What are your approaches to diversifying leadership within your organization, and how do you ensure that leaders at all levels are equipped to foster DE&I?
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We're doing similar things. Metrics help because what gets measured gets done. By examining our workforce representation, we can identify where to focus on strategic recruitment or retention programs. We add a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens to our people processes around hiring, onboarding, performance management, and succession planning. We also focus on building inclusive leadership capabilities with required training for managers and new hires.
It’s important to focus on upskilling and reskilling underrepresented groups, particularly in IT. A statistic that struck me is that 60% of women in IT leave the field, often because they don't see anyone at the upper levels that they can identify with or aspire to be. This highlights the importance of diversifying not only at the entry level but also at the top.
The immediate response is often to recruit at the senior levels, but that's a much smaller and highly competitive sample pool. With greater diversity at the entry or early career positions, the focus should be on retention and development to prevent people from leaving. Recruitment is just one small piece of the puzzle. It's critical to consider what happens once someone is in the door, such as how we onboard, integrate, and advance our talent.
We are part of the 30% club, which is a commitment that 30% of our board is representative of females. We measure the representation at different leader levels with key performance indicators. Additionally, we provide training conversations for all employees, such as the "Stand Up for Respect" program. For our leaders, we offer "Building Respectful Teams" and "Conscious Inclusion" training. We also host fireside chats and other conversations to foster dialogue. Recently, we launched a refreshed strategy with a focus on psychological safety. We're also revising our leadership competencies to better reflect inclusivity.