CREATING LEADERS
Best Practices: How can your company take action to support DE&I?
The Business Case for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion BY K AT H RY N FA L K , J O H N A . A L L E N , A N D A M B E R L E W I S
Ownership starts at the top. Your CEO must communicate personal support for the efforts to ensure that all leaders embrace it and that all employees see top leadership engaged. Also, this cannot be the sole responsibility of Human Resources. Benchmark externally. Understand how your company is doing compared to others in your industry and other companies in general.
Benchmark internally. Ask your employees for their feedback. Find out how you are doing and where your areas of opportunity exist and then continue to measure at least annually.
D
iversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) has been a hot topic in business for the past several years but gained more attention as social justice issues took center stage across the nation and the world last year. But what does it mean for your business and why should you devote your time and resources to this pursuit? Read on for four good reasons (and more) to get on board. First, do the right thing. As business leaders, we make decisions and take actions every day. We strive to do the right thing for our people, our companies, and our communities. We should view DE&I through that same basic lens. It is the right thing to do in every respect. The end. Second, it’s a reality. Demographics of the region are changing rapidly, and you need to focus on DE&I to support your workforce and your customers. The Northern Virginia Regional Commission reports that we have 2.5 million people in this region and ours is one of the fastest growing and most diverse communities in the United States. The commission also reports, “Over the 14
THE BUSINESS VOICE
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past couple of decades, Northern Virginia has experienced a major transformation driven by the growth of racial minorities and the foreignborn populations.” Finally, the commission notes that in 2000, Northern Virginia’s minority population was 34.6%, but by 2019, the region was nearly a minority-majority, with a minority population of 49.7%. Our region’s rate of increase among the minority population is much greater than that of the United States and Virginia. The region is now 10 or 11 percentage points higher than Virginia and the United States. Third, it’s good for your bottom line. McKinsey & Co.’s May 2020 report, “Diversity Wins,” demonstrates that “the relationship between diversity on executive teams and the likelihood of financial outperformance has strengthened over time. These findings emerge from our largest data set so far, encompassing 15 countries and more than 1,000 large companies.” McKinsey’s findings show clear evidence of improved performance based on increased gender and ethnic diversity in
Measure leaders and incorporate specific goals in the performance management process. People naturally do things that are in their goals and that their overall performance will be measured against. This could include their goals for recruitment, promotion and development. Build and sustain a DE&I council. Make it cross-functional and employee-driven with a focus on business results. Build and promote an inclusive environment through employee resource groups on a variety of topic areas from women to LGBTQ to African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic/ LatinX, Veterans and others. Establish education and development opportunities across all platforms on DE&I to include webinars, book clubs, speakers and training.
