Using HR analytics to bring the Diversity & Inclusion agenda forward
As we emerge from the pandemic, many organizations are seizing this moment to fundamentally reconsider the ways to manage their workforce. The highest item on this agenda is managing Diversity & Inclusion (D&I). There is a great deal of external focus on fair representation, equality and inclusion within organizations. But are we measuring what matters and are we aware of the root causes? Do organizations have the right focus?
In this webinar Pete Jaworski and Dana Minbaeva from Nordic Human Capital Advisory shared concrete examples of how the D&I agenda could be informed by the insights generated from working with your own HR data. They elaborated on the major pitfalls that companies face when they work with own D&I data, identify the traps that must be avoided and point out at the ways of using HR analytics to bring D&I agenda forward.
The D&I definitions:
Diversity
- Gender, age, nationality, ethnicity, race, ..
- Measured by numbers
- Deep-levels versus surface-level diversity
Inclusion
- Individuals of all backgrounds – not just members of historically powerful identity groups – are fairly treated, valued for who they are, and included in core decision making.
- Measured by sentiments
The implementation of diversity practices that are targeted specifically at improving the employment outcomes of historically disadvantaged groups such a women and ethnic minorities may, in and of itself, fails to foster inclusion.
“Diversity is our reality. Inclusion is our managerial choice”
The business case for diversity
Organizations have embraced Diversity & Inclusion not only to meet shareholdes expectations, but as a means of ensuring competitive and sustainable growth. Overall, diversity and performance were linked such that a company’s diverse workforce was seen as a strategic asset: Firms who best create and manage their diverse workforce will outperform competitor with less diversity.
What er the best D&I analytics projects?
- Why/What diversity matters?
- How to create high performance diverse teams?
- How to enables diversity/build inclusive environments?
Tips for getting D&I right?
- Go beyond gender
- Data management discipline
- Combine D&I and leadership
- Measure inclusion perceptions
References:
Measuring inclusion:
- Nishii, L. H. (2013). The Benefits of Climate for Inclusion for Gender-Diverse Groups. Academy of Management Journal, 56(6), 1754-1774. https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amj.2009.0823
We made an executive summary of this paper. You could find it on this page: https://www.cbs.dk/en/research/departments-and-centres/department-of-strategy-and-innovation/human-capital-analytics-group-1
These are the references to the meta-analyses on business case for gender diversity:
- Hoobler, J. M., Masterson, C. R., Nkomo, S. M., & Michel, E. J. (2018). The business case for women leaders: Meta-analysis, research critique, and path forward. Journal of Management, 44(6), 2473-2499. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0149206316628643
- Jeong, S. H., & Harrison, D. A. (2017). Glass breaking, strategy making, and value creating: Meta-analytic outcomes of women as CEOs and TMT members. Academy of Management Journal, 60(4), 1219-1252. https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amj.2014.0716
- Post, C., & Byron, K. (2015). Women on boards and firm financial performance: A meta-analysis. Academy of management Journal, 58(5), 1546-1571. https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amj.2013.0319
This is a meta-analysis on cultural diversity in teams:
- Stahl, G. K., Maznevski, M. L., Voigt, A., and Jonsen, K. (2010). Unraveling the effects of cultural diversity in teams: A meta-analysis of research on multicultural work groups. Journal of International Business Studies, 41, 690-709. Open access link