15 ideas for diversity and inclusion in business

Strengthen inclusion and diversity within the company: 15 examples of practices

Strengthen your employer brand , develop a CSR policy , improve quality of life at work , attract talent ... The reasons for promoting diversity and inclusion in business are numerous. Your employees from visible or disabled minorities need concrete actions from managers . Marvin offers you 15 examples.

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Idea n ° 1: set up mentoring programs for people belonging to under-represented groups

Benevolent and inspiring exchanges to promote the inclusion of different groups: this is the objective and result of mentoring programs . They allow employees to interact with other professionals in the same configuration as them.

In addition to this sharing of practices , solid links are built between mentors and mentories.

To encourage diversity and inclusion in a company , the mentoring program must follow different objectives such as:

• promote the inclusion of people with disabilities;
• Ensure better retention of employees from minorities;
• Guarantee a better promotion rate for women;
• etc.

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Idea n ° 2: Encourage employees to take initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion in the company

Finding ideas to improve diversity and level of inclusion in business is always positive. Even more so if the first concerned - the employees - generate ideas themselves!

To help them express an opinion and formulate suggestions on this subject, favor horizontal communication with the teams.

With physical and digital communications on the company's inclusive policy , you will already start to draw attention to this subject. In addition to educating your employees, you encourage them to take an interest in the theme and think about the possible improvement areas.

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Idea n ° 3: Awareness of employees of diversity and inclusion by organizing training and workshops

Trainers in team cohesion and CSR , diversity and inclusion coaches, consultants in quality of life at work and internal communication ... All these professionals can help you support your initiatives.

Concretely, how is it going? Most of the time, the external expert takes the pulse of your needs upstream, by an exchange and/or a questionnaire at all or part of the team.

On one or more days, the teams are then invited to participate in workshops, sessions and other meetings inclusion points for example.

Some coaches also resort to ideation, by offering participants to represent by a visual the concept of diversity in a company .

These actions only work if managers and employees are involved in the same degree in these training courses.

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Idea n ° 4: Set up objectives of diversity and inclusion for company employees

Each of your initiatives must have a long -term impact. diversity and inclusion objectives for business employees as soon as possible

Again, communication with the teams will be your best ally. Ideally, you can cover interviews or surveys before and after the implementation of certain actions (training, reorganization, etc.).

As for the effective management of a team of recruiters , you will need a clear strategy and objectives to enhance your diversity and inclusion initiatives .

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Idea n ° 5: promote diversity in hiring by implementing fair recruitment policies

With each recruitment, you must avoid all cognitive biases capable of altering the judgment.

To protect yourself from the priori age, sexism or disability, you can:

• carry out several interviews between candidates and several members of the team, without multiplying the interviews;
• Consult the CVs without the photos;
• Apply the same criteria to all applicants.

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Idea n ° 6: Encourage employees to express themselves on issues of diversity and inclusion by implementing discussion groups

In addition to encouraging teams to be interested and manifest on inclusion in the company , you can institute internal working groups dedicated to the subject.

By organizing meetings between employees, HR and managers , you create an environment conducive to the construction of solutions for tomorrow. Ensure everyone the same level of information on the current state of the situation and on the resources at your disposal to improve inclusion in the company.

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Idea n ° 7: Promote equal pay between employees of different groups

Pillar of inclusion in business, equality pay must be provided between employees in different groups. Thanks to in-depth analyzes on everyone's work, identifying any underpaid employees.

Once the quantified elements in hand, you can apply the principles of transparency and fair remuneration to your company.

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Idea n ° 8: Promote equal opportunities in terms of promotion and professional development for all employees

Do you recruit your employees on the basis of everyone's experience and competence? Then the promotion criteria should correspond to these two values, to guarantee equal opportunities in terms of promotion and professional development.

Annual interviews will be the decisive moment to ensure these principles. , you will develop inclusion through transparency and equity .

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Idea n ° 9: promote diversity in company partnerships and trade relations

Do you want to develop your inclusive policy, including interacting with other companies? Remember to set up partnerships with key players in diversity and commitment !

To develop inclusion collaborations, several solutions are available to you:

• Identify a service provider recognized as an adapted company or engaged in a CSR approach ;
• Financially support an association really bearing the values ​​of the social and solidarity or CSR economy ;
• Choose strategic investments in favor of funds committed for diversity and inclusion .

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Idea n ° 10: Encourage employees to engage in volunteer activities in favor of under-represented groups

In parallel with the work, employees who engage in volunteer actions bring a new vision to the company. They then arise as the ambassadors of your structure and help you to enhance the initiated steps.

As with partnerships, the interest is also to bring new ideas for the diversity that you would not necessarily have thought of internally.

Concretely, you can also offer employees to participate in events (conferences, forums, ceremonies, etc.) turned to disability and diversity. These employees then represent your company in these ecosystems.

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Idea n ° 11: Set up flexibility policies to promote conciliation between professional and personal life

An inclusive policy knows how to be flexible and understanding for people with imperatives, health for example. From the recruitment, you must be clear about how absences are managed, while reassuring the employee on your flexibility if necessary.

A good example: to avoid the culture of presenteeism. Show your teams that you trust them by leaving them to arrange their schedules , with regard to their objectives, their missions and the constraints of the company.

You can promote telework if this solution is relevant. The objective: to improve the quality of life at work of all groups and teams.

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Idea n ° 12: promote diversity in project teams, ensuring that the members of the different groups are represented

From upstream of the project to its realization and monitoring, the company must ensure that the members of the different groups can have a word to say.

Whether team meetings or sectoral, speech must be given to people from visible minorities . Consequently:

• The employees concerned feel listened to and better integrated;
• Projects are enriched by new ideas;
• The acceptability of strategic choices is reinforced.

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Idea n ° 13: Encourage employees to express themselves on issues of diversity and inclusion by setting up surveys

Throughout the year, ensure regular maturity communication with your teams on diversity and inclusion subjects in business . To do this, surveys will be of great help.

In addition to helping you to identify the best solutions of tomorrow and make them more legitimate, they will give you new ideas if you leave room for open questions (for example "Do you have any remarks on such subject"?).

You can use paper format for the simplest votes, or use digital questionnaires like Google Forms.

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Idea n ° 14: promote diversity in management committees and business management committees

You will go further in your inclusive steps if you have the support of management committees, boards of directors and other hierarchical structures. This support will be stronger if people from different groups are present in these instances.

You can also designate a referent or delegate diversity and inclusion , to report the situation to administrators on a regular basis. He also performs other missions:

• support the company's inclusion strategy;
• carry out awareness -raising actions;
• Identify sources of discrimination.

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Idea n ° 15: Plan arrangements dedicated to employees who need it

More and more companies are innovating and installing breastfeeding rooms , dedicated to the comfort and support of the collaborators concerned. To do well, remember to plan:

• a microwave and a sink, for hygiene and cleaning of equipment;
• a refrigerator to store breast milk;
• curtains to guarantee sufficient intimacy.

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Specific solutions also exist concerning people with disabilities . Rums next to stairs at the workstations, you can call on AGEFIPH to advise you in these business inclusion procedures.

Ideas promote diversity and inclusion in business are not lacking, and even less when employees are involved in reflection. As soon as hiring, combine objective and fair research factors with a recruitment solution like that of Marvin to lay the foundations of your diversity policy.