Tag Archives: DEI

As the United States counts down to Election Day, all the world prepares to witness the breaking of the glass ceiling by Ms Kamala Harris.  Being female and a person of colour, she has already smashed the “imagination barrier” showing us what a Vice-President and now a Presidential Candidate looks like.  Will the American electorate be ready to install a female, Black-Asian President on 5 November?

The Republicans meanwhile have taken to questioning her credentials by calling her, somewhat disparagingly, a “DEI hire.”

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) has become short-hand for tokenism or “woke-ness”.  Referring to Ms Harris as a DEI hire suggests that she has got to where she is today because of her race and gender and not for her past achievements as a public prosecutor, Attorney General and Senator of California.   Some of us would dispute that and say she has got to where she is today despite her race and gender.

It might be helpful first to explore and analyse what DEI actually means as a policy, its rationale and how an organisation might want to adopt DEI strategies.

DEI in a nutshell

Diversity refers to having people of different background and characteristics including gender, race/ethnicity, class, LGBTI+ leanings and disability.  With different so-called “metrics” they would bring to the table different sensibilities and skills (e.g. language skills , social or cultural understanding) which may in turn lead to more diversity of ideas and perspectives.  This would in turn drive improved performance through more innovative solutions, better outreach to customers and improved financial outcomes.  There is therefore a business case for diversity.

Equity refers to fair treatment for all people with fairer outcomes.   Equity differs from equality in a subtle and important way: it does not mean that everyone is treated the same way but equity takes into consideration the person’s unique circumstances, adjusting treatment accordingly so that the end result is equal.

Inclusion refers to the degree to which organisations embrace all employees, and enable them to have a voice, feel respected and valued.  No-one should feel excluded or discriminated against so that individuals would feel psychologically safe, and able to contribute their views. The team as a whole would be able to perform more optimally together.  In this way the organisation can tap and unlock the full potential and power of the diverse workforce.

The business and moral case for adopting DEI strategies

There is both a business rationale as well as a moral imperative for introducing DEI into an organisation.   As a society should we not also be aligning our aims and goals to the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030?   E.g.: