At any point in your organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) journey, the question of whether it is valuable to hire a DEI consultant to help with initiatives will most likely come up. What can a DEI consultant do for your organization? They can engage in facilitating inclusion training, leading seminars, designing training programs, evaluating the inclusivity of your workplace culture, and so much more. DEI consultants work with leaders of organizations to ensure that your DEI goals align with the company’s needs and mission.
Many organizations are struggling to meet the DEI needs and expectations of their employees, leaving them dissatisfied with their employee experience. Every organization is unique, and the decision to hire a DEI consultant should be based on specific organizational needs, goals, and commitment to diversity and inclusion efforts.
Here are seven tell-tale signs that your organization should consider hiring a DEI consultant to help you reach your goals:
1. Lack of DEI Team
If your organization has a single dedicated DEI person acting alone, or if DEI is being treated as a “side project” of one of your HR executives, this is a sign that you should hire a DEI consultant. A consultant will provide their specialized expertise and guidance to help establish and implement effective programs. They are able to conduct a thorough analysis of the organization’s current practices and culture, provide an external perspective free of any internal bias or political considerations, and help develop metrics and tracking systems to measure the impact of initiatives. If your organization is lacking a full DEI team, it is important to ensure that those overseeing it have the appropriate amount of support to drive lasting change.
2. Insufficient Team Diversity
If an organization lacks diversity, both in terms of its workforce and leadership, it may be a sign that a DEI consultant should be brought in. A DEI consultant can help identify the reasons behind the lack of diversity and develop strategies to address it.
Download the Seramount research executive summary: Increasing Diversity in Senior Leadership.
3. Lackluster ERG Engagement
Many organizations have implemented employee resource groups (ERGs) as part of their DEI initiatives but struggle to get employees to engage with them by joining as leaders or attending programming. ERGs are one of the best tools an organization can use to engage with their employees and foster an inclusive workplace. With the help of a DEI consultant, ERGs can help to improve the business’s bottom line while giving employees a place to gather with others who share fundamental similarities.
4. Ineffective Policies and Practices
Organizations that have outdated or ineffective policies or practices may benefit from a DEI consultant. They can help review and revise policies related to hiring, promotion, and compensation to ensure that they are inclusive and equitable.
5. Stale Employee Satisfaction Evaluations
Annual employee evaluations are a great first step to understand what your employees need to make the workplace a more equitable and inclusive one. However, often these evaluations can reveal challenges within your culture. Many leaders aren’t sure what to do with the results they receive, and therefore no progress is made, so employees are left wondering what the next steps are. A DEI consultant will step in and take control of the data that is collected from these evaluations, or they could suggest a different way to evaluate employees to see if results differ. They could make suggestions based on research and best practices on how to rectify any DEI issues that came up during the evaluation. A DEI consultant can make sure that employees’ concerns are not just heard but are also acknowledged and considered when new or updated initiatives are introduced.
6. High Employee Turnover
If your organization is experiencing high employee turnover rates, particularly among historically excluded talent, it may be a sign that there are underlying DEI issues that need to be addressed. A DEI consultant can assess the organizational culture and practices, provide recommendations, and support the implementation of initiatives to improve employee retention.
7. Outdated DEI Trainings
Most organizations now have mandatory DEI training for all employees in order to make the workplace a more equitable and inclusive one. However, many of these trainings are outdated or not engaging enough and leave employees dreading having to take them. A DEI consultant can help an organization update their training to make them more current and engaging for employees. They can work internally with leaders to ensure the new training aligns with the organization’s need or work with an external company such as Seramount to provide new training lessons for the organization.
If these tell-tale signs are something that your organization is experiencing, hiring a DEI consultant should be your next step. Contact us for more information about how Seramount can help you advance your DEI strategy.
