Top 5 Tips For Workplace Diversity & Equality
Having a diverse workforce is important for your company. They bring a range of viewpoints that can help you move your business into new markets & reach different customers. Here’s why it’s important
A diverse and inclusive workforce brings new and fresh perspectives to the business and brand.
Diversity in age, religion, nationality, gender, and more can help businesses develop great products and find new and exciting ways to cater to customers.
The benefits of workplace inclusion initiatives include higher revenue, better decision-making, and higher talent retention rates.
To create a more diverse and inclusive workplace, follow the top five tips below:
1. Inclusive Recruitment Processes
Apart from reaching out to diverse networks and recruitment companies, there are other ways you can adopt a more inclusive recruitment process.
Remove names and other identifying information from resumes to create blind resume reviews. This simple change instantly minimizes subtle biases in the screening process.
While employers might not mean to discriminate against candidates, there are still instances where recruitment teams might unknowingly bypass a candidate’s application based on a preconceived and unfounded notion.
2. Be Transparent
Prevention is better than cure, but some companies must still address past ills.
If your business wants a culture of inclusion, it should be built on trust. The only way to gain the trust of your employees is by being transparent.
Be ready to open a dialogue about gender pay inequality and wage disparities during recruitment. Many companies are working towards addressing gender pay imbalances so there is no need to be defensive.
Present your company’s data in an open and honest way and then take action to bridge the gender pay gap.
3. Understand The Difference
A diverse workforce does not automatically equal an inclusive workplace. While the two concepts are interconnected, they are not interchangeable.
The difference between diversity and inclusivity can be measured in comfort.
Inclusion is about how well the perspectives and contributions of different demographic groups are integrated and valued within an organization.
Understanding discrimination laws is the first step to identifying areas that need changing.
A workplace that genuinely values inclusivity will have initiatives that make people feel proud of their culture and who they are.
4. Honor Cultural & Religious Practices
Lead an inclusive workplace culture by introducing a policy for honoring multiple cultural and religious practices.
Focus on holidays and celebrations by having floating holidays to accommodate the religious and cultural preferences of your employees.
Employees appreciate an organization that is visibly committed to diversity and inclusion. Another way to celebrate the spirit of inclusivity is by designating a special fridge to keep certain food items separate.
5. Employee Surveys
One of the easiest ways to know what your employees lack is to ask regularly.
Perform bi-annual surveys to avoid neglecting the needs of your minority groups. Too often, HR departments look at the overall sentiment of the staff and do not identify the issues those groups face.
Survey your employees but segment the data according to gender, age, ethnicity, and more to get a holistic overview of each group.
Wrapping Up
Managing diversity and inclusion in the workplace is all about effective communication.
Open communication creates a collaborative environment where employees feel empowered and confident to share their ideas, suggestions, and perspectives.
Follow these tips above to foster a mindful and inclusive workplace where diversity is celebrated.
Do you have any tips for ensuring your workforce is diverse? Let us know in the comments below.