Put your Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging Statement Into Action | Picking the Right DEIB Consultant

You’ve made an equity statement — now what?

So, your company put out statements to stand in solidarity with Black lives, to end violence against the AAPI community… oh, and #metoo and you rainbow everything once a year, & have several ADA compliance posters… but your employees are still asking what’s next, what now, what are you waiting for?

It can be tough to take those next steps, it requires reassessing not only the good, bad, & ugly of our companies but of ourselves. It is scary… and so, so, so worth it.

According to a 2019 study by the International Labour Organization, companies with more inclusive business cultures and policies see a 59% increase in innovation and 37% better assessment of consumer interest and demand.

Who needs to be included on your end?

When you are assessing these needs it’s a good idea to have more than one person on an interview call like this (and make sure those people have different lived experiences, stakes, roles, and represent multiple identities). Remember that diversity isn’t just about race & culture — gender identities, sexual orientation, age, religion, abilities also need to be included in how we think about creating more equitable & inclusive environments for belonging. You won’t likely have total consensus on all decisions moving forward, and that is ok providing you have clarity of the decision-making process that is equitable.

If you are ready to walk the walk and get help in where to start and how: here are some ways to evaluate the folx that are offering Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging support programs for organizations.

1. Have they worked with organizations similar to yours and/or with similar desired outcomes?

This may not be fully reflected on their website, so feel free to ask who else they’ve worked with like your org. I may have some clients that due to NDAs I cannot reference specifically but I can let you know “in 2018 I worked with the leadership of a pharmaceutical company with 20,000 employees.” I might also be able to share companies in a very different line of business with similar needs & challenges and share how we approached and successfully built programs for those related goals. If you are international, do they have experience working with international, multi-lingual, multi-cultural teams. Can they demonstrate cultural competency?

I would also say, this doesn’t need to be a deal-breaker if you feel the person/org checks your other boxes. Most folx that are excellent at this work are able to apply the skills and expertise to just about any org — the challenges and needs of addressing DEI are human and don’t vary that much between organizations, the trick is understanding your org culture & specific needs ad how to plug into and speak to that.

2. Are they asking you questions that feel curious and probing about your needs & wants?

Are you getting a sense they really want to understand? Are they curious? Do they seem invested in your needs and being a partner with you to address them? Are they speaking from their own lived experience? Are they challenging some of your assumptions and thinking already? BE CAREFUL here, because those implicit biases of how XX person is supposed to show up in the world can come up for us and you’ll need to look to your diverse group of stakeholders to help unpack & hold each other accountable.

Remember, you don’t want a “yes, person” — you need an outside, discerning perspective to really accomplish any movement around this work — otherwise, it’s just checking a box and patting yourselves on the back. If you aren’t up for some real talk, being challenged out of your comfort zone (especially for folks in power), and getting vulnerable, you will likely continue to lose employees of historically excluded groups to companies that are ready & actively walking the walk.

3. Are they really hearing and taking in your responses?

If they’re asking those probing, curious questions are they really hearing your answers? There should be evidence that they themselves are modeling inclusive behaviors and able to practice what they teach. They aren’t just selling you a product you can return to the store — this is the opportunity to change hearts, minds, and do better business — if they can’t listen, adapt, and really be with you in this moment when they are presumably showing you their best, it is unlikely that behavior will change in the moment. There are lots of people in this field (usually straight, white, men) that have mastered the art of charming the pants off of people in a sales call but aren’t actually listening, empathizing, or internalizing what they are hearing. Give folx grace to be imperfect humans while also keeping your eyes wide open.

4. Does it sound too good to be true?

…Then it probably is. Nobody has a workshop that can solve systemic racism in an afternoon. Noooobody. Expectations about depth & breadth, scope & sequence need to be realistic. That expert should be able to help frame what can really be accomplished in the time you have and/or layout how much time you need to reach your goals (see the previous article for goal setting tips to bring to this convo). Changing systems is tough. Shifting culture is tougher. This work cannot happen quickly and will be filled with ups & downs along the way. You need an experienced, realistic, supportive person to carry you through that change.

5. You get what you pay for.

The pricing should feel fair, the provider should be able to share their experience to back up the pricing just like any other professional. Consultants should also be willing to craft a realistically framed program that meets your budget. If you can truly only pay 2000 bucks, we’ll figure out how to use that to get the ball rolling for the greatest impact. If this work is a priority it needs to be financed like any other priority in the organization with time and money set aside to support the success. It is tough to put a price on changing culture & status-quo — so be careful of going bargain hunting or sacrificing in such an important area.

One last note about who you choose to do this work…

Give historically excluded folx and those with lived experience that may reflect your employees ALL THE MONIES! Let’s prioritize BIPOC experts, LGBTQIA2S+ experts, women, folks living with disabilities, and those at the intersection of these historically excluded groups.