DEI Training that Sticks: Empowering HR to Drive Long-Term Change
By: Anisha Phillips
Why Traditional Diversity Training Isn’t Enough
Let’s be honest: most people have been through that diversity training. You know the one. PowerPoint slides from 2012. A facilitator who talks at you for two hours. A case study or two that could apply to almost any workplace. You leave with a handout, maybe a few good intentions, and then? It can be hard to know what to do next.
One-off trainings often check a box but rarely shift culture. They assume that awareness alone will lead to behaviour change. But as anyone who’s ever tried to stick to a New Year’s resolution knows, awareness without reinforcement is tough to sustain.
As a DEI consultant with over a decade of experience, I’ve facilitated trainings for Fortune 500 companies, government departments, grassroots organizations, and everyone in between. I’ve also stood in high school gymnasiums talking to youth about sexual exploitation and consent. The lesson I’ve learned across all of it? People are capable of growth when they feel seen, supported, and invited into change.
Designing DEI Training for Modern Workplaces
Modern DEI training must evolve alongside the workplaces it serves. Our world is changing, and so are our teams. That’s why I believe in moving beyond static, once-a-year workshops to integrated, real-time learning that supports people when they need it most.
One of the most effective approaches we use is just-in-time training. For example: instead of hosting a general inclusive leadership session in January, offer a session for managers on reducing bias in performance reviews right before review season. The learning is sharper, more relevant, and much easier to apply. I had the pleasure of speaking about this very topic on a panel about “Levelling Up DEI” during the Future of Work Conference this year.
Another example: training junior staff during onboarding and early team integration. Rather than waiting until employees are promoted into leadership, we embed inclusive communication, anti-racism basics, and cultural humility into early-stage training so that equity becomes a norm from the beginning.
We also design sessions specifically for frontline staff that are grounded in the day-to-day realities of their roles. One of our clients asked us to support their crews with DEI content that was hands-on and plainspoken. We developed a 90-minute training that included:
- Everyday examples of exclusion and respect from job sites
- How to interrupt disrespect without escalating conflict
- Reflections on how racism, homophobia, and gendered harassment show up in male-dominated spaces
- Conversations about what respect looks like across lines of difference
We designed the session to be conversational, honest, and grounded in lived experiences. No jargon. No shaming. Just real dialogue about how to make work better for everyone.
We also created a training for landlords in a municipality that focused on interrupting bias when interacting with tenants—particularly Indigenous and Black residents who are disproportionately surveilled or treated with suspicion. The training included role plays, bystander intervention techniques, and facilitated storytelling from tenants themselves. The goal was to humanize interactions and create safer, more trusting relationships.
My training approach is grounded in what I call bridge-building facilitation, inspired by the writing of Frances Lee. Participants come with different lived experiences, levels of awareness, and sometimes uncertainty or hesitation. Our role is not to have all the answers, but to create space for exploration, questions, and connection. Change happens through conversation, not confrontation.
Intersectionality and lived experience should also be centered, not as buzzwords, but as the foundation of real inclusion. A conversation about gender should include trans and non-binary experiences. A session on racism must also name ableism, queerness, and colonial histories. And workplaces that want to build belonging must also be willing to talk about trauma, mistrust, and systemic barriers.
The HR Leader’s Role in Building an Inclusive Learning Culture
If you’re reading this as an HR leader, thank you. You play such an important role in shaping the tone, rhythm, and depth of workplace learning.
When you choose DEI training that goes beyond the checkbox, you are investing in your people. You’re opening the door to greater trust, creativity, and community.
And you don’t have to do it alone. No single training can address every challenge or fix every inequity. But when you commit to an ongoing learning plan, one that meets people where they are, and evolves over time, you’re creating a culture where inclusion is not a moment, but a movement.
Here are a few questions to consider as you shape your learning strategy:
- Are we offering training that supports managers to give equitable feedback?
- Are we supporting teams with facilitated conversations after conflict or harm?
- Do we revisit learning topics based on what our people need right now?
- Do we have inclusive onboarding training for new hires and meaningful learning for senior leaders?
It’s not about getting everything right. It’s about staying committed to the journey.
Microlearning, Storytelling & Metrics: Making DEI Training Work
How do we make sure DEI training doesn’t just sound good—but truly resonates?
Microlearning is one powerful way. Think: five-minute videos on responding to microaggressions. Short guides for hiring managers on inclusive interview questions. Quick tips for supporting a colleague going through a gender transition. These small, intentional pieces of learning meet people where they are and build confidence over time.
Storytelling is another vital tool. When I facilitate, I share real stories, some from clients, some from my own life as a mixed-race South Asian woman, and some from the communities I work alongside. Stories create connection. They invite people to care. They remind us why this work matters.
We’ve also used storytelling in leadership training sessions where participants map their identity journeys and reflect on moments they witnessed or enacted exclusion, and how those moments shaped them. Sharing in these sessions is always voluntary. For one participant, it was a story about their immigrant mother being talked over in meetings. For another, it was realizing they’d never asked their LGBTQ2S+ colleagues how included they felt. These moments build empathy and open hearts.
And yes, metrics matter too. Measuring the impact of training helps organizations reflect, improve, and stay accountable. We support clients to assess outcomes like:
- Knowledge and confidence gains post-training
- Manager accountability for inclusive behaviours
- Reductions in interpersonal conflict or complaints
- Employee perceptions of belonging and safety
We also help HR teams link learning data to broader outcomes, like turnover, engagement, or representation. When you can connect the dots between learning and culture, you build a stronger case for sustained investment.
In a time when DEI work can feel heavy, uncertain, or even under attack, let’s come back to what this is really about: people. Relationships. Possibility.
As facilitators, as HR professionals, as people who care, we have the opportunity to shape spaces where everyone feels seen and supported. Where we are willing to learn, listen, and lead together.
Let’s design training that sticks. Let’s build cultures of learning. Let’s create workplaces that are not only diverse, but deeply and deliberately inclusive.
And let’s do it in community, with compassion, and with courage.
Summary: Tools and Ideas to Implement
As you reflect on this blog, here are a few ideas and tools to support meaningful DEI learning in your organization:
- Just-in-time Training: Schedule training to align with real workplace momentsn like inclusive feedback workshops before performance reviews.
- Frontline Focus: Create practical, plain-language DEI training for staff who work directly with the public or on teams where exclusionary language and behaviours may go unchecked.
- Onboarding Integration: Embed foundational DEI topics like anti-racism, inclusive language, and communication norms into early training for new staff.
- Microlearning Tools:
- Five-minute videos on practical skills (e.g., how to interrupt a microaggression)
- Quick reference guides for inclusive meetings or interview practices
- Post-training nudges or prompts to reinforce learning
- Inclusive Meeting Checklist: Use a tool that helps assess meeting norms through an inclusion lens. For example, who speaks, who is interrupted, and what accessibility is present?
- Pre- and Post-Training Support: Consider offering reflective pre-work before sessions and collecting participant insights after. For example, what landed, what questions remain, and what actions feel doable now?
Remember, DEI training is most powerful when it’s responsive, ongoing, and supported across your organization. Even small changes—done with care—can shift cultures.