How Tech Companies Can Raise Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Awareness
Xperteks CEO Marcial Velez shares some of the basic steps his company has identified for building a DE&I initiative.
January 28, 2022
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A reputation for discrimination keeps underrepresented groups from entering the tech sector. Bias takes many different forms. By identifying it and removing it from your organization, you can establish a positive work culture.
Sometimes it’s easy for us to recognize that we have preconceived notions and prejudices. The danger of unconscious bias is that it affects our decisions without our even being aware of it. Stereotypes can be absorbed deeply into our thought processes that we automatically like or dislike someone without knowing why.
There are many ways companies can tackle unconscious bias: recruitment via blind screening, training programs and providing peer groups for people with similar interests. Xperteks consistently focuses on ensuring that unconscious bias doesn’t affect the hiring process so that deserving talent gets hired.
According to a 2017 Pew Research Center survey, vast gender pay gaps persist. In addition, about 42% of working women stated they have experienced gender discrimination at work. There’s no reason for disparity in wages. Similar jobs demand similar pay rates. Paying men and women equitably promotes diversity.
Managers must create a level playing field and offer equal opportunities for every employee. Organizations can use analytics to identify the underpaid or overworked employees, so they’re given more time off work and fair compensation, as well as total access to promotion opportunities.
Tech companies can attract a more diverse range of people by publicly committing to close the pay gap. This will help you retain your employees and open opportunities for everyone to grow.
According to a report by Maya A. Beasley, a sociologist in Education Department data at the University of Connecticut, although those holding advanced degrees in tech are 8% Hispanic and 6% Black, job candidates at Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter are only 3% Hispanic and 1% Black. A lot of hiring in tech takes place along traditional routes, and those routes are not diverse.
Encourage the sharing of ideas within your organization. Create resource groups to make suggestions and then recognize them for their successes. It can make a difference! Ignorance breeds prejudice. The more your employees of differing backgrounds and cultures know about one another, the more comfortable they will be about their differences. It costs little to listen to one another, but the results Additionally, it is an inexpensive strategy that you can implement to retain a diverse workforce.
Consider offering your employees exercises in which they examine their perspectives and set objectives. Xperteks uses such initiatives to foster inclusiveness in the company culture. Adopting these exercises has moved our diversity initiative forward. It’s also created a remarkable improvement in employees’ attitudes towards diversity and inclusion.
When you consider team-building activities have you ever thought about recognizing the holidays of the various cultures represented in your workforce? Experiencing different foods and different festivities is a fun and fully immersive way for employees to learn more about each other.
Encourage your employees to become aware and keep track of multicultural religious or holiday celebrations by using the company’s intranet. And when scheduling meetings, keep everyone in mind and respect their need for flexibility to observe their celebrations.
Cultural humility is a way for companies and leaders to instill a more inclusive environment. This means remaining curious and humble about the different cultures in which they work and understanding that no one person has all of the answers. It is a life-long journey to embrace it.
Organizations can help employees manage bias by leveraging technology and training. Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Joelle Emerson points out that people can become defensive when being asked to examine their own behaviors, so it’s important to use the right tools in hiring and retaining employees. Two of the most important tools are empathy and open-mindedness.
There is no finish line in pursuing diversity, equity and inclusion. It’s an ongoing journey, not a destination, and results take time. It takes years to make structural and procedural changes in the workplace. And it requires constant diligence to make sure that strategies remain in place to hire diverse talent and provide opportunities across the board.
The tech industry can be challenging for employees who don’t fit the typical mold. A lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion has been seen across many companies that could benefit from having different perspectives on problems or issues. Diverse backgrounds bring new ideas that may help solve these complexities within the organization.
When implementing new cultural practices in the workplace, organizations must have benchmarks and track their progress. This allows leaders to assess which strategies are working to reach long-term goals and which aren’t.
There is no finish line in pursuing diversity, equity and inclusion. It’s an ongoing journey, not a destination, and results take time. It takes years to make structural and procedural changes in the workplace. And it requires constant diligence to make sure that strategies remain in place to hire diverse talent and provide opportunities across the board.
The tech industry can be challenging for employees who don’t fit the typical mold. A lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion has been seen across many companies that could benefit from having different perspectives on problems or issues. Diverse backgrounds bring new ideas that may help solve these complexities within the organization.
When implementing new cultural practices in the workplace, organizations must have benchmarks and track their progress. This allows leaders to assess which strategies are working to reach long-term goals and which aren’t.
By Marcial Velez
Xperteks’ Marcial Velez
Although many organizations have been stressing diversity, equity and inclusion in recent years, there seems to still be room for improvement. In the tech industry, for example, companies can improve employee productivity and engagement simply by building diverse teams.
Tech companies still struggle to increase the diversity within their work environments even when employment opportunities in the tech industry are booming, and the employment opportunity is twice the national average rate. In addition, compared to other private sectors, there is wide gender and racial disparity in the tech industry.
Companies with pro-diversity policies have proven to outperform their counterparts. For instance, during the financial crisis of 2008, diverse companies performed better and had greater resilience according to researchers. And what made them capable of gaining an edge with a high level of innovation? Diversity.
The tech industry can enjoy significant economic opportunities simply by improving gender and ethnic diversity? With such a substantial opportunity at their disposal, employers should start analyzing the challenges they must address when they begin formulating and executing diversity initiatives.
Basic Steps for Inclusion
Xperteks considers diversity, equity and inclusion to be essential and strive to foster them within the organization. Over the years we have identified some basic steps that are essential in instilling inclusion in the work culture.
If you’re building a diversity initiative from scratch, you will no doubt have many questions. Click through the above gallery to find out some of the basic steps that you can take to boost diversity, equity and inclusion.
Marcial Velez is CEO of New York-based MSP Xperteks. He has spent more than than 25 years in the IT industry helping maximize their technology investments. Xperteks won a slot on the 2021 MSP 501 listing. Because of his ongoing promotion of and dedication to DE&I, Velez was a member of the inaugural Channel Futures DE&I 101.
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