the retention process with disability in mind.
“We’re looking for people who
can help us meet our clients’
needs so we include the physical
disability,” says Anderson Banks
of Deloitte. “[People with dis-abilities] know they have skills.
They are knowledgeable and bright
and they want to contribute. I’ve
talked to people who supervise
people with disabilities and they
talk about the commitment and
dedication people with disabilities
give to an organization they see as
supportive of them. Their retention levels and commitment levels
are higher and I believe they give
us over and above what their positions require.”
1. The right recruitment tools.
Procter & Gamble (P&G), No. 14
in the Top 50 and No. 5 in the Top
10 for People With Disabilities,
revamped its on-boarding process.
The company works with disability resource centers at colleges to
make sure online recruiting tools
are accessible. It ensured recruiting
Employee Group for
People With Disabilities
100%
100%
80
60
40
20
0
Top10 Companies
55%
26%
Source: DiversityInc
pamphlets are provided for applicants with sight impairments. During the on-boarding process, P&G
ensures that a recruit who has a
disability can be assigned a mentor
who also has a disability. Deloitte
conducts intern and mentoring
days in the New York offices, bringing students with disabilities in to
meet Deloitte executives.
2. Strong employee groups.
Deloitte has an employee-resource
group for people with disabilities.
Ernst & Young (E&Y), No. 43 in
the Top 50 and No. 9 in the Top
10 for People With Disabilities, is
addressing its corporate culture
through a sub-network called
Abilities Champions. Members are
located throughout the firm and
either represent their geography or
functional group.
3. Make them visible to the top.
Deloitte has featured professionals
and partners with disabilities in
its inclusion video seen by senior
executives. At E&Y, a video that
includes E&Y professionals talking about living with a disability
is used at meetings and has been
distributed firm-wide. For example,
a kiosk that played the video was
placed outside an E&Y tax-prac-titioner meeting, which attracted
300 executives.
“We’re purposely playing it in
contexts that are not expected,”
says Lori Golden, leader of E&Y’s
AccessAbilities People Resource
Network.
P&G is creating a large group of
executives specifically focused on
issues that relate to disability.
4. Spread the word. E&Y runs
quizzes in its firm-wide online
newsletter to educate employees on disabilities, appropriate
Actively Recruit People
With Disabilities
100%
100%
82%
80
60
40
20
0
31%
Source: DiversityInc
*Bottom quarter of 317 respondents
etiquette and language regarding
employees with disabilities.
5. Provide needed technology.
P&G focuses on providing technology for employees with disabilities.
“So if someone is visually impaired
like myself, it’s about making sure
the screen is legible,” says Kelly
Schlafman, assistance manager for
P&G, who has been a member of
the company’s People with Disabilities Global Leadership Network
since she started with the firm in
1998. All videos shown at P&G
meetings provide open captioning,
which means the words spoken
always appear across the screen.
6. Have mentoring programs
aimed at people with disabilities.
Mentors are the most important
thing a company can provide
employees with disabilities, says
King. Top 50 companies surveyed
give employees and new recruits
with disabilities the option of having
mentors with disabilities. They make
sure there is ample follow-up and
track mentoring-pair progress.
