Examples of Workplace Diversity & Inclusion
In our previous blog post in our series on Diversity & Inclusion, we discussed Workplace Inclusion and what that means in the context of Diversity and Inclusion. In this post, we discuss concrete examples of Workplace Diversity & Inclusion and what it looks like when implemented.
What are some examples of successful Workplace Diversity & Inclusion practices?
- Ensuring executive-level commitments. CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion has created a pledge for CEOs to commit to diversity and inclusion in their own organizations. Beyond public commitments such as this pledge, executive leaders can commit to accountability and transparency measures on diversity and inclusion issues, and ensure leadership is given inclusion and unconscious bias training.
- Diversity calendar. An organization that champions diversity will acknowledge a diverse range of holidays and celebrations in their organizational calendar. This means supporting employees who need days off outside of the Judeo-Christian winter break period, ensuring a supportive and celebratory space for employees of different background, and respecting different holiday celebration practices.
- Ensure support for diverse employees. This means that human resources must be trained on diversity and inclusion practices and know how to ensure that diverse employees have their needs met. This may also mean creating Employee Resource and Support groups and ensuring that company policies are easily accessible to employees with different language or accessibility needs.
- Put inclusion and diversity goals in writing. Incorporate inclusion and diversity into the mission, vision, and values of your organization, and publish an inclusion and diversity statement. Ensure that potential employees can easily find information on your organization’s diversity and inclusion approaches and practices.
- Start with the recruiting process. In order to integrate diversity and inclusion into every phase of your employees’ experience, you need to start at the very beginning. In recruiting, look to new pools of potential employees, make an effort to reach underrepresented groups, and make it clear that your organization champions diversity and equity from the first communication with a candidate.
- Listen and self-reflect. Organizational leadership should use feedback from employees to examine their own leadership style and approach. This will ensure long-term sustainability of diversity and inclusion initiatives, and that the changes are far-reaching within the organization.
While the above examples represent a few concrete suggestions to integrate diversity and inclusion priorities into your workplace, there are many other ways to ensure it’s an organizational priority. Need help with building workplace diversity and inclusion? Contact Canadian Equality Consulting and begin a discussion on how to make your workplace more responsive to the needs of your diverse employees.