AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Despite significant focus and effort on fostering workplace Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), American workers are dissatisfied with the results, according to a national survey of employees by QuestionPro Workforce and EQ Community.
Although 70 percent of employees indicated their experience working for their current company was overall positive, only 60 percent said they were satisfied with DEI efforts at their company.
Key DEI areas where employees were rarely satisfied with their company’s performance were:
diversity of top leadership (57%),
amount of action being taken to foster inclusivity (57%),
and how frequently the company discussed the importance of diversity (52%).
In fact, inclusivity is so important to employees that 37 percent of all workers, 45 percent of Black workers, and 54 percent of managers say they would switch jobs to be part of a more inclusive culture. The survey of 1,000 full-time employees from more than 30 different industries in the United States was conducted in October, 2022. The full study is available for download at: https://www.questionpro.com/diversity-equity-inclusion-study.html
“These results are a wake-up call to any company that has or is pursuing a DEI program,” said Sanja Licina, Ph.D., President of QuestionPro Workforce who is an organizational psychologist and an expert on culture development and management. “Chances are good that despite even your best efforts you’re not getting it fully right and that’s creating a flight risk for key employees.”
Keeping in mind that each organization has its own unique culture and is in a different stage of its DEI journey, there are a few areas where executives should focus efforts for improvement, including:
Get the onboarding right. Talent wil have limited visibility into what it’s truly like to work for your organization until they actually start. This is why preparing a strong onboarding, and having frequent checkpoints during the process is critical in making sure that you are providing an inclusive environment for new employees.
Experiment with initiatives. Try different initiatives tied to the goals you set up, involve employees across the organization to help you, and check in with the wider employee-base to see how you’re doing, what is going well and what you can adjust.
Really understand why employees leave. This study shows that a large number of workers would leave their employer to be a part of a more inclusive culture. Yet, most exit surveys we’ve seen rarely include this as one of the determining factors. Add a question about inclusivity to your exit interview and see what you learn.
Lead by example: Having a diverse leadership team gives workers optimism about their own chances of growing and advancing inside the organization. Also, leaders with diverse backgrounds can bring additional perspectives for how to effectively advance DEI efforts across the organization and grow executive support and buy-in for the initiatives. These are some of the key reasons why either promoting diverse leaders from within, or bringing them from outside the organization, should be an important priority for organizations.
“The research shows that by embracing and connecting people from multiple walks of life, organizations can tap into a breadth of potential that leads to greater retention of top-tier teams and an unbeatable competitive edge,” said Marcus Sawyerr, Founder & CEO EQ Community, who has built diverse teams and driven digital transformation in both start-ups and as a Fortune 500 Executive. “Inclusion and diversity are not simply boxes to check; they are superpower that can unlock incredible value.”
QuestionPro Workforce, a division of QuestionPro, partners with organizations globally to help them create the best employee listening strategy. Coupling deep market expertise with a market-leading survey and analytics platform makes QuestionPro Workforce the partners of choice for clients to help them build exceptional culture and drive the best kind of organizational change. With its Empathy at Scale philosophy, QuestionPro Workforce is fully committed to accompanying employers on the mission to make the world of work better.
About QuestionPro Founded in 2006, QuestionPro is a global provider of online survey and research services that help companies make better decisions through data. From free consumer accounts to robust enterprise-level solutions, we offer a portfolio of unique capabilities designed to measure, analyze and manage even the most complex customer relationships. We also offer platforms for polling, mobile research and data visualization. Fortune 100 companies rely on us to help unlock insights about customers, employees and the marketplace. With offices in the US, Canada, Mexico, U.K., Germany, Japan, the United Arab Emirates and India, we offer customers 24-7 access to highly trained support specialists and engineers. More information is available at www.questionpro.com
About EQ Community EQ Community is committed to providing employers, staffing & recruiting firms, and professionals with resources to help build and cultivate inclusive communities. We provide a technology, know-how, and services playbook to those in the hiring process. Our EQ Communities offer members spaces to connect, share, and learn, as well as access to jobs and opportunities that may not be easily found. We prioritize creating safe spaces for members where everyone can benefit from the community. At EQ Community, we strive to create a better future for professionals everywhere. More information can be found at www.eq.community
