Behavioral Competencies - Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Question 1

What are the sub-competencies of diversity, equity & inclusion? (leadership behavioral competencies)

Answer 1

• Creating a diverse and inclusive culture
• Ensuring equity effectiveness
• Connecting DE&I to organizational performance

Question 2

Equality

Answer 2

Equal treatment of individuals and groups

Question 3

Equity

Answer 3

A relative form of equality that takes into consideration the needs and characteristics of the individuals, the context of the situation, and circumstances that result in disparate outcomes

Question 4

Inclusion in the workplace

Answer 4

The extent to which individuals can access information and resources, are involved in work groups, have the ability to influence decision-making processes, and can contribute fully and effectively to an organization.

“Inclusion” is also defined as the fulfillment of needs for belongingness and uniqueness.

Question 5

multigenerational workforce

Answer 5

A multigenerational workforce is a personnel comprised of people from several generations. The average lifespan for humans has been increasing, so more individuals are choosing to work well past the typical retirement age.

These groups are defined as:

Silent Generation (Traditionalists) – born 1928-1945
Baby Boomers – born 1946-1964
Generation X – born 1965-1980
Generation Y (Millennials) – born 1981-1996
Generation Z – born 1997-2012

Question 6

What are the differences in loyalty factor of various generations?

Question 7

multicultural workforce

Answer 7

A multicultural workplace is one where employees come from a variety of backgrounds. This includes not only race, gender, ethnicity and religion but also things such as age, education and disability

Question 8

executive sponsorship

Answer 8

The Executive Sponsor (sometimes called project sponsor or senior responsible owner) as a role in project management, usually the senior member of the project board and often the chair. The project sponsor will be a senior executive in a corporation (often at or just below board level) who is responsible to the business for the success of the project.

Question 9

What are the impacts of leadership buy-in?

Answer 9

• When leaders buy into their organization’s employee engagement strategy, employee engagement increases.
• When employees are confident that their leaders value their people, set the right course, and are committed to making it a great place to work, engagement increases.

Question 10

How can you get leadership buy-in?

Answer 10

1. Explain the benefits of the program/project
2. Identify problems in the organization that this can solve
3. Connect it to business objectives

Question 11

allyship

Answer 11

the status or role of a person who advocates and actively works for the inclusion of a marginalized or politicized group in all areas of society, not as a member of that group but in solidarity with its struggle and point of view and under its leadership:

Question 12

What are some ways one can be an ally?

Answer 12

Consider:

• How much space are we taking up in conversations? in rooms? in organizing?
• How do we actively improve access to our meetings? our actions?
• How are our identities taking up space? physically? verbally?
• How much do we know about the people we seek to work with? what are our assumptions and from where did they originate?
• Who are we leaving behind?

Question 13

bias

Answer 13

A partiality or an inclination or predisposition for or against something

Question 14

unconscious-bias

Answer 14

Also known as implicit bias, unconscious biases are social stereotypes about certain groups of peoples that individuals form outside their own conscious awareness

Question 15

psychological safety

Answer 15

A shared belief that a workplace or a workplace team is safe for interpersonal risk taking. This term is not meant to suggest a careless sense of permissiveness nor an unrelenting positive affect, but rather a sense of confidence stemming from mutual respect and trust that a workplace or workplace team will not reject, embarrass, or punish someone for speaking up

Question 16

employee resource groups

Answer 16

Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are voluntary, employee-led groups whose aim is to foster a diverse, inclusive workplace aligned with the organizations they serve.

They are lead and encompassed by employees who share a characteristic, whether it’s gender, ethnicity, religious affiliation, lifestyle, or interest.

Question 17

diversity metrics

Answer 17

Diversity metrics are measurable numerical values that help HR to see workforce demographics and assess the efforts of the company towards inclusive practices.

• gender diversity
• race diversity
• retention rates for diverse employees
• diversity of external stakeholders

Question 18

What are workplace solutions to creating an inclusive workspace?

Answer 18

Examples include:

• Lactation room
• Prayer room
• Braille and screen reader
• Closed captioning
• Wheelchair ramp
• Gender-neutral restrooms

Question 19

What are barriers to success involving conscious and unconscious bias?

Answer 19

• Gender-based discrimination
• Stereotypes
• “isms” (ie. ageism, ableism, racism)
• biases (ie. ingroup/outgroup; affinity bias, gender identity bias; sexual orientation bias; social comparison bias; extroversion/introversion bias; neurodiversity bias)
• microaggressions
• personal barriers (ie. imposter syndrome and identity covering)

Question 20

What is disparate treatment? How should a disparate treatment claim be treated?

Answer 20

Intentional employment discrimination due to race, religion, sex, or natural origin (ie. testing only certain minority applicants for a skill)

A claim of disparate treatment requires proof of discriminatory motive, such as blatant statements that pose direct evidence of discrimination. Disparate treatment my also be exposed through factual differences in treatment, proven by a cohort analysis comparison of the treatment in similar individuals

Question 21

What is disparate impact?

Answer 21

When policies, practices, rules or other systems that appear to be neutral result in disproportionate impact on a protected group (“unintentional discrimination”)

Disparate impact does not require the proof of discriminatory motive and remedies do not include punitive damage

Question 22

microaggression

Answer 22

Microaggressions are defined as the everyday, subtle, intentional — and oftentimes unintentional — interactions or behaviors that communicate some sort of bias toward historically marginalized groups.

Question 23

What are techniques to measure and increase equity?

Answer 23

• SHRM Empathy index
• diversity of employees at all organizational levels
• pay audits
• pay equity reports
• pay transparency
• employee surveys

Question 24

What are the differences in loyalty factor of various generations?

Answer 24

Baby boomers - more loyal, and likely to only have a few employers over the course of their working years
GenX - more likely to change employers frequently to gain experience and better salaries
MIllenial/GenZ - least loyalty to employers and want to define their own careers and work their own way

Question 25

What are some characteristics about millennial workers?

Answer 25

More entrepreneurial, value work/life balance and the opportunity to make a difference. Bring more tech savvy, social media branding, and adaptability. Desire constant feedback and want plenty of learning opportunities and a manger who is concerned with their career growth. Coaching, mentoring, and on-the-job training are attractive qualities for this generation. Flourish when they have freedom for creative expression and clear areas of responsibility.

Question 26

What is a glass ceiling?

Answer 26

The condition in which many women experience subtle forms of discrimination that limit their career advancement

It encompasses a host of attitudinal and organizational barriers that prevent women from receiving information, training, encouragement, and other opportunities to assist in advancement.

Question 27

What does the Civil Rights Act protect? What does it not protect?

Answer 27

The Civil Rights Act prohibits sex or religious discrimination regarding any employment condition. This does not protect, however, against sexual orientation. The EEOC has ruled that gender identity discrimination can be asserted as claims of sex discrimination under existing law. Preferential treatment for any particular gender or religious quality is strictly prohibited unless there is a bona fide occupational qualification.

Question 28

What are some reasonable accommodations an employer could make for disabilities?

Answer 28

Some examples of disability accommodation are making the building more accessible (via ramps, elevators, redesigned restrooms, etc); altering work duties, location, or schedule; ordering assistive equipment; modifying policies, performance assessment tools, or training materials, and more.

HR should create a policy detailing how accommodation requests should be made, how they will be evaluated, and what appeals process exists if the request is denied

Question 29

What are some reasonable accommodations an employer could make for religion?

Answer 29

Possible religious accommodations include allowing time off for religious holidays and having different dress and grooming rules.

Question 30

Can HR deny an accommodation request?

Answer 30

Employers must accommodate job candidate or employees - who are disabled, or hold a sincerely held religious belief or disabled veterans - so long as doing so doesn’t cause the company undue hardship.

HR should create a policy detailing how accommodation requests should be made, how they will be evaluated, and what appeals process exists if the request is denied

Question 31

What are affirmative action plans? Why was it established?

Answer 31

Affirmative action plans require employers to implement timelines that correlate with measurable goals to prevent discrimination and enforce Executive Order 11246, commonly known as Order Number 4. This order prohibits employment discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors whose contracts exceed $10,000 per year or first tier subcontractors whose contracts exceed $50,000 and have 40 or more employees.

Executive order 11478 extended the same anti-discrimination provisions to employees of the federal government.

Question 32

How was the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) established?

Answer 32

Executive Order 11246 (Order Number 4) established OFCCP to monitor AAPs. The OFCCP uses many tool and analysis techniques to investigate possible discrimination. Coverage was again extended in 2013 to include individuals with disabilities.

The statute of limitations to file a complaint with the OFCCP is 180 days.