The Best Ways to Measure Workplace Inclusion
The more businesses learn about diversity, the more they understand hiring and maintaining a diverse workforce is simply not enough to increase productivity. This is because diversity is only a small piece of the puzzle. In order for a business and its employees to truly thrive, the business must promote inclusion, or a sense of belonging within the workplace. This article will discuss some primary steps businesses can follow to measure and improve inclusion inside the office.
According to Jordan Sudberg, the first and most important step in measuring workplace inclusion is figuring out what to measure. Because every company and industry is different, determining the right aspects of inclusion to measure will also veary greatly from situation to situation. Career advancement, employee retention, diverse hiring and equal access to resources are just a few of the common areas of focus businesses use to measure inclusion.
After deciding what to measure, the next step in measuring inclusion is to break the focus area down into measurable segments. For example, if the goal is to measure inclusion in terms of career advancement opportunities within the company, trends and results should stick to Latinos, African-American women or some other minority group. Focusing on career advancement of company employees as a whole would not be beneficial when measuring inclusion, because a high level of advancement may paint the picture of total inclusion even when those numbers are skewed by predominantly white employees.
After figuring out who and what to measure, the next step in the process is determining how to measure inclusion. Jordan Sudberg acknowledges that while some larger companies may have the resources and people to make these measurements manually, most companies rely on technology to collect data. There are many reliable computer programs and software that use AI and analytics to automate the process of collecting and qualifying data about inclusion. These tools are extremely useful in measuring inclusion, because measurements can be made quickly and easily by individuals who may not have strong levels of knowledge or expertise in this area.
Once analytical data has been collected and quantified, the final step in the process of measuring inclusion is to obtain qualitative results. The best way to achieve this is by collecting data directly from employees. The most practical way to collect data from employees is through surveys. However, it is important to understand that in order for surveys to accurately measure inclusion, the questions must be designed in a way that captures their true feelings and opinions when it comes to these topics.
Using employee feedback to measure workplace inclusion goes well beyond conducting surveys. It’s important to give every employee a chance to speak their mind about inclusion topics either in person or anonymously based on personal preference. Companies can also implement frequent training sessions and conduct meetings to teach the employees about inclusion and give them opportunities to voice any questions or concerns. Once all quantitative and qualitative data has been collected, companies should take action to improve workplace inclusion wherever necessary.
