Introducing EDITED Black: An ERG committed to supporting the inclusion of our Black employees

By Olly Bey and Carrington Kinsey

The lack of diversity and inclusion across the retail and tech world has always been apparent, but the Black Lives Matter movement has refocused that conversation. It’s empowered everyday consumers to demand transparency from companies striving to cultivate and protect people of color in the workplace, particularly the Black community. This means that companies can no longer be reactive to the media headlines and show performative allyship when convenient.

Here at EDITED, we have always aimed to offer a welcoming workplace, but recognize that we need to do more to foster a more well-rounded and inclusive culture. We have a responsibility to our current and future employees to ensure we’re providing an inclusive, diverse and representative workforce. This means acknowledging that this hasn’t been an area of investment in the past and we’re committed to fixing that now.

For any good D&I initiatives to prosper, it’s necessary to establish a solid foundation and allocate resources to support underrepresented groups across race, gender, sexuality and ability. Safe spaces for these people are important to any company’s success, which has led to our formalization and creation of EDITED Black — our first Employee Resource Group (ERG). We are committed to making the necessary steps, big or small, needed to build a stronger workplace for all.

First, what is an ERG?

Organizations are made up of people, who by nature, are social creatures. And naturally, individuals in large spaces tend to come together in informal ways to meet others “like themselves.” It’s not just based on common interests, but also social characteristics people share from race, gender, sexual orientation, ability and more. This phenomenon has ultimately led to the formalization of affinity groups, clubs, unions and ERGs.

“ERGs help counter the increasingly missing connection and sense of significance experienced by employees in today’s workplace.”

Jennifer Brown, CEO of Jennifer Brown Consulting

More specifically, an ERG is an organizationally supported group of employees drawn together by a common purpose or characteristic. The purpose and goal of these groups is to connect people who possess common traits and help them produce outcomes that inevitably improve the overall business and employee job satisfaction.

ERGs are more than just clubs. They’ve become an increasingly crucial resource that companies are investing in to not only foster inclusion, but to also:

• Elevate voices of underrepresented individuals;
• Recruit and retain talent;
• Create a sense of community;
• Meet strategic growth objectives;
• Support professional lateral moves;
• Exhibit higher employee performance;
• Offer mentorship and hone in on leadership skills;
• Create business value for better results across the board.

In a study by McKinsey & Co, organizations with more diverse teams have 36% better financial returns. The insights from a more diverse organization leads to higher business performance because smart companies understand that if they don’t grow, they won’t be around very long.

Why EDITED Black?

The EDITED Black ERG mission is to promote an environment where Black employees can support each other in succeeding personally and professionally through sustainable growth programs. EDITED Black will maintain an open forum for exchanging ideas, and serving as a source for educational and professional development opportunities. While the group focuses on serving our Black peers, membership is open to anyone who identifies with and advocates for the EDITED Black mission. This includes lunch and learn seminars, external speakers, hiring events, volunteering and mentorship. There will also be a company-wide initiative to spotlight Black History Month via supporting Black-owned businesses, educational learning seminars on Black cultural influences in fashion retail and more.

The EDITED Black ERG will be a valuable mechanism to:

1. Build a culture that fosters innovation;
2. Offer Black employees access to leadership opportunities;
3. Establish programs and activities aligned with the EDITED mission;
4. Provide upper management with access to innovative concepts and unique solutions to challenges faced by Black employees. For example, be a reference point to best practices on discussing sensitive issues and current events.

While recruiting more Black talent is a tangible end goal, we want EDITED Black to first and foremost foster our current and future Black peers, and ensure that EDITED is an inclusive place for them.

Our commitment

As a company, we champion four key values: owning it, caring, no BS and, most importantly, being brave. It is our foundational value because without being brave, you can’t do the others. To hold ourselves accountable to this same model, we acknowledge that we could’ve done more for D&I. Although we’ve stumbled along the way, the current climate and acts of our fellow brave colleagues to take action in demanding for these important initiatives ensures we are taking the necessary steps to mitigate this and progress EDITED to the place it needs to be. As a company, we will stop being reactive and focus on being more proactive moving forward.

Building a diverse and inclusive organization starts with intentionally creating a culture that embraces and celebrates people’s differences. D&I initiatives need to happen now. We and other organizations can no longer hide behind female stats as ‘representative’ or avoid the conversation of racial injustice altogether. We will showcase a tangible commitment to recognizing and supporting every employee’s need for a more inclusive workplace and environment. As the first of many, EDITED Black will create the foundation to open doors for other employee-led ERGs, allowing current and future underrepresented individuals to feel like their faces are seen and voices are heard.