Dr. Shirley Davis - Diversity, Equity & Inclusion For Dummies

Dimension 1 — Personality: Openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism

Dimension 2 — Internal/Primary Dimensions: Age, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability, ethnicity, race

Dimension 3 — External Dimensions: Geographic location, income, personal habits, recreational habits, religion, educational background, work experience, appearance, parental status, marital status

Dimension 4 — Organizational Dimensions: Functional level, work content field, division/department/unit/group, seniority, work location, union affiliation, management status

At the core of these concentric circles is personality — the innately unique aspect that gives each person their own particular style. This core aspect permeates all other layers. Moving out from that center are the internal factors, the primary dimensions of diversity. These aspects are the ones you have little or no control over. The next level, secondary dimensions, is made up of external, personal, and societal influences. The fourth dimension encompasses organizational influences such as the type of work you do, your level in the organization, seniority, and so on.

I hope what you take away from this framework is that it represents who we are from our core dimensions and those that cannot be changed, to those dimensions that we develop over time. This leads to our assumptions, drives our own behaviors, and ultimately impacts others. So, the better we understand ourselves and others, the more effective our interactions and decisions will be.

Although “equity” and “equality” sound similar, they aren’t the same; consider them related, like cousins but not siblings.

Equity practices cast a very broad net. For example, the U.S.-based Government Alliance on Race and Equity stresses that “equity is about fairness, while equality is about sameness.” In other words, equality is concerned with treating everyone the same, while equity offers the opportunity for assistance so that everyone has a just and fair chance to be successful. Figure 1-2 illustrates this concept.

A democracy assumes that every member of that society has the ability and right to be successful. But the reality of society brings economic, social, and political differences into play along with privilege and exclusion, and these factors can lead to unequal or unattainable access to achieve success. That’s why equity practices are crucial.

Although the terms equity and equality may sound similar, implementing one versus the other can lead to dramatically different outcomes for marginalized or underrepresented people. Here’s how I define them. Equality is defined as each person or group of people being given the same resources or opportunities. On the other hand, equity recognizes that each person has different circumstances and allocates each the exact resources and opportunities they need to reach an equal outcome.

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FIGURE 1-2:Equality versus equity.

In Figure 1-2, you see three people who have unequal access to a system — in this case, the tree that provides fruit. With equal support from evenly distributed resources, their access to the fruit is still unequal. The equitable solution, however, customizes the resources that each person needs to access the fruit, leading to positive outcomes for both people.

The tree appears to be a naturally occurring system, but social systems aren’t naturally inequitable. They’ve been intentionally designed to reward specific demographics for so long that the system’s outcomes may appear unintentional but are actually rooted discriminatory practices and beliefs. In order to restore the historical injustices of society (which I discuss later in the chapter) equity is essential for those marginalized individuals to gain access to opportunities once denied.

Employing equity practices involves bridging gaps between minority and majority groups in organizations. Keep in mind that equity looks different in each organization; however, it occurs when there is a level playing field that enables all talent to enjoy the same opportunities to thrive. Equity practices consider what’s important to a specific workforce. For example, one equity practice may focus on professional development (mentorship programs, scholarships, bonus distribution) and another on providing opportunities for promotion and growth (succession pipelines).

Equity is the process, and equality is the outcome. In other words, equity is essential to achieving true equality.

I describe inclusion as the degree to which an employee perceives that they’re a valued member of the work group and encouraged to fully participate in the organization. At the base level, diversity efforts are concerned with representation of various groups; however, don’t confuse that with creating an inclusive environment.

You can have diversity and not have inclusion. Diversity just is. Diversity is the human aspect, and everyone is diverse. But inclusion is the environment and the atmosphere people experience and work in. And that’s where the work continues. Recruiting and hiring top diverse talent isn’t enough; you must create an inclusive work environment where those people feel valued, respected, and treated fairly and have equal opportunity to succeed.

Think about DEI as a continuum with inclusion as the final phase toward sustainability and business outcomes. In the workplace, diversity without inclusion fails to attract and retain diverse talent and doesn’t encourage diverse employees to bring their full selves to work, thereby failing to motivate their participation and do their best work.

In short, diversity is easier to measure because humans in all varieties merely exist; however, inclusion is a practice. Diversity can and has been legislated in various policies throughout various locations and organizations. Inclusion often results from a commitment to practicing this type of behavior.

The definitions in the preceding sections show that the relationship among diversity, equity, and inclusion is complex and nuanced.

Simply summarized, diversity is the “who,” equity is the “how,” and inclusion is the “what.”

A diverse organization isn’t automatically an inclusive one, and an inclusive organization isn’t automatically an equitable one.

Recognizing diversity, equity, and inclusion as separate and complex, though related, concepts is an important step for leaders to achieve a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace culture. Leaders need to understand that diversifying a workforce doesn’t automatically result in new hires’ feeling welcome, which suggests that inclusion should be a goal that organizations assign resources to. And their focus on equity needs to be based on the knowledge that not all employees or potential employees have access to the same resources and that they should structure strategies and resources accordingly.