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It's never been more important to create and promote #diversity in the workplace. The benefits are not only clear but also proven. McKinsey has found that over time the relationship between diversity in executive teams and the likelihood of financial outperformance has strengthened. So with all that being true, the retention of BIPOC employees becomes a business-critical matter.
Any investment in diverse #recruiting practices and positive action at work is negated if there is no strategy to retain this staff base and enable BIPOC employees to be comfortable in bringing their true selves to work.
We at consciously exposed can share with you in this article some key proven strategies that aid and promote retention in a successful manner
Creating Network Groups
Embedding network groups in your workplace allows a group with common ground to come together and discuss their own Intrinsic Goals with a common viewpoint in mind. BIPOC employees often encounter barriers in the workplace, often through bias, be it conscious or unconscious but this can escalate to levels of harassment and bullying which are clear signs to an employee that it is time to head to the exit. Network groups will not only encourage colleagues to share problems and overcome them together.
It will proactively create a focused and action lead group, which can be open for promoting active #allyship across the broader business, deepening relationships, and spreading knowledge of challenges. In Change Catalysts report, The State Of Allyship Report: The Key To Workplace Inclusion, 92% of people responded saying that allies had been valuable in their career and those with at least just a single ally in their workplace are nearly twice as likely to feel like they belong and are satisfied with workplace culture and their job role as a result.
We can go further on the strategy of creating allies in the workplace though. Allyship is directly linked to reductions in employee turnover, as it promotes a feeling of belonging. As far as business objectives go, those extrinsic factors we have previously explored in the Transformational Leadership Model (TLM), allyship is linked to increases in #innovation, #productivity, #profitability, and customer satisfaction, as thought leadership is broadened and barriers are understood and broken down.
Equitable Recognition
Equitable Recognition – to connect an employee to the culture and the message of an organization the organization needs to understand performance recognition and performance management.
Engaging employees through recognition in meeting their business objectives increases the sense of value and belonging that an individual feels.
Businesses need to understand that everyone has their own goals, and encouraging an individual to write some of their own #goals helps connect #leadership to what employees want to achieve and sets an expectation of celebration. This recognition is what promotes #growth and #development, and encourages tough performance conversations where employees are encouraged to push themselves further, in turn connecting employees to business culture with a greater sense of purpose.
BIPOC employees often experience a greater sense of injustice in reward systems. So make sure conversations with employees are structured with a clear framework, and frequent. Employee led discussion as opposed to employer led discussion gives greater opportunity to realize and celebrate intrinsic goals and is a great way to pivot a conversation and create a recognition framework for success.
The question exists to what end does this benefit business, we can all get on board with wanting to be congratulated on a job well done, but these are personal emotional gains. Lack of recognition is cited in 36% of cases as a reason to leave. This is an enormous percentage and one that can be rapidly reduced with a strong strategy in place, ensuring you as an employer retain a greater basis of BIPOC employees. On average in America, it can cost upwards of $4000 per head to recruit a new position, with a loss of productivity also experienced during the 42 days on average it takes to fill a vacancy.
Education
Leaders need education. Get your leaders to create education-based inclusion and diversity goals. Create reverse mentoring groups where #bipoc employees are able to spend time with leaders educating them about their background and the barriers that they have faced and actively seek all colleague training to reduce bias. Continually assess the progress the business makes and the availability of new opportunities, ensuring that the development and education of staff is no longer a side of desk activity.
Working With Consciously Exposed
Business strategies are an entirely bespoke approach to success. Reach out to us at Consciously Exposed Consulting to allow us to help develop your strategy, so that you can ensure that when the tap is turned on for BIPOC recruitment, you're leaving the plug firmly in place.