You know that diversity and inclusion will help your organisation be more productive, more engaged, more collaborative and more innovative.
But where do you start?
Well, a great place to start is understanding where you are now, and where you need to be. Our strategy and planning tools will help you do that.
Not everyone reading your strategy will know what Equality, Diversity and Inclusion mean to you. That’s why it’s important to get everyone on the same page straight away.
Your definitions are specific to you and your journey. Perhaps you’ve already done lots of work on equality and people need to understand how it relates to inclusion. Or are you focusing on protected characteristics or do you have a wider definition of diversity?
Make sure your definitions reflect your culture and values. Test them out with your stakeholders, service users and networks.
We know that diversity and inclusion are the right thing to do but you’re more likely to get people on board if you can also specify why it will help your organisation thrive.
It’s helpful to make the links with your overall organisational strategy clear.
You can use the same themes, objectives and language to show that diversity and inclusion support your strategy.
It’s important to not just talk about the internal benefits of diversity such as talent retention and engagement. But to also be clear about the external benefits such as innovation and reaching more people with your services.
Are there external change drivers?
What culture, diversity AND inclusion data do you hold and what is it telling you? See our Measurement and Data toolbox and C8 Culture Framework for support.
Compare yourself to others in your sector so you know how you’re doing. But remember, the real benchmark is whether you’re reaching the diversity of people that need your services. See our Measurement and Data toolbox and infographics for support.
Remind people what you’ve done so far and where’s it got you. Did it move your diversity and inclusion data or do you need to find a different way?
You don’t need to know the step by step actions you’ll take to fulfil your strategy but you do need to know the key themes you’ll focus on and their objectives.
It can be helpful to have some examples included so people understand what your themes relate to.