Diversity at the Workplace: Business Strategy or Empowering Tool?

The words “diversity” and “inclusion” have become buzzwords in the past couple of years and particularly since George Floyd’s murder. Hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, #StopAAPIHate and similar catchy phrases have exemplified the rhetoric taking place all over the world today. The COVID-19 pandemic has also highlighted economic disparities between different racial groups in the United States.  A 2020 poll by the Washington Post found that 20 percent of Hispanic adults and 16 percent of Blacks had been laid` off or furloughed during the pandemic, compared to 11 percent of White employees. Responding to the public outcry for a more diverse workforce, several companies scrambled to create diverse and inclusive teams. Did your company jump on this bandwagon? Has your business integrated a diversity and inclusion strategy into its business plan ? Are your diversity and inclusion efforts just a feel-good corporate policy or are they just a strategy for your business? How should your business think about diversity and inclusion?

In most of North America, diversity is associated with racial diversity. This is in large part due to the nation’s racial historical underpinnings. However, diversity encompasses more than just race. Diversity also includes the breath of differences between people based on their gender, education, religion, language, abilities, income, sexual orientation, skills, and a plethora of other characteristics. Inclusion is also a journey organizations and individuals embark on to ensure that different groups or individuals with different backgrounds are treated equally.

A McKinsey study revealed that racially and ethnically diverse companies outperform industry norms by 35%. Additionally, according to Boston Consulting Group, companies that have more diverse management teams have 19% higher revenue. This data demonstrates the importance of a diverse workforce. Diversity efforts at the work-place, however, should not only be reduced to a business strategy with positive outcomes that translate into high dividends for a company’s shareholders; they should be used as a tool and a means to empower minority groups that have constantly been excluded from accessing markets and services, so that they can also empower their communities. Before delving deeper into diversity and inclusion efforts that empower underrepresented groups, let’s take a look at some of the underlying legal structures and laws regarding hiring and keeping a diverse employee base.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the federal agency that regulates workplace discrimination. It enforces Federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. These laws protect employees against employment discrimination when it involves unfair treatment and harassment because of an employee’s race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability, or genetic information.

Pennsylvania Regulations

In Pennsylvania, the Human Relations Commission enforces state anti-discrimination laws. For employment discrimination to be illegal in PA, it must be based on a person’s race, color, sex, age (over 40), ancestry, national origin, or religious creed. It also prohibits discrimination on the basis of a person’s disability.

Now that we have covered some of the legal structures that exist to ensure diversity and inclusion in the workplace, let’s discuss how your diversity and inclusion efforts can be both a business strategy and a tool to empower diverse groups that have constantly being excluded from accessing markets and services.

1. Make Diversity and Inclusion a Part of Your Company’s Mission and Vision– What does your brand say about your company culture? Who are you hiring? Whose experiences and inputs are considered valuable? If you want to create a truly diverse and inclusive team, you need to have everyone on board. When you link diversity and inclusion to your business’s goals, it becomes more than just a strategic plan. It becomes one of the core elements that drives your business. Employees will begin to embody these values and your clients will also recognize the place diversity and inclusion occupies in your business. This will also ensure that diverse employees feel a sense of belonging and that their contributions matter.

2. Create Task Forces and Keep Leaders Accountable – Start by hiring diverse employees and then create task forces that focus on the strengths and weaknesses of each diverse group. Identify and understand the strengths and differences among the groups and find ways to incorporate this into your business’s strategic plan. Ensure that the leaders and management of your business are setting the tone and exhibiting empathetic leadership. Inclusion is an ongoing journey, not a one-off process. By equipping your team leaders with the skills needed to champion diversity, you will ensure that you are building an inclusive environment that empowers diverse groups.

3. Invest in Your Diverse Employees – This could come in the form of pay equity which will build trust in your leadership, increase your employee’s engagement and reduce turnover. Another option is for you to offer training, development programs and leadership opportunities to underrepresented groups in order to build talent pipelines. You can also create conditions that promote inclusion on a daily basis and identify ways to measure the impact.  For example, you can provide a childcare center or accommodations for mothers with children in order to ensure that employees with children can still deliver quality results at work without the added worries of childcare. By creatively thinking of different avenues for your employees to thrive and enjoy working in your company, you will be impacting their lives and in turn, yielding a high return on investment.

To make your diversity and inclusion efforts an empowering tool, consider making diversity and inclusion a part of your company’s mission and vision, creating task forces to hone in on the strengths and weaknesses of your diverse employees, keeping your leaders accountable and investing in your diverse employees.

Sources:

• Berkeley Greater Good Magazine, “What Is Diversity?” Greater Good Magazine, https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/diversity/definition
• BCG Henderson Institute, “How Diverse Leadership Teams Boost Innovation”, https://www.bcg.com/en-us/publications/2018/how-diverse-leadership-teams-boost-innovation
• Global Diversity Practice, “What Is Diversity and Inclusion”, https://globaldiversitypractice.com/what-is-diversity-inclusion/
• Harvard Business Review, “Diversity as Strategy”, https://hbr.org/2004/09/diversity-as-strategy
• Kristina Matic, “Top 5 Workplace Diversity Statistics”, Talentlyft, https://medium.com/hr-blog-resources/top-5-workplace-diversity-statistics-2f4ba1d03a2e
• McKinsey & Company, “Why Diversity Matters”, https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/why-diversity-matters
• Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, “Employment Discrimination”, https://www.phrc.pa.gov/File-A-Complaint/Types-of-Complaints/Pages/Employment.aspx
• Sharon Florentine, “Diversity and Inclusion: 8 best practices for changing your culture”,https://www.cio.com/article/3262704/diversity-and-inclusion-8-best-practices-for-changing-your-culture.html
• U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, “Employees & Job Applicants”, https://www.eeoc.gov/employees-job-applicants
• Upstate Medical University, Diversity and Inclusion Summary of State and Federal Laws,https://www.upstate.edu/diversityinclusion/policies-and-procedures/eeo/fedstatelaw.php#:~:text=Executive%20Order%2011246%2C%20as%20amended,action%20programs%20for%20minorities%20and
• Washington Post, Hispanics are almost twice as likely as whites to have lost their jobs amid pandemic, poll finds, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/05/06/layoffs-race-poll-coronavirus/

Picture Sources:

Black Enterprise,Workplace Diversity is Still A Major Problem Although Nearly 80% of HR Professionals Believe Their Company Is Diverse, https://www.blackenterprise.com/inclusion-diversity-80-of-hr-professionals-believe-their-company-is-diverse/

EsgClarity, BlackRock Tops Refinitiv’s top 100 Most Diverse Firms, https://esgclarity.com/blackrock-tops-refinitivs-top-100-most-diverse-firms/

Forbes, New Research: Diversity + Inclusion = Better Decision Making at Work, https://www.forbes.com/sites/eriklarson/2017/09/21/new-research-diversity-inclusion-better-decision-making-at-work/?sh=5784fd0f4cbf