The five biggest DEI mistakes organisations make & how to avoid making those yourself

Kia ora and welcome to BeHeard Aotearoa!

I am so excited to get this underway to share the valuable insights I have gained on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion throughout my career, as well as new perspectives and knowledge as I continue my DEI learning journey.

Where to start was the toughest question! But in the end, it seemed fitting that I start broad. After all, we have many editions ahead to dive into specifics. With that, I bring to you…

The five biggest DE&I mistakes organisations make and how to avoid making those yourself.

1. Lack of a comprehensive DEI strategy:?

I get it, I have been there! You’re at a startup and things are moving way too quickly or you’re in a larger corporation and your team is so thinly stretched. So you go for the “quick wins”, “low-hanging fruit”, “no-brainers” and any other corporate cliche you would like to insert here. Where does this leave you? Likely focusing solely on diversity hiring without considering other crucial aspects of DEI that create inclusive cultures and foster belonging. Unfortunately, this limited approach rarely leads to long-term success. One without the other will lead to a “leaky bucket” and all your efforts to attract that diverse workforce will be in vain.?

Solution:?Take a holistic approach to DEI. Getting your DEI strategy off the ground doesn’t need to be a huge project that stretches on for months with a long laundry list of initiatives that you will never be able to deliver. Rather, it means taking the time to understand the specific DEI needs and goals of your organisation, making sure you are prioritising what is most important, continuously reflecting on progress and where the greatest need is and taking action accordingly.

2. A superficial approach to diversity hiring:?

Are your DEI hiring objectives based only on numerical targets? If you’re only focused on attracting and sourcing diverse talent without looking into your hiring practices, then you’re not getting the most out of your diversity hiring initiatives. Only looking at the numbers can also lead to tokenism, leaving diverse employees feeling undervalued and disengaged.

Solution:?Numerical targets are important to understand the progress you are making, but go beyond the numbers and ensure you are creating an inclusive recruitment process. Review the systems, processes and tools your organisation uses. Consider what training is given to interviewers to ensure they are assessing candidates objectively and what systems you can put in place to eliminate bias.

3. Inadequate employee education and training:?

Cultivating an inclusive and equitable workplace?starts?with leadership setting the tone from the top but it doesn’t stop there. Everyone in your organisation is responsible for cultivating a sense of belonging. Otherwise, why hello, there’s that leaky bucket again!?

Don’t overlook the significance of ongoing education for employees. Without it, employees may struggle to understand the importance of DEI or how to contribute to an inclusive workplace.

Solution:?Implement DEI training that speaks to the needs of your organisation. Include?all?employees, leadership teams, managers, and individual contributors. Focus on building awareness, empathy, and understanding of different perspectives. Facilitate open dialogue and promote a culture of continuous learning.

4.?Failure to establish accountability:?

Without clear accountability, DEI initiatives can lose momentum and fail to drive meaningful change. How often does DEI fall to one passionate individual and becomes their “problem to solve”? Add to that a lack of specific goals, metrics, or systems for tracking progress and it makes it challenging to assess the effectiveness of your DEI efforts.

Solution:?Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress. Regularly evaluate and analyse data on employee demographics across your hiring funnel, retention rates, promotion rates, potential pay gaps, employee satisfaction surveys etc. Leaders and managers need to be accountable for reaching these goals. DEI is not the job of one, but the job of all.

5. Neglecting employee engagement:?

With the lack of a holistic DEI strategy or with one bogged-down individual driving it all, employee engagement often goes unthought of.

Solution:?Involve employees! Empower employees to drive and engage in DEI initiatives, such as employee resource groups (ERGs) that provide networking and support for underrepresented groups, or mentorship and sponsorship to create learning opportunities.

The bottom line is, DEI does take deliberate effort. But, it’s important to remember, we are all on a journey. No one is 100% nailing it, we can always do better - as organisations, as leaders, as people & talent teams, and as employees. So long as we take time to reflect, continue learning, and put in the deliberate effort to move our organisations forward, we are making progress!

Ngā mihi,

Sian

P.S.?Have a topic you would like me to cover in an upcoming edition? Post it in the comments below!