In early September, I had a chance to participate on a panel hosted by NJ SHRM Chapter Jersey Shore Association of Human Resources professionals. The topic of the panel was Intra-organizational Communications with focus on the diversity employee’s experience from hire and into advanced-stage career. Here are the themes I wanted to share with you that came up during the discussion, and note that some are directly communications-related but many are environmentally-centered:
Communications has rapidly shifted towards online and distance-enabling communications platforms and channels.
More focus may be required on new hire on-boarding practices, and additional emphasis is needed on making sure on-boarding factors in the new distancing and other requirements.
Mentoring is needed more than ever before, and circle/group mentoring is one way to address the gap between available mentors to people needing mentorship.
Each of the three aforementioned topics seemed to face additional challenges related to how each impacts diversity new hires and existing employees. In other words, gaps in diversity representation in a company’s business employee makeup and work culture are being amplified by not having established diversity programs and practices that employees can see making tangible, substantial progress.
At DCC, we offered the following simple guidelines that we believe should be at the foundation of your employee experience, including your diversity-enhancement actions and efforts:
Start mentoring immediately. If no mentoring programs and practices exist, note that the effort will begin informally until you reach a need to formalize your programs and actions. If you don’t have enough mentors, create small-group (6 or fewer) mentor circles.
Align your onboarding with new hire milestones or newly promoted employee changes. Resist the temptation to force too much information at the onset of employment or new transitions.
Resist the temptation to try to do it all when it comes to culture-building and diversity. Instead, opt for rapidly developing deeply embedded excellence in practices and behaviors that create strong diversity culture. Develop foundational practices, such as ensuring that internal hiring and development opportunities stand out as much as external hiring. There can be far more gained from internal diversity development, promotions, and expanding assignment opportunities if your organization tends to slowly evolve more than growing and start-up organizations who rely heavily on external hiring. Succinctly, develop foundational strengths focused on existing employees if your organization isn’t growing. Focus on fundamentally sound and diversity-enhanced hiring if your organization is growing.
Get help, especially from smaller, nimbler diversity-owned consultants and advisors who focus on your business’s and business leaders’ needs rather than selling you approaches, programs, or packages that fit.
At DCC, our approach has always been to take the direct path to what works and that can be repeated time after time until it becomes a foundational success habit. Contact us at 609-259-2390 or darryl@thedccgroup.com) if you’re ready to start making a difference right now.