Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vital to creating and maintaining a healthy work environment. A diverse and inclusive work environment means treating each and every employee equally regardless of their position or who they are and making them feel equally important in the areas of their work. This will not only help you to create a diverse set of talent but also it will help you to retain a diverse set of employees. Having DEI in an organization will have a significant impact on the work, business, and productivity as all the Employees will feel motivated and will have self-confidence which is going to help them work more efficiently. Hence, the organization will receive more productive work by creating a healthy work environment.

It’s a human tendency the more we are getting valued and appreciated the more efficiency will be seen in our results and vice-versa. It creates a healthy work-life balance for all of us.

DIVERSITY

Having more diversified employees increases the chances to have a more skillful work environment. It varies from organization to organization and their field of work. Diverse talent will bring varieties of work to the organization, which will help to lead in different sectors, and indirectly it will bring growth and success to the organization. Some of the common dimensions of diversity are shown below:

1. Age

2. Disability

3. Ethnicity/national origin

4. Family status.

5. Gender identity or expression

 6. Language

7. Life experiences

8. Neurodiversity

9. Organizational function and level

10.  Physical characteristics

11. Race/color

12. Religion, belief, and spirituality

13. Sexual orientation

14. Veteran status

INCLUSION

Inclusion describes the extent to which each person in an organization feels welcomed, respected, supported, and valued as a team member. Inclusion is a two-way street; each and every person must grant and accept inclusion from others. In such an environment, every employee tends to feel more engaged and is more likely to contribute to the organization’s business results. This type of environment requires people from diverse backgrounds to communicate and work together, and understand one another’s needs and perspectives.

EQUITY

Equity in the workplace refers to fair treatment in access, opportunity, and advancement for all individuals. Work in this area includes identifying and working to eliminate barriers to fair treatment for disadvantaged groups, from the team level through systemic changes in organizations and industries. Effecting change through an equity lens generally requires an understanding that the societal systems in which we currently work are not equitable and that those inequities are reflected in our organizations.

 CONCLUSION

Indeed, to be successful, diversity, equity, and inclusion have to be comprehensive—a top-to-bottom business strategy, rather than just an HR program. To be clear, the definitions and distinctions we’ve made between diversity, equity, and inclusion will depend on the industry, business needs, and context. However, this kind of closer scrutiny of DEI is necessary for laying the foundations for a robust and sustainable DEI program.