Using Data to Drive Your Inclusion and Diversity Strategy
Save yourself from creating solutions in search of a problem
“If you don’t know where you’ve come from, you don’t know where you’re going.” ~ Maya Angelou
Before launching any diversity initiative, leaders must understand the current state of their organization. There are good survey tools on the market, such as Culture Amp and Glint, for diversity applications, and many companies have built internal analytics capabilities. Analyzing quantitative metrics, such as hiring, turnover, and promotion, as well as qualitative metrics, such as feelings of belonging, should be a pre-condition to designing and implementing programs and interventions. It is worth stating that diversity metrics do not mean quotas. Simply put, inclusion and diversity are like any other business initiative that depends on goals and metrics against which to measure progress.
When measuring diversity, it’s important not to look at aggregate data. A company with equal numbers of men and women may find that men are clustered in engineering functions, and women are clustered in support functions like HR. Or they might find that despite having good overall numbers of racial minorities in the organization, the management is overwhelmingly white.
Intersectionality is another essential way to look at data. This means that people may have intersecting identities, for example, black and female, that cause them to experience barriers to inclusion in ways that neither black men nor white females experience.
Lastly, it’s crucial to compare apples to apples when analyzing diversity data. Data might show that women are promoted at a higher rate than men. By further analyzing this data, one might find that women are clustered in the lower levels of the organization, where promotions are easier to get. The more relevant metric is the promotion rates of men and women at the same level.
While quantitative metrics are important, leaders should also understand qualitative data in the organization. Qualitative data can be gathered through survey tools and focus groups, and employee resource groups (ERGs) are valuable resources to leaders who wish to understand the experience of underrepresented groups in their organization.
In addition to the categories of diversity commonly tracked under AAP requirements (gender, age, national and ethnic origin, etc.), organizations should explore other dimensions of diversity necessary for their success. These dimensions could include parental status, political affiliation, chronotypes, educational diversity, remote workers, and many more.
By understanding where your organization is doing well and where it is experiencing barriers to inclusion, you can then begin to design appropriate, targeted diversity initiatives to achieve your inclusion goals.
Kai Stowers is a consultant, Professional Certified Coach (PCC), and has a master’s degree in Organizational Psychology and Change Leadership from Columbia University. He partners with organizations to help leaders build high-performing, engaged, and inclusive teams. Learn more at kaistowers.com.
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