Diversity and Inclusion Pulse: 2017 Leader’s Guide

We know that having a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture results in positive outcomes such as increased employee engagement, higher levels of creativity and better retention of talent. However, putting into place an effective diversity and inclusion (D&I) strategy is challenging, especially since it needs to resonate with the unique perspectives, backgrounds and experiences of today’s workforce.

To better understand the current state of D&I efforts—successes and struggles—we surveyed 2,167 senior executives around the world and asked them about their personal experiences and perceptions. Their responses are fascinating, but are in some areas also concerning, particularly when you look at women, racial and ethnic minorities, and executives who identify as LGBTQ+ and how their experiences in the workplace differ vastly from those of their colleagues. Here are three examples of those differences and thoughts on how motivated organizations can address these challenges.

Perceptions by Gender

Female executives perceive their organizations’ leadership and workforce to be less diverse than do male executives. Women are also more likely to agree that diverse talent is leaving their organizations due to a lack of inclusion or engagement.

Perceptions by Race/Ethnicity

Executives of underrepresented backgrounds are less likely to feel that they can be their authentic selves in the workplace and are more likely to feel pressure to conform and act like the majority. 

Perceptions by Sexual Orientation

My colleagues Amy Hayes and Jamie Hechinger recently published our data on inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer/questioning and others (LGBTQ+) executives. Our data shows that while LGBTQ+ executives see leaders making visible efforts and communicating the importance of D&I, they have a less positive perception of leadership’s accountability for achieving D&I goals. LGBTQ+ executives are also less likely to think that leaders reward inclusive behaviors in their organizations. 

What Should Leaders Do?

As leaders, we should address such differences in experience and perception, or we risk losing out on the full benefits of a diverse workforce (and losing top talent in the process). What can leaders do to enhance inclusion of diverse employees? Here are a few steps:

1. Tracking drivers of employee inclusion by gender, ethnicity and other demographics and focusing on practices that drive inclusion of these employee groups
2. Tracking employee turnover rates by gender, ethnicity and other demographics and holding exit interviews to uncover when and why diverse employees leave the organization
3. Using surveys and interviews to uncover what drives belonging among employees of different backgrounds and working with internal and external D&I consultants to create bespoke strategies to drive a sense of belonging among each group
4. Creating a safe and inclusive environment for underrepresented groups to express themselves and ensuring diverse voices can be heard and diverse perspectives are considered in critical decision-making
5. Enhancing accountability by setting D&I goals for leaders, tying executive compensation to achieving D&I goals and creating D&I scorecards to measure progress
6. Rewarding inclusive behaviors across the board, i.e., inclusive leadership qualities may be used as assessment criteria for internal and external appointments

What have you done that works in your organization?