a healthy and prosperous workplace. But why is it important? The answer is in the way that diversity and inclusion can drive better business outcomes.
By thinking critically about how to harness the different talents and skills of your employees and by valuing difference as a source of enrichment rather than as a threat, you can make your team even stronger and more productive.
