Creating sustainable inclusive cultures for business success

At the time of writing, the US under the Trump administration has announced the decision to abandon diversity policies, leading some organisations to follow suit while others remain steadfast in operating in accordance with an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) strategy. Here Mie Østergaard explains why effective implementation of EDI is so important for all industries and sectors.

How can an organisation define and embed an EDI strategy?

To begin, you need to understand your people. And that's not just ethnicity — it's also gender, it's disability, it's religion, it's the language that your staff members are speaking. It's really about understanding the people who work for you. Staff surveys can be very valuable to gain insights into what your staff actually want, and from there taking a holistic approach will help determine EDI goals.

For many people, EDI symbolises the organisational culture and that feeling of belonging, where every single member of staff is included. Inclusion should be for everybody. Focusing on the diversity and equity elements, we know that we don't live in a fair world and that there is inequality relating to anything from sexual orientation to disability. But if we can create a truly inclusive environment in the workplace, to bring more equity and to uplift people who are marginalised, then ultimately this has to have a positive impact on the wider world.

How does data analysis help?

Let’s look at diversity as an example. Looking at the demographic data for all staff we would start to query those data sets with some key questions: do we have gender balance in top leadership? Do we have a percentage of, for example, black staff members? Is the diversity balance of staff appropriate and expected for the geographical area in which the company is based? In a central London office, for example, we would expect to see a fairly diverse mix of people from varying ethnic backgrounds.

On the inclusion side you can reveal some very interesting insights by analysing retention data. So if, for example, 10% of all staff members are from the LGBTQ+ community, it would be quite alarming to find out that 25 staff members who have recently left the business are all from within that community. It would likely point to the fact that the business is potentially not doing enough to support that community.

Finally, when it comes to equity, that’s where we look at how pay schemes and promotion schemes are being operated and assess the learning and development opportunities that exist within an organisation. It’s crucial to ensure that fair treatment exists for all staff members across the business. So, data is really important. It gives you intelligence about where the organisation sits at the moment, and from there you can work out where you want to be. And, of course, leadership accountability is hugely important in really driving an organisation forward from an intersectionality point of view. Does the company leadership really buy in to EDI? Leaders need to be fully on board with helping to nurture and encourage all staff equally.

What tips to you have for improving talent hiring processes from an EDI perspective?

A simple way to start is to make sure that CVs do not contain pictures of prospective candidates, and that name, sex and age information has also been removed. We know that people have biases. We all have biases. Even though an organisation’s acquisition team or recruitment teams will go through unconscious bias training and inclusion training, it still doesn't change the fact that we are all human. So, whatever you can do to make the recruitment process as close to ‘blind screening’ as possible is advantageous.

Then the next step is to ensure that you always have a diverse mix of staff on interviewing panels, to increase the chance of fair recruitment regardless of ethnic background, age, or other characteristics. It’s also very easy to focus on hard skills alone, but it’s essential to remember that soft skills are very important when it comes to cultural fit. A successful applicant in today’s business environment should be able to fit in to the organisation and embody its values.

What are some of the common challenges associated with implementing EDI strategies?

There is always going to be a resistance to change, especially among people who might not necessarily understand that there are barriers affecting some people and not others that an EDI strategy helps to remove.

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Some people take the view that the more we do for people who are in the minority, the smaller the piece of cake that is left for the majority! To understand that this is not an equal playing field for everyone is sometimes hard for people to grasp, especially when they have not been affected by discrimination or some of the barriers to equality that are still commonplace.

I would also add that a lack of accountability among the senior leadership within organisations can present a significant challenge. For example, putting a tick in the EDI box by hiring one person to focus on EDI rather than a whole team, and then expecting that individual to make a huge change to the culture overnight, does not make any sense. Similarly, when organisations focus only on the very short term this can cause significant issues, because it becomes more about making a token gesture towards EDI values rather than genuinely taking a sustainable approach over the longer term.

What can organisations do to encourage cultural transformation and a truly inclusive environment for all employees?

I think the thing to remember is that EDI is not just a good thing to do from a social sustainability perspective, but also from a business point of view. Firstly, a happy culture where everyone feels that they belong actually serves to improve retention. Secondly, people who have worked in diverse teams genuinely feel that those teams perform better, leading to broader and better ideas and stronger collaboration. Staff networks are really important when it comes to delivery and you won't get very far with just the EDI team. It needs the push of the wider majority of people across the organisation in different roles. Lived experience is very important too — insights from those who have been the only woman in the boardroom, or the only black person in a team. I’m not saying that people with lived experience can necessarily deliver the EDI programs, but they can definitely enhance understanding amongst their peers, bringing real experience to the forefront as examples of what working life can be like without EDI.

EDI doesn't necessarily sit as a separate strategy but should be integrated as an absolutely fundamental part of business operations. EDI should very much be part of the company’s mission, vision and values.  It’s also important as an organisation to be agile and adaptable; there’s nothing wrong with making a three-year strategy, but you have to re-evaluate every year because the world is changing and so is the EDI landscape. Pay gaps, for example, relating to gender, disability and ethnicity fluctuate over time, and new legislation may come in to force around one or all of these areas, so it’s important to keep up to date.