rsity Councils
9 Generational Communications
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc
ommunications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Global Diversity
9 Organizational Developme
ions
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
al Diversity
9 Organizational Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-C
ityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitme
Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate
roups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity Councils
9 Generational Communicati
mitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate Communications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Glob
rsity Councils
9 Generational Communications
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc
ommunications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Global Diversity
9 Organizational Developme
ions
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
al Diversity
9 Organizational Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-C
ityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitme
Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate
roups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity Councils
9 Generational Communicati
mitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate Communications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Glob
rsity Councils
9 Generational Communications
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc
ommunications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Global Diversity
9 Organizational Developme
ions
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
al Diversity
9 Organizational Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-C
ityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitme
Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate
roups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity Councils
9 Generational Communicati
mitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate Communications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Glob
rsity Councils
9 Generational Communications
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc
ommunications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Global Diversity
9 Organizational Developme
ions
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
al Diversity
9 Organizational Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-C
ityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitme
Development
9 Employee-Resource Groups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity
9 Best Practices
9 Metrics-Driven
9 CEO Commitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate
roups
9 Cross-Cultural Mentoring
9 Diversity Councils
9 Generational Communicati
mitment
9 Human Capital
9 Corporate Communications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Glob
rsity Councils
9 Generational Communications
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc
ommunications
9 Supplier Diversity
9 Global Diversity
9 Organizational Developme
ions
9 Work/Life Balance
9 DiversityInc Top 50
9 Lessons Learned
9 Best Practices
December 2010 47
the DiversityInc Top 50
Tech Company CASE STUDY
THE SITUATION
WHAT HAPPENED
THE RESULTS
This company’s lack of diverse repre- sentation at its senior levels didn’t have a major impact five years
ago because the other companies faced
a similar lack of diversity. But as other
progressive companies instituted strong
efforts to develop diversity rapidly in
their succession planning, this company
did not and felt it wasn’t necessary. The
company also failed to keep pace with
its competitors, which increasingly rely on
employee-resource groups as both sources
for talent development and to identify
gaps in the corporate culture that need
addressing.
Also a long-time DiversityInc Top 50 mainstay, this company’s CEO determined that diversity was a
goal that had already been accomplished
and an enhanced effort wasn’t necessary, despite the presence of increased
competition.
Leadership at the top of the organization remains all white and 90 percent men, while other
companies on the list have made significant
inroads. The 2010 DiversityInc Top 50 average
14 percent Blacks, Latinos and Asians and 24
percent women at the top level—and those
percentages increase each year and at a
higher rate than companies not on the list.
This company has seen its percentage
of employees participating in employee-resource groups cut in half (from 10 percent to 5 percent) while the DiversityInc Top
50 average has increased from 16 percent to
24 percent in the last year alone (and was 5
percent five years ago).
THE SOLUTIONS
The lack of diversity at the top level—and at the succession-planning level right below the CEO’s direct reports—is sending a clear message to executives throughout the company that hey need to go elsewhere if they want a top-tier job. That is creating a spiral effect that inhibits
executive innovation to fix this.
It trickles down to all levels, evidenced by the participation in employee-resource groups and the difficulty
this company has had finding leaders for its ERGs. Where its ERGs once were responsible for creating ad
campaigns that resonated with the Black and Latino markets and directly increased revenue, today they are
mostly used to create heritage festivals and attend college fairs.
The company needs to start a concerted internal campaign about the specific benefits of joining an
ERG, including leadership-development training, career advancement through exposure to senior executives,
and the ability to have your ideas on innovative business solutions heard. Personal videos on the intranet are
a very effective way of reaching potential ERG members.
THE NEXT STEP
Here are examples from
DiversityInc research on
3 WAYS TO INCREASE EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION IN ERGS
www.DiversityIncBestPractices.com/increase-participation
DiversityIncBestPractices.com
that will increase
participation and utilization
of employee-resource groups
THE BUSINESS BENEFITS OF EMPLOYEE-RESOURCE GROUPS
www.DiversityIncBestPractices.com/business-benefi ts
SOLVE PROBLEMS COLLABORATIVELY WITH ERGS (VIDEO)
www.DiversityIncBestPractices.com/solve-problems I
