Managing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Employers may have the will of using diversity with the aim of complying to the communal obligations and maybe to increase the general bottom line of diversity, inclusivity and equitability (Fine, Sojo Monzon, and Lawford-Smith, 2020). The development of the strategy always involves four main stages that will work out for a specific organization.

1. Collection of data and carrying out analysis that helps in determining change.
2. Designing a strategy that will indeed match the objectives of the organization.
3. Implementation of the strategy and;
4. Evaluating and continuing with the plan of auditing the procedure in place.

The strategy has to go through six steps that will help in the determination of all standards needed for the same.

Step 1: Data Compilation

The managers have to know the workforce and how it looks like as compared to the available labour market and in case there are forms of inequalities that are based on the available demographics. Capturing data on the workers demographics would allow the management to understand the diversity that is there among employees (Vontz et al. 2018). The main aim of understanding the differences comes with the equity of the internal events and area identity of some specified trends. The demographic data has to include, Disability, age, family status, gender, ethnicity, functions of an organization, race, generation, type of personality, race, religion, veteran status and sexual orientation (Guillaume, et al. 2017, 279. There are resources available for capturing the demographic data in every organization.  Survey remains to be the best way to capture the accurate data based on demography in every organization.

Step 2: Need for identity and Areas that need Concern

Once the useful data is collected, the areas of underrepresentation have to be identified appropriately. Is so doing, the managers have to start a review ofthe available demographics like age, equity, race representation, sex and religion. The management has to dig down by analysing the location, position, department and any other relevant areas that would help in maintaining the differences in a work place.

Step 3: Addressing Policies or Consistencies that affect Diversity, Equality and Inclusivity

The managers have to determine all the barriers that may be affecting the employees, inclusion or opportunities of individuals from different groups (Shore, Cleveland, and Sanchez, 2018, 179). Organizations have to consider different policies that need to be eliminated and allow for accommodation of different parties in the work environment.

Step 4: Identification of Business Objectives

The management has to understand the diversity, inclusivity and equitable workforce that can help in the achieving of business objectives that are in line with the company strategy that will fall in a step to follow.   The organization and its management have to be categorical in communication and goal setting on issues related to gender, inclusivity and diversity (Buengeler, Leroy, and De Stobbeleir, 2018, 290). As part of the goal, the increased diversity index score remains to be the main aspect that would help an organization is standing tall and overcoming some performance indicators.

Step 5: Implementation of Initiatives

The diversity, inclusivity and gender policies in an organization are initiatives that are made of practices and policies that will help in the growth of the organization. The major aspects that would be used as a target include training of staff, employee sponsorship, targeted recruitment and creating awareness among employees (Ng, and Sears, 2020, 437). The management has to develop proper action plan that would help in the process of implementing the initiatives through realistic goals that will begin with developing the action plan under implementation process (Roberson, 2019, 72).  The plan implementation process has to obey the rule of responsibility, action items and meeting the set timeframes.

Step 6: Communicating the Initiatives and proposed Changes Within the Plan

The employees have to identify various stakeholders and come up with messages to each of them with the aim of educating, informing, empower or engaging in an appropriate manner (Sakdiyakorn, and Wattanacharoensil, 2018, 136). Stakeholders may vary on the way they understand the message and it remains to be necessary for every employee to relay the stream of the communication on the initiatives in place. Communication plan has to be incorporated to the executives and made available through media outlets social media included (Jensen, Moynihan, and Salomonsen, 2018, 360). Emails, newsletters, and intranet are useful and successful tools of communicating the idea in place.

The Purpose of Gathering Data to Inform a Plan to Implement Equality, Identity and Inclusion in an Organization

            Data may not be equal when formulating such an important policy in an organization. The management and employees have the chance to influence the nature of diversity within the work place (Edwards, Holmes, and Sowa, 2019, 135). The organization may have collected the needed data but there can be failure to have some sense of clarity on the same information needed. The employee information may not be used for the right purpose of DEI approaches (Edwards, Holmes, and Sowa, 2019, 137). The wide metrics within an organization may not mean something to the manager who may have decided on the nature of employees they need to hire. The essentiality in presenting the data based on diversity may be easy to understand and interpret, help in customizing scorecard and creating the dashboard that is relevant to the stakeholders and employees (Golom, 2018, 13). The diversity data should not only be used on employees but extended to consultants, contractors, sub-contractors and secondees.

            The number of employees based on gender has to be assessed with the aim of creating a sense of diversity. For instance, the situation where women are few in number at the pipeline company needs a proper balancing of gender with the aim of improving equality across all the genders. In case the company will be conducting new recruitments, there is need to understand the differences and give women a higher chance of recruitment (Bernstein, Bulger, Salipante, and Weisinger, 2020, 397). The diversity data has to be placed alongside the targets for recruitment as per the requirements of the labour market. The departments have the responsibility of meeting targets for benchmarking and ranking each functional area that are recorded every month.

            The management may fail to achieve the desired target of implementing diversity policy. The reason behind the implementation of diversity, inclusion and identity in an organization comes with the manner in which the data is used. Besides, the nature of processes applied when collecting data may lead to the failure of implementation of the process (Macdonald et al. 2019, 340). Gathering and monitoring data is one essential aspect when employers intend to increase inclusivity, diversity and equality in an organization. Gathering the right information and applying it at the right time with the right intention remain to be the best way to establish the challenge of DEI.

Gathering data, tracking the right information and reviewing all the collection in a specific timeline would help in understanding the demographics and differences that may appear. The managers have to measure and implement the nature of data they can control for the purpose of success of the same (Muñoz et al. 2019, 4). Reports of database are effective in ensuring there is a possibility of implementation process. Benchmarking of the collected data in time of implementation may help in understanding the differences that come with any failure to implement any possible changes. In order for the management to use the diversity data for the purpose of driving DEI progress, the employers have to make it clear on the correlations between decisions and the resulting outcomes. The main aspects of shaping the composition of workforce can be external hiring, promotion, and retention on turnover.

Approaches To Implement the Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Plans in an Organization

The implementation process would take four main steps that can be regarded as approaches. The steps include; revelation of relevant opportunities, elevation of equity, activation of diversity and leading inclusivity. The stages can be shown in a flowchart as below;

Revelation of Relevant Opportunities

            The initial step towards the implementation process involves discovery of all relevant opportunities that will help in DEI. Duplication of initiatives related to diversity that appear effective in an organization would be better in settling the issue of inclusivity and equality. The management has to create an alignment that would generate a commitment towards diversity, equality and identity within the organization. The revelation of opportunities may be used in knowing the areas that need an adjustment of specific gender, race, religion or the minority group.

Elevation of Equity

            The moment organizational management begins to discuss initiatives related to diversity at workplace, there has to be a consideration of the relevant standards in place. The managers have to recognize the inequalities within the society and have a way forward in helping towards the implementation of DEI. Organizational leaders have to express their motivation towards the elimination of inequalities. Showing commitment and educating the workforce on the importance of diversity, equality and inclusion would help in evading the barriers. Involving the stakeholders, shareholders and staff on the implementation process through creating awareness would be a better step towards eliminating the same.

Activation of Diversity

            Diversity remains to be collective similarities and differences that involves organizational features, beliefs, values, background, and experiences that would need inclusion. Activation of diversity is an implementation process that need the recognition of engaging the differences among the employees and consumers. Managers have to team up and explore the depth effects of diversity, approaches and assumptions that would be used to identify ways towards enhancing contributions of making diversity a reality.

Leading Inclusivity

            Leadership is one of the key aspects that has to be used when eyeing to implement the policies related to diversity, equality and identity.

References

Bernstein, R.S., Bulger, M., Salipante, P. and Weisinger, J.Y., 2020. From diversity to inclusion to equity: A theory of generative interactions. Journal of Business Ethics, 167(3), pp.395-410.

Bernstein, R.S., Bulger, M., Salipante, P. and Weisinger, J.Y., 2020. From diversity to inclusion to equity: A theory of generative interactions. Journal of Business Ethics, 167(3), pp.395-410.

Buengeler, C., Leroy, H. and De Stobbeleir, K., 2018. How leaders shape the impact of HR’s diversity practices on employee inclusion. Human Resource Management Review, 28(3), pp.289-303.

Edwards, L.H., Holmes, M.H. and Sowa, J.E., 2019. Including women in public affairs departments: Diversity is not enough. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 25(2), pp.163-184.

Fine, C., Sojo Monzon, V. and Lawford-Smith, H., 2020. Why does workplace gender diversity matter? Justice, organizational benefits, and policy.

Golom, F., 2018. Reframing the dominant diversity discourse: Alternate conversations for creating whole system change. Metropolitan Universities, 29(1), pp.11-27.

Guillaume, Y.R., Dawson, J.F., Otaye‐Ebede, L., Woods, S.A. and West, M.A., 2017. Harnessing demographic differences in organizations: What moderates the effects of workplace diversity?. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(2), pp.276-303.

Jensen, U.T., Moynihan, D.P. and Salomonsen, H.H., 2018. Communicating the vision: How face‐to‐face dialogue facilitates transformational leadership. Public Administration Review, 78(3), pp.350-361.

Macdonald, R.H., Beane, R.J., Baer, E.M., Eddy, P.L., Emerson, N.R., Hodder, J., Iverson, E.R., McDaris, J.R., O’Connell, K. and Ormand, C.J., 2019. Accelerating change: The power of faculty change agents to promote diversity and inclusive teaching practices. Journal of Geoscience Education, 67(4), pp.330-339.

Muñoz, S.M., Basile, V., Gonzalez, J., Birmingham, D., Aragon, A., Jennings, L. and Gloeckner, G., 2017. Critical perspectives from a university cluster hire focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis, 6(2), pp.1-21.

Ng, E.S. and Sears, G.J., 2020. Walking the talk on diversity: CEO beliefs, moral values, and the implementation of workplace diversity practices. Journal of Business Ethics, 164(3), pp.437-450.

Roberson, Q.M., 2019. Diversity in the workplace: A review, synthesis, and future research agenda. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 6, pp.69-88.

Sakdiyakorn, M. and Wattanacharoensil, W., 2018. Generational diversity in the workplace: A systematic review in the hospitality context. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 59(2), pp.135-159.

Shore, L.M., Cleveland, J.N. and Sanchez, D., 2018. Inclusive workplaces: A review and model. Human Resource Management Review, 28(2), pp.176-189.

Vontz, M., Chung, H., Dennehy, J., Sacks, R., Woodman, P. and Amin, W., 2018. A BLUEPRINT FOR BALANCE. Time to fix the broken windows.