Diversity and inclusion are important to the success of any business. Both initiatives have been proven to help improve productivity and retention rates. Overall, employees are happier in a diverse, inclusive workspace. Here are a few tips to help leaders create a diverse and inclusive company culture.
Educate the Leadership in Your Company
The leaders in your company will be key to being successful in your diversity and inclusion efforts. They will be the individuals interacting with employees and bring your inclusion policies to fruition. Consider requiring your leadership team to participate in diversity and inclusion training. Breaking into smaller groups and learning about D&I basics can help the strategies take off.
Form an Inclusion Council Within Your Organization
Some companies have formed inclusion councils within their organizations. To form a council for inclusion, identify leaders in your company that are one or two levels below the CEO. You should choose people on your team who have expressed a passion for the company’s diversity and inclusion efforts. These individuals should play key roles in decision-making processes, retention efforts, and internal promotions. When necessary, they should also be the ones to communicate with executives to advocate for diversity in the workplace.
Celebrate Differences Between Your Employees
You want to show your employees that you respect their different, diverse backgrounds. One of the best ways to do this is by celebrating those differences. Hold events that allow them to share parts of their home life and culture with you. Some employers also celebrate differences by offering room for meditation and prayer in the workplace. Look for ways to ensure that every person who works for you feels seen by their managers and by the company as a whole.
Take Time to Listen to Your Staff
Listening is important when it comes to retaining a diverse and inclusive staff. You can do this by conducting surveys that focus on inclusion problems. Surveys allow them to submit the information without the feeling of confrontation. They want to be able to freely express their opinions and concerns. Use the same information in the survey to get a big-picture view of the demographics in your company and how you can be more diverse.
If surveys don’t work for your company, consider how you can provide a safe space for them to share their concerns. When you are working to improve diversity and inclusion, you want people to feel comfortable coming forward with their problems.
Communicate About Your Goals and Progress Often
Set goals for your diversity and inclusion efforts and have a strategic plan for reaching them, just like you would any other objective. Then, communicate about the progress you are making towards those goals on a regular basis. This will help everyone in the company see the difference the progress is making in the workplace on a daily basis.
Work With TekCom Resources to Increase Diversity
Working with a staffing agency like TekCom Resources can help your business better implement its diversity and inclusion initiatives. We will sit down with you to learn about your company’s specific diversity and inclusion goals. Then we will formulate a recruitment strategy to help you reach those goals. Contact us to learn more about how we can assist you.
