10 Takeaways from the CompTIA/Channel Futures DE&I Survey
Survey responses revealed the good, the bad and the blunders in DE&I in the channel and tech industry.
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Fifty-two percent of channel firms said there is a lack of resources to help the channel and tech industry at large.
Most companies reported depending largely upon best practices, trends and research within the industry. While they plan to continue using this source, they noted they would also like to see more resources from CompTIA.
Within the industry, respondents said they see and hear coverage of DE&I topics from the channel/tech media and channel/tech thought leaders equally (both at 27%.) Characterizing the tech/channel media as focusing mostly on best practices and business strategies, respondents said they were very interested (21%) or interested (37%) in reading more articles.
When asked about the primary challenges to implementing and running a successful DE&I initiative/strategy, respondents’ top three responses were identifying goals and metrics, and resources to successfully implement; setting priorities/determining areas of greatest need; and converting good intentions to actionable policies and outcomes.
It can be argued that nowhere is the concept of “trusted adviser” valued more than in the channel. And that’s no doubt a good part of the reason the majority of channel firms said they use outside experts and will continue to do so (31%) or do not use outside experts but are considering (28%).
More than two-thirds of channel firms reported that they have (44%) or will soon (25%) published content on DE&I, such as a blog, statement, video or webinar. Sixty percent said that during the past 18 months they have undertaken efforts such as new initiatives, internal discussions and corporate policy reviews to improve DE&I. And nearly two-thirds (66%) say they plan to continue with their efforts.
Channel firms believe responsibility for driving DE&I efforts should come from the CEO or owner of the company (30%) or human resources (26%). Forty-one percent of respondents believed that without top-down authority leading DE&I efforts, they would be likely to fail.
While 54% of companies reported having a person or persons on staff who drove DE&I, that person wasn’t necessarily acting in an official capacity. Only 14% of firms said they had hired a chief diversity officer or equivalent in the past two years.
Among those firms that have not yet taken any actions related to DE&I, the leading reason (37%) was that it was not a top priority for top executives.
In its purest form, DE&I calls for equal support of all diversity types. But in the channel and tech industry, there is a notable imbalance in the diversity scale. Case in point: The majority of respondents to this survey identified themselves as male (60%) and white (60%). So it’s not too surprising that the top two areas of focus for DE&I in the channel and tech industry are race and ethnicity, and gender.
Channel firms cited the establishment of hiring and recruiting goals for members of underrepresented groups as being an important element of DE&I. Later, when asked about specific actions they had taken in the past two years to improve DE&I, channel firms said that, among other things, they had updated their recruiting practices to include looking for candidates in non-traditional settings (colleges, trade schools, historically Black colleges, etc.), eliminated the four-year college degree requirement for many jobs and looked outside their main geographic area for underrepresented candidates who could work remotely.
Yet later still, when asked how they balance the need to quickly fill open positions in a tight job market with their DE&I recruitment objectives, most (41%) said they tried to find the best candidate available, with no mention of diverse hiring practices. Seven percent indicated they were still trying to figure out how to balance the two, and 21% said they were trying to leverage diverse hiring practices, but without much luck.
Retention is a real problem for the channel and tech industry. The employee turnover rate is around 18.3% globally, even higher for women.
Channel firms report that the greatest challenge to retaining talent is making sure the company culture is inclusive. That’s a tall order for an industry used to following a path largely straight, white and narrow. But with a workforce that increasingly puts company culture above pay rate, it is essential. One of the major reasons for leaving cited by employees in their exit interviews is lacking a sense of belonging.
Inclusion in the workplace provides everyone with equal access to opportunities and resources. It creates employee engagement and a sense of belonging.
Take the area of venture capital (VC) funding, for example. When asked about the funding being given to underrepresented groups versus to white-owned startups, more than half responded that it’s been fair and equitable (28%) or that they didn’t know (28%).
In reality, the Federal Reserve reports that 80.2% white-owned businesses receive at least a percentage of the funding they request from a bank, compared to 66.4% of businesses with a Black, indigenous or person of color (BIPOC) owner. Moreover, loans to small white-owned firms averaged $30,000 more than those to small BIPOC-owned firms. White-owned startups average $18,500 in outside equity at launch. For Black-owned startups, it’s $500.
And as for interest, the Minority Business Development Agency found that “minority firms paid 7.8% on average for loans, compared with 6.4% for non-minority firms.”
When asked to rate the actions their firms have taken in the last 18 months to bolster DE&I, only 6% indicated they had little or no success. Twenty-five percent said they had been somewhat successful, 44% said they had been successful and 24% rated themselves as very successful.
Similarly, when asked to assess their companies in fully integrating DE&I thinking and practices into recruitment, performance management, leadership, business operations and other related areas, 49% thought DE&I had been well integrated into the company culture. Only 14% said there was “lots of room for improvement” and 37% said there was “some room for improvement.”
Channel firms understand that DE&I programs and initiatives are not only the right thing to do, but they are good for business. The top three benefits that respondents are enjoying from a more diverse workforce are more diversity of ideas and approaches to problems, projects and other goals; improved company culture; and a better sense of community in the company.
When asked to rate the actions their firms have taken in the last 18 months to bolster DE&I, only 6% indicated they had little or no success. Twenty-five percent said they had been somewhat successful, 44% said they had been successful and 24% rated themselves as very successful.
Similarly, when asked to assess their companies in fully integrating DE&I thinking and practices into recruitment, performance management, leadership, business operations and other related areas, 49% thought DE&I had been well integrated into the company culture. Only 14% said there was “lots of room for improvement” and 37% said there was “some room for improvement.”
Channel firms understand that DE&I programs and initiatives are not only the right thing to do, but they are good for business. The top three benefits that respondents are enjoying from a more diverse workforce are more diversity of ideas and approaches to problems, projects and other goals; improved company culture; and a better sense of community in the company.
Aware that you can’t figure out which way to go until you know where you are, CompTIA and Channel Futures teamed up to assess DE&I in the channel and tech industry. To do this, we collaborated on a quantitative study consisting of an online survey fielded in September 2021. The survey went to 510 IT businesses — channel firms, IT vendors, distributors, agents, telcos and IT consultants — in the U.S.
The survey included questions about channel firms’ general awareness of DE&I, what resources they had or needed, the challenges and benefits they had encountered in their DE&I efforts, what actions they were taking, how they would rate their success and more.
Education and Direction
The results of the survey will be used to inform Channel Futures’ DE&I initiative. Various aspects will be examined in detail and used in determining where we can provide useful resources, education and expert advice.
You can hear more about the CompTIA/Channel Futures survey in the on-demand session “DE&I and the Channel: Are We Getting There?” available in the Channel Partners Conference & Expo mobile app beginning Nov. 1. And at the live event, be sure to check out “Using Mentoring and Advisory as a Tool to Attract Diverse Talent,” “Channel Partners Theater Session: Channel Futures DE&I” and “DE&I Meetup: Meet the DE&I 101 and Become an Agent of Change.” |
We’re starting with a look at 10 important takeaways extracted from the survey results. They provide us with a base, a general overview of where we are. From there we can determine where we want to go and how we will get here.
Scroll through the gallery above to learn about some of the key findings from the CompTIA/Channel Futures DE&I survey.
Want to contact the author directly about this story? Have ideas for a follow-up article? Email Buffy Naylor or connect with her on LinkedIn. |
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