Three steps to a diversity and inclusion strategy that creates lasting change

Step 1: establish your purpose and determine why you need to act on D&I

Understanding why you need to act on D&I is the first step. You'll continually refer to your purpose as you communicate, review and refine your D&I strategy. So how do you do it?

Articulate why you need to act

Why is your firm working on D&I?

Set out a clear and specific rationale for taking action – it needs to be widely understood and clearly communicated regularly, particularly by leaders.

Gain buy-in from stakeholders

Have you engaged with your firm's tone-setters, resource-controllers and D&I champions?

D&I activity with impact requires a collective effort – gain understanding and buy-in from senior leaders, managers and representatives from diverse backgrounds.

Collect, analyse and report D&I data

What D&I data do you currently collect and what are you doing with it?

Data about D&I gives you clear evidence on your firm's diversity, colleagues' experiences and workplace culture.

Collect and analyse this data to help measure improvement as you start to implement your strategy.

Step 2: develop a plan and know what you'll do

Just having purpose is not enough – you need to follow it with tangible actions to create lasting change.

Determine your goals

What do you expect to see by improving D&I in your firm?

Setting ambitious but realistic goals helps keep your efforts focused and makes sure your decisions are aligned to your short- and long-term strategies.

Identify the actions

Do you know what you need to do and how that will help you achieve your D&I goals?

You need an action plan to help get things done. This will pinpoint what needs to happen, who is delivering it and what is being done.

Our framework includes a template action plan you can use.

Identify the resources you need

Do you have the resources to act on D&I?

To progress D&I in your firm, you need to build it into long-term resource planning.

Be clear about who delivers actions, determine if any additional resources are needed and engage senior stakeholders to provide the budget.

Step 3: ensure performance and make sure your actions lead to lasting change

Your D&I strategy needs good governance, transparency and recognition to make sure it is implemented effectively.

Set up a decision-making framework

How do you make decisions about D&I?

You need to establish governance to unblock barriers to progress, provide accountability and enable decisions to be made.

Governance makes sure D&I is prioritised in the long term.

Be open and transparent

Can you answer your clients', employees' and prospective employees' questions about your D&I performance?

Being open about your progress keeps you accountable and can help drive genuine change – make sure your D&I reporting is simple to understand, authentic and relevant to your goals.

Recognise positive behaviour

How are you recognising and rewarding D&I in your firm?

D&I is part of everyone's everyday responsibilities, so get the whole firm involved. Set objectives and recognise efforts and behaviours that contribute towards your firm's D&I activity.

 

These steps help you identify your own rationale for taking action, set goals based on evidence and make sure the change you're seeking lasts.

Stop rushing to react on D&I. Be proactive and use the framework to embed lasting change in your organisation. Then share what's worked as case studies.