Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts are no longer just a box to check for corporations and workplaces. How a company approaches DEI has a huge impact on how the brand is viewed by potential clients, current employees and prospective talent.
Providing opportunities to underserved populations — particularly Black professionals — is more than just “doing the right thing.” Building your workforce with people from different backgrounds and upbringings has a tangible impact on workforce productivity and your bottom line. A study from McKinsey & Company revealed that companies with well-established ethnic diversity initiatives are 35% more likely to financially outperform less diverse organizations.
In addition to missing out on financial gains, there’s evidence that firms that don’t focus on DEI can lose out on workplace talent. Coqual, formerly known as The Center for Talent Innovation, reported that only 31 percent of Black employees had access to senior leadership and 19% didn’t see someone from their race at management-level, compared to 44% and 3%, respectively for white employees. All of this, the study found, led to one in three Black employees leaving their job within the first two years, compared to one in four white employees.
In short, attrition is a large expense for companies. It becomes expensive, in both time and resources, to onboard and train a new employee, only to lose that employee because they don’t see adequate DEI strategies in place, or opportunities to grow their career. Strategically building your DEI initiatives can enhance your corporate image, create ambassadors that grow your brand and build a diverse talent pipeline for future recruitment efforts.
Let’s explore each of these aspects in a little more depth.
Enhance Your Corporate Brand
Effective and efficient DEI strategies achieve two major goals: bringing you closer to your customers and enhancing trust amongst your employees. Hiring from underrepresented groups and reinvesting in those communities helps win the trust of new demographics. No company can have enough goodwill with the people they hope to serve.
Modern organizations are realizing that having a sustainable DEI plan will generate the social currency they need to market themselves to customers and employees. Being open about your company’s DEI goals — and taking tangible steps towards them — will build trust with your employees and help them identify with the company’s values. If you empower your Black employees to share their expertise with the next generation, they might also share positive experiences of your brand’s commitment to DEI goals.
Leverage Brand Ambassadors
It’s easy to post about your company’s commitment to DEI on social media, however, it’s a whole different ball game when the inspiring Black professionals you employ can speak about your company first-hand. This authentic approach shows that your company can “walk the walk.”
The Mentor Spaces platform can help link your brand ambassadors with young Black professionals, and your ambassadors can communicate your corporate culture. Your company and brand will be positioned in a positive light as an organization that commits to its DEI goals. On the flip side, your employees will feel empowered by the impact they’re making on the next generation.
Build a Diverse Talent Pipeline
A study from PwC found that 80% of millennial employees believe an employer’s policy on diversity, equality and workforce inclusion is an important factor in choosing which company they work for.
Your employees’ presence as mentors and community members on Mentor Spaces can engage prospective employees. Through word of mouth, your company — with its actionable DEI plan — will become a desired employer for prospective talent. Recruitment marketing will occur naturally, and you’ll be opened up to new pools of employees from demographics that might be underrepresented at your company now.
Think back to how one in three Black employees leaves their new job within two years. Begin to carve out an inclusive workplace environment with Black mentors that show younger employees that growth at your company is achievable. You’ll be on your way to fostering a setting that provides equity and opportunity for all your employees.
Partner with Mentor Spaces to Scale Your D&I Efforts
You can’t be who you can’t see. That’s why Mentor Spaces is connecting Black and Latinx students with established professionals who have shared similar experiences. Mentor Spaces helps enhance your company’s brand image to reduce attrition and attract talent. Find out how we can help your business scale its diversity & inclusion efforts, improve retention, and enhance corporate culture.
Start a conversation with us today.
