Diversity in the workplace is about more than putting on an HR stunt or looking good for the public. Having an inclusive and diverse workforce is a real benefit to your business and company culture. As Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts ramp up across companies of every shape and size, it’s important to remind ourselves why it’s so important to focus on these areas, and how to improve them.
What exactly is diversity?
In general, diversity means that your company and your hiring policy include individuals of all ethnicities, cultures, religions, genders, ages, and sexual orientations. The idea is to create a culture where everyone is valued and treated equally regardless of their background.
Part of creating a more inclusive and diverse culture is taking a hard look at your company and asking yourself where you’ve been and where you would like to get to. You can’t simply snap your fingers and have a more diverse culture—it needs to be tackled on a deeper structural level before things can really change.
Let’s take a closer look at why diversity is so important in the modern workplace. Then, we’ll find out how to improve diversity and inclusion at your workplace for the benefit of everyone.
Why is Diversity Important in the Workplace?
Diversity is important for all sorts of reasons: company culture, employee happiness, and bottom-line productivity and efficiency, just to name a few. Increasing diversity and inclusion at your workplace is truly a win-win because it’s good for your employees and good for your business metrics at the same time.
Here are a few of the big reasons why diversity and inclusion are so important:
Increases Problem-Solving
Evidence shows that diverse groups tend to come up with solutions to problems faster than non-diverse groups. That’s because groups that include a variety of backgrounds, experiences, ideas, and knowledge have a broader range of solutions to choose from. Plus, diverse groups tend to be more creative and innovative—combining a multitude of experiences and approaches makes for faster and more unique problem-solving.
Expands Language Access and Cultural Competency With Clients
Consider this: if a client of your business doesn’t speak English, or comes from a completely different cultural or ethnic background than anyone at your company, how can your company relate to that client? You have a much better chance of cultural competency when you employ a diverse group of people, which can make a huge difference. And it expands your language access if you work with clients from a different part of the world.
Better Customer Approval
Because of things like increased language access and better cultural competency, your company will experience better customer approval, too. Diverse organizations can offer their customers a wider range of solutions and approaches to business problems because of the multiple and diverse people on staff; that attracts a broader range of customers and sends approval ratings upward at the same time.
Increased Morale
When your employees feel confident that no group or minority at the company is excluded from equal opportunities or pay, they’re happier. It’s as simple as that. No one wants to be aware of glaring power dynamics at work every day. When everyone knows everyone else is treated equally, it fosters positive morale and welcoming, friendly company culture.
Remember that good morale and a happy workforce is attractive to potential new hires, too. Whether you need to fill HR or accounting jobs, engineering and construction jobs, or anything in between, the best of the best will be attracted to companies with diverse, happy workforces.
Increased Profits A 2018 study conducted by McKinsey & Company found that companies with highly diverse boardrooms were 43% more likely to garner higher profits. That tells you all you need to know—when diversity is inherent in your leadership and your company as a whole, profits go up. If you’re looking for a way to boost productivity and profitability through your hiring process, creating a diverse workforce is the place to start.
Do you need help staffing your organization with diverse individuals?
Turn to the leading staffing agency in the Pacific Northwest, Opti Staffing. We can help you source and hire individuals with a wide breadth of skill sets, backgrounds, and experiences to make your business better. Contact a member of our team today to learn more and get started on your talent search.
How to Improve Diversity and Inclusion in Your Workplace
The benefits of a diverse workplace are plain to see: increased profitability, better morale, increased cultural competency and language access with clients, and more innovative and efficient teams, just to name a few.
You’re ready to improve DEI efforts at your organization. But how do you go about doing that? Let’s take a look at some tips on improving diversity and inclusion at your company.
Does Your Executive Team Reflect Diversity?
We’ve already learned what an impact diversity in the boardroom can have. The truth is that diversity starts at the top. Think hard about your executive team—is there diversity in terms of gender, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and more? How many women do you have on your executive staff? People of color?
When your executive team reflects diversity, it trickles down to the rest of the company. Individuals in these roles have the power to spearhead DEI efforts across the company, making a diverse workforce a part of the culture rather than just a tagline.
Highlight Diversity on Your Website
When was the last time you considered how diversity appears on your organization’s website? Make sure you have an easy-to-find diversity statement, as well as statements on any other current initiatives. These statements should also appear in job descriptions, on your site’s career page or portal, and perhaps across social media channels as well. This way, when people—whether they’re clients or prospective employees—first encounter your organization online, they’ll know what you stand for right away.
Incorporate Targeted Scholarship/Internship Opportunities
What kind of scholarship or internship opportunities does your organization offer? Consider creating targeted programs for employees from underrepresented groups. Those can be scholarships, internships, or even mentorships. It’s a great way to help these individuals advance through the company and secure key roles, helping to spread diversity and inclusion throughout the fabric of your organization.
Develop More Inclusive Policies
Take a second look at your anti-discrimination policies and other workplace policies regarding inclusion. Conducting a thorough review is a good idea—you might be surprised at what should be updated to reflect modern thinking and strategy. Whether it’s updating your statement on commitment to workplace diversity or adding language about the consequences for breaking diversity and inclusion policies, revisiting these policies and updating them as necessary is always recommended.
Work With a Staffing Agency to Help Build a More Diverse Workplace Today!
The mission to build a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce isn’t all on you. Partnering with a recruiting agency is a great way to build a more diverse workplace. Professional recruiters make it their business to find and place a wide range of individuals with businesses of all shapes and sizes. That way, you can find qualified individuals to staff your business while increasing diversity and inclusion at the same time. That means your organization experiences all of the benefits of a diverse workforce without wasting a lot of time, resources, and money.
Opti Staffing can help you find a diverse selection of staff for your organization. Whether it’s a leadership HR job or a finance role, an engineering job, or an accounting position, our staffing agency can assist you with finding the right people for your company, when you need them. Our commitment to diversity in our own company reflects what we can do for you.
Get in touch with a member of our recruitment agency today or visit one of our branches. We’re here to help with all of your staffing needs so that your organization can get the people it needs to succeed.