How a DEI Competency Framework ACTUALLY Works

The Competent DEI Practice newsletter: A newsletter pioneering competency-based and non-political workplace DEI practice.

__

The past month has seen the beginning of conference / events season for me and my team, and it’s been great to be out and about meeting new and familiar faces and sharing everything we’ve been up to at CCWE.?

I’ve been speaking a lot about competency in workplace DEI – and you may be thinking “how does this actually work in practice?”?

One of my gripes with the industry is the amount of theory, and lack of tangible action, I see being promoted. So I want to make sure everything I’m sharing is practical and operational – something you can actually use to improve in your role as a DEI professional.?

So let me dive into the tangible:

This Month's Focus: The Competency Framework

As you may or may not know – we have developed the world’s first workplace DEI competency framework, which has recently launched and the response so far has been astounding. So I wanted to share a bit more information about how it works and maybe you can benefit from it too.?

The framework can be used to assess an individual or team’s overall competency in workplace DEI.?

There are 13 core competencies that the framework covers and these have been stress tested around the world and peer reviewed.?

The framework can be used in a number of ways:?

1. To hire DEI professionals?

With how unregulated workplace DEI is, it can be difficult to objectively assess the skills and competency of DEI candidates. Particularly for SMEs with smaller teams and less resources. The framework can be used to create a job description, shortlist candidates, and improve the interview process.?

1. Training and upskilling existing HR and DEI professionals

Level up your internal competency using the framework as a training tool. Existing staff responsible for DEI can benchmark their current competencies across the board, then work to improve. This can be used to form professional improvement plans, and tangible objectives for the team.?

1. To support procurement??

Embedding DEI principles into procurement policies requires a deep understanding of DEI and a commitment to revising and evolving existing practices. Given procurement teams aren’t guaranteed (or expected) to be competent in DEI, the framework can support their purchasing decisions.?

Realistically, everyone is frustrated right now:?

Organisations are frustrated with lack of progress in DEI. They need objective measures to help them navigate what works for their organisation.?

DEI professionals are frustrated with unclear job roles, unrealistic expectations, and they are frequently burning out and quitting – creating high turnover in the profession.?

Marginalised communities are frustrated with not enough being done to support them in the workplace.?

Taking a clear, regulated and standardised approach to workplace DEI will ease these frustrations.?

Download our booklet and preview of The Competency Framework to learn more.?

What's Next?

IGPP Presenting Partner: We have a lot of 2024 event dates to share with you – because CCWE has become a presenting partner of IGPP!

The Institute for Government & Public Policy delivers inspirational and empowering diversity, equity, and inclusion events throughout the year, across the country.?Which means we’re taking our competency-based approach and framework on tour…?

Mark your calendars for the relevant events in your city:?

• Thu 18th April – London: The National Advancing Menopause in the Workplace Conference 2024
• Wed 24th April – Manchester: The Northern Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in the Workplace 2024?
• Thu 2nd May – London: The National Advancing Men’s Mental Health in the Workplace Conference 2024
• Wed 12th June – London: The National Neurodiversity at Work Conference 2024
• Tue 25th June – Belfast: The Northern Ireland EDI in the Workplace Conference 2024
• Thu 11th July – London: The Fifth Annual Health and Wellbeing in the Workplace Conference 2024
• Thu 3rd Oct – Manchester: The Northern Advancing Menopause in the Workplace Conference 2024
• Wed 16th Oct –London: The Second National Women in Leadership Conference 2024

Find out more and register via IGPP.

?? WIN A FREE DEI CERTIFICATION

At every IGPP event this year, we will be running a competition to win a free spot on our Certified DEI Lead programme. The competition can only be entered on the day at the event, so even more reason to get yourself to one or more!

No event dates work for you??

Don’t worry! We are running our own 3 day DEI summit in November.?All the details will be announced very soon – this will be a conference like no other, so you don't want to miss it...

I’d love to hear from you!

Something you’d like me to cover next time??

Questions around the competency framework??

Get in touch! My DMs are always open to questions, thoughts and ideas.

Warmest regards,

Ashanti?

Learn more about CCWE at ccweglobal.com and follow us on LinkedIn for real-time updates and insights.