Signs of DEI Progress in Imperfect Workplaces

The culture war clash over diversity, equity, and inclusion will continue forever unless we can bring it from 10,000 ft in the air back down to earth. "Commitment to an inclusive culture for all?" "Marxist philosophy?" "Policies for achieving belonging?" "Wokeism?" Buzzwords against buzzwords against buzzwords, with no one the wiser as to what's actually being discussed. Rachel needs a lactation room, so we're converting a meeting room into one. Steven's going to be a dad and wants to spend time with his newborn kid, so we're expanding "maternal leave benefits" into "parental leave benefits." Andrew's a customer who has shared feedback about our product being inaccessible, so we're having him talk to the product team. Bianca helped us realize that our company's meetings are chaotic and don't make space for everyone's voice, so we're setting meeting norms. Sam worked on debiasing the hiring process at a previous role and we could benefit from that, so we're looking at standardizing our own process. Arjun shared helpful feedback about the difficulty managers face in managing their distributed teams, so we're building out more resources and structure. There is only one "ideology" present in DEI work done right, and it's shared by pretty much every pluralistic democratic society in our world: that everyone deserves dignity, respect, and opportunity regardless of the beliefs, values, needs, circumstances, experiences and perspectives we hold. That's it. The remaining 99.9% of the work is operational. How do we remove barriers to opportunity and fairness in the workplace? How do we meet people's many needs so we can bring out their potential? How do we create an environment where different people can come together and build something bigger than themselves? A great deal of that operational work ought to be done better. Diversity, equity, and inclusion work has a lot of room for improvement, and it'll take everyone's feedback and active involvement — yes, even from skeptics — to ensure that work succeeds. But to get there, we have to get our heads out of the clouds and bring the conversation back down to earth. Flowery abstractions, even if they make us feel righteous and good, will not save us. It's the mundane pragmaticism of speaking in real terms, with real people, to solve real problems, that will break through the misinformation and polarization that keeps us stuck in the status quo.

Today is International Day Of Persons With Disabilities asnd I would like to bring your attention to something important In a survey done by Great Place To Work India®, a staggering 2 out of 3 CHROs report that less than a quarter of their leadership teams include individuals from Historically Excluded Groups.  I’ve worked with organizations that proudly present spotless DEI dashboards.  They talk about percentage improvements, gender ratios, disability hires, leadership diversity.  And I genuinely appreciate the effort.  But when you sit with their people in private, a different story emerges. Employees whisper things like:  “Policy is inclusive. Practice is not.”  “I speak up, but nothing changes.”  “My identity is ‘celebrated’ on posters but ignored in meetings.”  “The culture looks good on LinkedIn, not in real life.”  I’ve also worked with organizations where the numbers aren't great yet—  but the culture feels deeply human.  Here’s the difference: When DEI works, people don’t whisper.  They participate.  Real DEI is not just: A colourful dashboard  A quarterly report  A polished statement Real DEI is: How safe people feel when they disagree  How fairly people are evaluated  Whether someone’s growth is limited by identity  Whether leaders apologise when they’re wrong  Whether systems evolve with feedback I’ve seen companies with brilliant numbers but broken teams.  And I’ve seen companies with imperfect numbers but exceptional care.  Metrics matter. But only if they measure what truly matters. DEI is not a project.  It’s a promise.  And that promise is fulfilled only when people feel the difference,  not when dashboards display it. 

💡 Apologies are easy. Restoration is hard. The Netherlands is returning 119 stolen Benin Bronzes to Nigeria – one of the largest repatriations of looted African artefacts in history. It’s a rare example of a country not just acknowledging past harm but taking tangible action to address it. Compare this to what often happens instead: symbolic apologies, verbal commitments, and museum plaques that "recognise" past atrocities – while the stolen treasures remain exactly where they’ve been since the looting took place. Acknowledgment without action is not repair. The same is true in #diversity and #inclusion work. There’s a big difference between recognising inequity and actually uprooting it. 🚨 Performative DEI looks like: ❌ A company issuing a statement on equity, while never reviewing its pay gaps. ❌ A leadership team celebrating diversity, while remaining overwhelmingly homogeneous. ❌ A training on bias, while no accountability for discriminatory behaviour is seen. 🛠️ Systemic DEI looks like: ✅ Pay transparency & equity audits, so fairness isn’t just aspirational. ✅ Redesigning hiring & promotions, so access to leadership isn’t reserved for a select few. ✅ Shifting budgets & decision-making power, so those historically excluded actually shape outcomes. Returning the Benin Bronzes is a real act of restoration – one that involves giving back what was taken, not just acknowledging the loss. It sets a precedent that actions, not words, are what define progress. The same applies to DEI: if our work isn’t redistributing access, influence, and opportunity, then what are we really doing? 🤔 Link in the comments. 👇🏽 Thoughts? Eager to read them!

A lot of people that were hired to do DEI work since 2020 have struggled. And to be honest, that’s mostly by design. They weren’t hired to be change agents, but to *represent* change. They are only meant to be tokens, and thus have little support, resources, or accountability for their work. And I say this with all tenderness: those DEI certificates do not give me confidence that a person can do the job. But for those that are looking to bring change to organizations how do you know if your work is successful? What are the key performance indicators? I know I struggled with this early on, so I want to share a few that we use. Keep in mind, I work at a public university, have a strategic plan, and have had a 2-3 person team for years. But what we’re looking at for indicators of progress include: •Retention of employees from marginalized communities •Educational initiatives plus number of people engaged, their feedback, and competencies added •Equity in compensation studies and adjustments •Climate assessment results with disaggregated data, longitudinal analysis preferred •Measures on supplier diversity initiatives •Progress on the accessibility of physical and digital spaces •Verbal and financial support from leadership This is not an exhaustive list but I’m curious what other DEI professionals have been using to measure progress, comment below! #DEI #KPIs #DataDriven #MeasuringSuccess #UMNproud

Your diverse hiring efforts become truly meaningful when your systems adapt to everyone's needs. Without proper accommodations, disability inclusion can feel like just performative diversity, which might unintentionally hurt everyone involved. Many companies celebrate hiring individuals with disabilities—posting about it and including it in DEI metrics. But after six months, often the employee is gone. Not because they couldn't do the job. But because the systems didn't change to support them. For example, if you hire someone who's autistic and your open-plan office makes it tough for them to focus, a simple adjustment could help. Or if you bring on someone with ADHD and your tools assume linear thinking, offering alternatives can make a big difference. Similarly, hiring someone with chronic pain who struggles with long-standing meetings and not providing seating can create unnecessary challenges. And for someone who is Deaf, if your video calls lack live captions, implementing them can make a huge impact. When employees burn out trying to adapt to environments that weren't designed for them, they leave—often labeled as "not a good fit." Then, sadly, the cycle repeats as new hires with disabilities join and face the same hurdles. The reality is, disabled employees expend immense energy just to function—energy that could be focused on their work. They often mask their difficulties, push through pain, recover on weekends, and eventually reach a breaking point. This leads to significant costs for companies—recruitment, training, and lost productivity—all because basic adjustments are overlooked. What truly helps disabled employees thrive? - Flexible work arrangements that recognize different energy levels and styles - Adaptive technology that fits seamlessly into their routines - Management understanding that productivity varies for each person - Designing systems with inclusive, universal principles from the start - Fostering a culture where accommodations are seen as standard, not special favors By creating systems that adapt to how people work, you not only retain talented individuals but also reduce burnout and boost innovation across your team. On the flip side, hiring disabled people into inflexible systems where they must adapt or leave isn't genuine inclusion—it's just costly performance art. At Plovm, we developed technology that automatically adjusts to how people communicate and work because we understand the pitfalls of rigid systems. Remember, diversity without proper accommodation isn't progress; it's a waste. The key question isn't whether you can hire disabled people. It's whether your systems are truly capable of supporting them.