Attraction and retention of diverse employees foster an inclusive and more productive workplace. Because you work hard to recruit team members of different genders, ethnicities, religions, races, sexual orientations, ages, and abilities, you want to retain them. You invest substantial resources into making your recruitment processes inclusive, and along with these front-end processes, you need to implement strategies to foster an inclusive work environment as well.
Here are six ways to retain diverse talent throughout your organization.
1. Train Managers and Senior Leaders
Show managers how their behaviors impact their team members’ feelings of belonging. For instance, share ways to uncover unconscious biases that may lead to different treatment of certain individuals more than others. Also, provide ways to identify unique talent that may be beneficial in ways not previously considered. Increased diversity awareness with leaders at all levels can positively influence organizational change.
2. Promote Career Paths
Let all team members know what career opportunities are available within your organization and how to access them. For instance, make your promotion criteria available to all employees. Clarifying the competencies needed to advance encourages team members to remain with your company long-term. Also, facilitate relationships between diverse employees and superiors. Since relationships, and advocacy, play a significant role in promotions, team members who exhibit the necessary competencies and have leader support are more likely to progress within the organization.
3. Conduct Stay and Exit Interviews
Set up stay interviews at least twice annually. Use these meetings to determine whether team member’s needs are being met. If not, ask for concrete, actionable ways to improve. Also, conduct exit interviews. Gain insight into each team member’s experience working for you. Ask how things could have been better. Share with other managers and superiors what you learned from both types of interviews. Implement the information throughout the organization to improve diversity retention.
4. Use Employee Engagement Surveys
Segment the data gathered from employee engagement surveys. For instance, using criteria such as gender, ethnicity, generation, geography, tenure, or role in the organization to break down the results. Look for opportunities to uncover issues among smaller or less represented groups that may lead to attrition. Take appropriate action, follow through on action items, and communicate the changes!
5. Create Employee Resource Groups
Employee resource groups (ERGs) are made up of employees focused on a shared commonality. For instance, ERGs may be made up of Muslim, LGBTQ, females, or different generations. For instance, an ERG may be focused on respecting the differences in desires, communication, and work style of millennials and Baby Boomers to enhance collaboration between the generations.
6. Offer a Mentorship Program
Emphasize the importance of team members building a relationship with a mentor from your organization. A mentor can connect employees with coworkers at all levels, provide support, and promote growth within the organization. They also can familiarize new hires with the job and culture, help them engage in their work, and provide coaching to aid advancement.
Partner with a Leader in Diversity Recruitment
When the time comes to hire diverse candidates, get in touch with Corps Team. We will provide you vetted candidates with various backgrounds for each role you need to be filled. Learn more about how we can help you today.