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DEI Priorities in 2023

A variety of different coloured sticky notes on a white wall.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at work and the ability to create an inclusive culture that welcomes everyone is central to success and growth but takes real work to implement. Jenny Hinde, Director and Sarah Ramsden, Head of Content at the Clear Company look at the DEI themes for 2023.

A variety of different coloured sticky notes on a white wall.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at work and the ability to create an inclusive culture that welcomes everyone is central to success and growth but takes real work to implement. Jenny Hinde, Director and Sarah Ramsden, Head of Content at the Clear Company look at the DEI themes for 2023.

  1. Thinking outside the box – for too long organisations have had an over-focus on gender neglecting other aspects of diversity, or race has been the priority – occasionally disability, socio-economic background or LGBTQ+ communities. Intersectionality has been emerging as a driver but 2023 will see an even bigger shift to not being constrained by a tickbox – or even multiple tick boxes – and to truly treat people as the unique individuals that they are. To be progressive we have to think outside the box. Examples include gender which is still too often all about male or female, there are a range of genders and we have to stop asking ‘what do you identify as’ and recognise not everyone identifies as male or female and to recognise and include non-binary. Providing adjustments programmes for all and changing the narrative from ‘do you need’ to ‘what can we do’ will enable everyone to be who they want to be at work, and ultimately perform at their best.
  2. Embedded inclusive leadership – leaders are starting to recognise that inclusive decisions need to be part of every aspect of how an organisation operates. Stopping one-off initiatives or leaving DEI in the hands of the few will be a focus of 2023 for many organisations. Many leaders now acknowledge their privilege and are building inclusion confidence ready for the next step which will be moving from recognising privilege to leveraging it to contribute to a more equitable society.
  3. Addressing non-inclusive behaviours – at the heart of an inclusive culture is acknowledging and managing behaviours that cross the line, whether intentional or not. Programmes addressing respect re-enforced with action have been a key theme in 2022 that will move into 2023. Investing in the skills of people teams, leaders and managers to enable this will be critical.
  4. Looking outside our organisations to support supply chains – the more progressive organisations who have been progressing the inclusion journey internally for a number of years, are starting to look externally at how they can extend the impact of the authentic change they are championing. Supply chain support to help smaller organisations start or progress their own inclusion journey is a key lever for larger organisations – as well as looking at how truly inclusive their own procurement processes are.
  5. Inclusive recruitment – It is more important than ever that organisations conduct an in-depth analysis of their recruitment policies, processes and practice to discover where barriers to diversity lie.  Putting diverse candidates through an assessment process with inherent bias towards majoritised groups will cause adverse impact, damage the employer brand, and critically, means organisations are losing out on talented candidates.Scrutinise Job Descriptions through an inclusive lens; only having required, not desirable criteria, or a focus on transferable skills as opposed to technical skills that are not actually needed are among some of the actions that widen and diversify the talent pool. Invest in your hiring managers with training that will give them the confidence and capability to conduct an inclusive hiring process.A much-neglected aspect of recruitment from a DEI perspective is inclusive search – at those very senior levels there is an over-reliance on personal networks which are typically limited in diverse characteristics. Exploring new ways to conduct search and ensuring that your search partners are effectively trained in inclusive practice is an emerging area of focus.
  6. Maintain inclusive practice and people first thinking as some organisations face restructures in 2023 – how you manage redundancies will make a huge difference to how your people come through it both those who are staying and those who are leaving. As always checking if it’s truly necessary, whether there are any other options and avoiding bias and discrimination is key in all that you do. Using objective and measurable criteria based on evidence, consulting and keeping everyone well informed and the right level of support in place for those impacted is central to an inclusive process. Taking the time to look at the diversity demographic data when applying the criteria and challenging any adverse impact for those are impacted and re-visiting the evidence.

Begin or progress your DEI journey in 2023, contact us to find out how our expert team can help you start or register for a free ED&I strategy review.

About the Authors:

Jenny Hinde – Executive Director

Jenny has more than 20 years’ experience as an HR Director, her most recent role as an HR Director of Amey saw her lead a successful Diversity and Inclusion agenda in the construction and engineering sector for 10 years. With a pan-diversity approach Jenny is highly experienced in defining the business case, setting the strategic direction and implementing robust solutions to diversity challenges.  At the Clear Company she works closely with clients such as Network Rail, United Utilities and Highways England and has successfully developed and facilitated global inclusive leadership programmes in a variety of formats including coaching, virtual delivery and workshop events in order to align leaders to a common inclusion agenda, including 1:1 Executive coaching.

Sarah Ramsden, Head Of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Content and Learning Design, The Clear Company

Sarah holds 20+ years HR experience at a strategic level working with boards and senior executive teams in the UK’s leading global STEM companies.  Specialising in Leadership Development, Sarah has proven results in improving Inclusive Leadership Capability, Inclusive Culture Behavioural Change, Employee Engagement and Diverse Senior Leadership. She developed and facilitated Inclusive Leadership and Behavioural Change workshops for top 300 leaders with 360 1:1 coaching feedback built in to identify their calls to action. This combined with the introduction of a Reverse Mentoring Scheme and Leadership toolkit turned the dial.

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