How can you set diversity and inclusion goals for your team?

This is a critical first step. Before you can decide what your company will do, you need to assess where you are starting from and what elements are most realistic and important for you to achieve in each phase. I have seen "DE&I scorecards" to be a good place to start, used as a straight forward assessment and grading tool. This kind of tool will help to identify gaps which can later help to frame your goals. It can be eye opening, so it's important to remember to also celebrate what you are already doing well.

Gap assessment of your current state and your desirable future state is important. Start by conducting a comprehensive diversity and inclusion assessment of your team. Collect demographic data and gather feedback from team members to understand their experiences, concerns, and suggestions. Analyze the representation of different intersectional identities within the team and identify any disparities.

Setting diversity and inclusion (D&I) goals for your team involves: Vision Alignment: Align D&I goals with your team’s vision and values. Measurable Objectives: Set clear, quantifiable objectives to track progress. Inclusive Culture: Foster a culture that values diverse perspectives and inclusive practices. Continuous Learning: Encourage team members to learn about D&I and its benefits. Accountability: Hold everyone accountable for contributing to D&I. Feedback Mechanism: Establish a system for feedback to continuously improve D&I efforts. Remember, D&I are not just ethical imperatives but also strategic advantages.

An imperative first step is to understand the value proposition emanating from having a diverse workforce and fostering an inclusive culture in the organization. As bizarre as it may be, most would agree that D&I is crucial for success, but seldom know the exact how. Once this is engrained, it becomes easier to assess current state and articulate the ideal end state.

Well, in my experience for a lot of leaders, diversity means mostly gender based diversity. Diversity has a lot more dimension to it. Inclusion is always a nice thing. But above all, the primary goal of the team is still getting the work completed as needed. There is no point having a diverse and inclusive team, which cannot meet the work challenges.

Based on my experience working with various clients - Make sure your DEIB efforts are not performative but truly transformative and meaningful. - Your DEIB goals need to be achievable and attainable. Don't hire a person of color and expect your DEIB issues to resolve itself.

It’s important not to take on too much too soon. Affective DE and I strategies take months even years to fully realize. It’s important to break your strategy up into phases. You can start with the end in mind. Visualizing what your organization would look like if it truly embodied diversity, equity and inclusion, and then work backwards from there.

An important aspect of defining your desired end state is to go beyond pure numbers. Clarity on what value needs to be achieved through D&I and how it can be sustained are key components of defining a holistic D&I vision.

There cannot be a "flavor of the season" approache to D&I goals - These need to be seen as an integral part of the organization's DNA. Goals need to be focused on sustainability and impact. Measurements should be dynamic and outcome oriented.

Important to review and track Smart objectives on a regular basis with clear KPIs to monitor performance and ensure objectives are on track

Define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) diversity and inclusion goals that align with your organization's values and objectives. For example, you might set targets for increasing representation or improving the workplace climate for underrepresented groups with intersectional identities. Especially LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities in the workplace.

Developing a cohesive communication plan is the key. Consider the following in your communication plan. How the diversity goals align with organisational purpose and strategy. Clearly define how everyone can play a role to help achieve these goals. Leaders, people managers and individual contributors. Why these goals matter to the organisation. Update key stakeholders on the progress regularly and transparently. Dial down on corporate style statements and dial up on authentic storytelling communication.

It is imperative that goals and objectives are clearly communicated from the highest levels of the organisation, but also that those same people are seen to be ‘walking the walk’; any perception of virtue signalling is hugely damaging to a credible DEI strategy. Additionally, ensure there is transparency across the whole process and that there are clear communication channels for everyone to contribute their thoughts, ideas and importantly, any concerns or pushback - hearing from sceptics will only help you develop your strategy.

It is very important to communicate when implementing policies or practices that influence the people. For having an effective implementation it is important to have change agents that can slowly being those changes in the teams. Also, when sharing those changes, it important to share the why and how effective implementation will help not only the organization but also the people to shine and grow.

Engage in open and meaningful dialogue with team members who have intersectional identities. Ask for their input and feedback on the proposed goals and initiatives to ensure they address their unique experiences and challenges.

This is by large an area that is often undermined. Truth be told, there are a lot of misconceptions regarding the topic of D&I and they lead to dynamic issues whilst individuals in the organization try to comprehend its effects. Investing significantly in change management and communications associated with this topic is pivotal to the success of the D&I program.

Implement regular data collection and reporting mechanisms to track progress toward diversity and inclusion goals. Use metrics such as representation, employee engagement, promotion rates, and employee turnover to evaluate the impact of your efforts. Establish clear accountability by assigning responsibility for specific diversity and inclusion initiatives and goals to individuals or teams. Regularly report progress to leadership and team members.

There are probably 3 distinct pillars to consider here: a. Focus on pure numbers b. Focus on "moments of truth" c. Focus on D&I impact and devise ways to represent the value it is bringing. (Just saying, everyone understands this better if it comes attached with a $$$ sign)

Be scientific in measuring the effectiveness of your DEI interventions against your goals - use data to prove whether your DEI performance has improved, but also to make sure you haven’t introduced any non-intended consequences, for example studies showed that in some cases a targeted effort to increase the proportion of women in senior executive positions led to a reduction of women lower down the ranks; an unintended consequence that was found using holistic data.

It's essential to periodically review your goals and make adjustments as needed. Take a moment to reflect: What have you accomplished? What valuable lessons have you gained? And most importantly, why do you need to make changes? Answering these questions will enable you to identify areas of improvement, recognize your shortcomings, and devise a clear strategy for enhancing your goals.

Setting DEI goals is pivotal for fostering diversity of thought and company growth. It's more than just a numerical target; it's an ongoing journey of staff development. Embedding DEI in strategic plans is crucial. However, it's not solely about numbers; it's about continuously nurturing your team. Emphasizing social capital aids in expanding networks and preventing isolation or tokenization, ensuring everyone's voices are heard and valued.

Throughout the past few years I have learned that no matter how solid your data is or how organized your processes and plans are, you have to keep emphasizing the why behind your work and telling real personal stories! Take time to think through and articulate the why for you as well as the company. This goes beyond any vision or mission to the heart behind it. Being ready to share that helps get people engaged and can help them understand their own why. Then set up ways to gather information and experiences from real companies to be able tell personal stories!

I personally believe measuring your progress on DE&I based on metrics like diversity ratio is not the way to go about it. This only pushes people responsible towards these measures to form biased practices and take affirmative actions. There are numerous studies that give an approach towards measuring DE&I as a framework of practices and policies that are inclusive and equitable, the ratios are a result of these principles policies, practices and programs. The result may be achieved or may not be which is dependent on not just DE&I but can also he due to business segment, location, brand equity etc.

Tudo depende do alinhamento dos valores organizacionais e da equipe. O papel do gestor é fundamental no conhecimento da equipe para neutralizar seus vieses e atingir a inova??o, a diversidade e a inclus?o. Somente após esta análise pode colocar metas e para chegar nelas é preciso transparência, comunica??o clara, escuta ativa. Deixe a equipe opinar, participar. Quanto mais envolvimento de todos, menos tabus s?o deixados de lado!

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) are vital for teams, offering ethical and social benefits along with strategic advantages. To harness these advantages, teams must establish clear, measurable D&I goals aligned with their vision, values, and needs. Understanding the current state through data collection, conducting analyses, and setting SMART goals are essential steps. Communication and alignment of goals with the team's vision are crucial, involving team members in the process. Regular monitoring, reviews, and adjustments ensure goal achievement and sustainability, while continuous improvement based on changing needs fosters a culture of D&I excellence.