How To Establish a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council [Infographic]

Race, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical ability and religious beliefs are just a few of the characteristics that we identify with as individuals. But how are employers ensuring that this diversity is reflected in their workplaces? For some organizations, these efforts start with a well-rounded diversity, equity and inclusion council.

A diversity and inclusion council, also known as a DEI council, is a group of leaders and employees that comes together to develop and promote strategic plans to enhance diversity.

A DEI council can help:

Start at the top by engaging your CEO and other leaders in your organization. Then, find positive, like-minded colleagues who are eager to have their voices heard and stand up for a cause they believe in. Recruit a diverse group of people from all levels of the company to sit on the council.

Select officers for your council and determine what committees you will have. For example, you might have a recruitment committee that focuses on improving diversity in hiring and a retention committee that ensures diverse viewpoints are valued throughout the organization. Establish term lengths, voting procedures and meeting cadence.

Your mission statement will guide everything you do. It should state your goals in a clear and simple way, such as "to foster an understanding of diversity and to promote diverse and inclusive views throughout our company."

Your DEI council shouldn’t exist in a vacuum. Everything you do should be people-focused, bringing your entire organization together in a cohesive and inclusive way.

Focus on simple initiatives that are easy to execute. Even small steps, such as bringing in a diversity speaker or featuring team member bios on your employee portal, can make a huge difference.

Council members will be responsible for developing, launching and tracking diversity initiatives. But those outside the council should be held accountable, too. Work with your HR team to create more diverse hiring practices. Ensure managers promote diversity and inclusion on their teams. Empower employees to provide feedback on diversity issues in their work life.

Not every initiative will work out as planned. A huge part of the council’s job is to track initiatives and pivot when you're not making the impact you hoped for.

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