What Does Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Mean?
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is a strategic approach to creating a workplace environment that values equal opportunity.
Social movements like Black Lives Matter and #MeToo have prompted new interest in DEI, and many companies are actively working to ensure that their company’s workforce is representative of its customer base. An important goal of DEI is to improve retention. To be successful, DEI efforts must be led and managed as an organizational priority and not just a human resource information system (HRIS) concern.
Diversity initiatives highlight the benefits of hiring employees across all demographic segments.
Equity initiatives ensure all employees are given the same opportunities for advancement within the organization.
Inclusion initiatives focus on helping employees to feel their contributions are important their opinions are valued.
Techopedia Explains Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)
From a business standpoint, hiring employees from diverse demographics often has a direct correlation with improved profitability, especially when a company actively works to ensure its workforce is representative of its customer base. Research shows that having diverse viewpoints at all levels of an organization will positively impact organizational and team performance and innovation, as well as profits.
Best practices for DEI include the following:
- Use broad outreach strategies to attract talent from diverse sources.
- Develop and implement best practices to improve inclusion.
- Consistently apply DEI principles across all program and management operations.
- Champion and enable staff participation in all DEI initiatives.
- Promote DEI transparency and accountability.
