UK employees are not only receptive to DEI initiatives, but they would consider leaving their roles if their employers were seen to be diluting their diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
According to a national study of 1,000 working adults, almost 60% of workers in the United Kingdom would consider quitting if their employer rolled back their DEI commitments.
While the study suggested that 39% of respondents would ‘seriously consider’ resigning from their role, 20% suggested that they would ‘certainly’ leave.
For employers that have a younger workforce, expectations for following DEI initiatives are far stronger. When it comes to resignation matters over diversity, equity, and inclusion, 68% of Gen Z employees and 64% of Millennials are likely to threaten to leave.
While some major global employers are rolling back their DEI policies, it appears that the outlook of these firms doesn’t align with their workers.
This opens the door to more businesses attracting talented younger candidates by maintaining a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, but how can you ensure that you’re maintaining high DEI standards? Let’s explore four ways technology can enhance inclusivity in the workplace:
1. Eliminating Bias
Incorporating artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) solutions into your core HR and recruitment strategy can help to address and overcome instances of unconscious bias throughout company operations.
These AI platforms can be trained to avoid prejudices in the hiring process and beyond, helping to support the management of recruits, appropriately rewarding hard work, and considering candidates for promotions.
The technology can detect and mitigate bias in the decision-making process across the board and helps to improve candidate and employee recognition.
One example of this technology in action can be found in SAP’s Business Beyond Bias initiative, which allows customers to use the company’s SuccessFactors program to eliminate biases surrounding age, race, and ethnicity, as well as abilities and LGBTQIA+ communities.
Not only can this pave the way for more fair hiring practices, but it can also help to support fair pay within teams and appropriate recognition among promotion candidates.
2. Data-Driven Decisions
DEI success is built on data, and the accurate measurement of these insights makes it simple to understand how a business performs not only in an operational sense but also when it comes to inclusivity.
Companies like film production firm Untold Fable collect diversity data as part of their creative team’s portfolio, which can help to build diverse project teams that enrich their output and support the company’s wider DEI initiatives.
Untold Fable specifies diversity requirements such as an even male-to-female split alongside factors like industry expertise, budgets, and timeframes. This helps the technology to assemble the most talented team of freelancers for each job.
3. Performance Measurement
Technology can also help to measure the performance of DEI initiatives in a way that can help to support the refined approaches of business decision-makers.
For businesses seeking to democratise DEI data for their teams, they can get an HR software platform that places employee metrics at the heart of their operations.
With the right HR software, it’s possible to be alerted to emerging trends within the company, such as a higher turnover rate among female employees within a specific department. These insights can help to address any issues regarding the practices, communication, and progression opportunities afforded to male and female staff.
This enhanced measure of employee management means that businesses can be far more effective in implementing changes using their software while keeping records and fine-tuning processes that are already in place.
4. Prioritising Accessibility
DEI initiatives must promote accessibility to all team members and candidates. This means that all materials created within the company should be compatible with screen readers, closed captioning, or inclusive user interfaces for universal access.
It’s also essential that equipment is accessible for remote candidates, meaning that the chosen conferencing software needs to be free and easy enough to run that the vast majority of computers can support it, helping more employees to gain the same level of access to collaboration tools.
Employees who lack access to machines with high-quality audio and video technology can experience more stress, confusion, inefficiency, and miscommunication in their roles, so it’s important to adopt flexible platforms that allow for easier collaboration.
Platforms like Google Meet and Microsoft Teams have sought to create a more simplified level of access for workers using different computer specifications, and it could help to improve inclusivity by keeping all employees in mind when collaborating in remote settings.
Strengthening DEI Commitments
While some employers are rolling back their DEI considerations, it’s clear that most employees, especially younger workers, are passionate about inclusivity.
Utilising AI and data analytics can pave the way for a greater level of attention and improvement when it comes to DEI issues. As the technology continues to break down barriers to DEI adoption, we’re likely to see more intricacy in terms of inclusivity in the recruitment and onboarding process, helping to pave the way for a happier and more committed workforce.
