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Identify Inclusion Priorities: Gap Analysis

Learn why measuring inclusion is an essential step to develop a successful DEI strategy.

Brief Summary

Diversity metrics measure the balance of people in the workplace and if movement is equitable, while inclusion metrics measure if the employee experience is equitable.

For over a decade, companies have been talking about the business case for diversity but it’s rarely true that diversity alone leads to results. Diversity is just representation. It’s simply not enough to increase the ratio of underrepresented people in your workforce while still operating at status quo. In fact, diversity without inclusion can raise more issues than it solves. Inclusion is what enables you to leverage the power of a diverse workforce; it is the real work of ensuring that all groups are equally valued, supported, empowered, able to be authentic and fulfil their potential in the workplace.

Challenge

Compared to diversity, inclusion has been a far more difficult topic to measure because it is often seen as purely a subjective topic and believed to be just about "feelings".

Recommendation

Track leading indicators of inclusion and equity that can guide your DEI strategy. Collect actionable data to build an understanding of how employees experience the workplace and the underlying causes of your inclusion gaps.

Assess your organization with these questions:

  • What are our hypotheses of why representation numbers look the way the do?
  • What role does inclusion play in the movement of talent?
  • Do we need to gather quantitative data, qualitative data, or both?
  • What are your priorities and focus areas? Why?
dei progress

Proposed Actions

Foundational Actions

  • Go beyond engagement surveys to understand what is driving different levels of engagement and the role inclusion plays.
  • Monitor organizational culture through cultural audits and employee opinion surveys; analyze by diversity dimensions.
  • Conduct an employee inclusion survey and cut by demographics to understand employee experience and equity by segment.
  • Tools: Is an Engagement Survey enough?; Culture Audit; The Secret of Effective DEI Surveys

Embedding Actions

Leading Edge

  • Build an intersectional understanding of employee challenges.
  • Regularly assess DEI in-depth covering behavior, attitude, and perception for the overall organization and within organizational units; incorporate into a regularly refined DEI strategy.
  • Measure how DEI links to the business:  innovation and creativity, efficiency, productivity, new business opportunities, reputation, employee value proposition, competitive advantage.
  • Tools: Innovation, diversity and market growth; Behavioural insight and optimising culture

Valued Guidance

To Read

To Watch / Listen

To Learn / Study

Implementation Plan

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