From rural employees to those in retail settings, it can be challenging to communicate DEI initiatives.
At Seramount, we have heard from several partners recently about challenges they are facing around buy-in from employees who may be in the “frontline” of work, from those in retail or direct health care settings to those in rural, hard-to-reach locations. Some of the greatest challenges include:
• Lack of employee access to company email system
• Skepticism about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) language, and, therefore, resistance to DEI
initiatives
• Obstacles to joining employee resource groups (ERGs) because of work schedules
• Difficulty in making DEI initiatives feel impactful for all rather than a few
This toolkit combines knowledge from several Seramount teams, including Marketing, Insights, the Talent Center for Excellence, and the ERG Center for Excellence. Key highlights from this toolkit include:
• If digital communications are not possible, paper format may be an alternative.
• Change up standard DEI language to meet the needs of the current workforce.
• Garner frontline manager support to allow employees the time needed to participate in ERGs.
• Expand the definition of DEI to include identities that may not be instantly considered when talking about DEI programming, such as parents, first-generation professionals, and employees with neurodiversity.
