Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Policy Template

About Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Why We Have a DEI Policy

Our company values diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), and we believe that fostering a workplace culture that is inclusive and respectful of all individuals is essential for our success. As such, we have implemented a DEI policy.

Being able to acknowledge diversity is one of the most crucial steps for an inclusive workplace. If you have the opportunity to bring your full self to work without fear of discrimination (that’s inclusion), you will build stronger connections with your teammates, you will feel more engaged in your role, and your company will actually perform better (Seriously! Studies have proven a correlation between a diverse and engaged workforce and better financial performance in companies!)

This Subject will teach you what you need to know about diversity and inclusion, the role it plays in our company, and how you can contribute to maintaining a work environment that is welcoming to all.

Our Commitment to DEI

Under this policy, we are committed to creating and maintaining a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, or any other protected characteristic.

We are committed to providing equal opportunities for all employees, and we will not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment in the workplace. We will take appropriate disciplinary action against any employee who engages in discriminatory or harassing behavior, up to and including termination.

Additionally, we are committed to promoting diversity and inclusion at all levels of the company. This includes recruiting, hiring, and promoting employees from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, as well as providing training and support to help all employees feel valued and respected.

We believe that fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace is essential for our success, and we are committed to supporting our employees in this effort. We encourage all employees to join us in creating a work environment that is inclusive and respectful of all individuals.

Defining DEI

What is Diversity?

Simply put, diversity is the presence of difference.

We believe in the power of people: our differences, our similarities, and what we can learn from each other.

That’s why we’re filling our roster with different backgrounds, experiences, and identities. That way, we can grow as people, become the company we want to be, and build a better product.

Defining Diversity:

"Diversity is the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc. It is not one person, but a group of unique people from different backgrounds — AKA the presence of difference within a given setting.”

Each individual in an organization brings with them a diverse set of perspectives, work, and life experiences, as well as religious and cultural differences. Workplace diversity is the term used for the workplace composed of employees with varying characteristics, such as different sex, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc.

A diverse organization empowers people to do their best work by respecting, valuing, and appreciating what makes them different while ensuring those differences are acknowledged and celebrated in a safe, positive environment.

Different Types of Workplace Diversity:

There are many different types of workplace diversity. Initially, the term diversity was used primarily to address racial and ethnic diversity. However, in recent years, the term workplace diversity has been expanded to encompass many different characteristics, such as:

• Race.
• Ethnicity.
• Gender.
• Age.
• Sexual orientation.
• Physical abilities and disabilities.
• Religion.
• Political beliefs.
• Education.
• Socioeconomic background.
• Geographical orientation.
• Language.
• Culture.
• Military service.

Why is Diversity Important?

Each individual in an organization brings with them a diverse set of perspectives, work, and life experiences. These differences have been shown to enable increased productivity, increased creativity, increased innovation, faster decision-making, reduced turnover, higher employee engagement, and increased revenue.

Source: https://www.talentlyft.com/en/blog/article/244/top-10-benefits-of-diversity-in-the-workplace‍
Source: globaldiversitypractice.com

Diversity at Our Company

We tend to focus the diversity conversation around employee diversity, but let's look at diversity as it pertains to our customers. If we track customer diversity and demographic metrics, we develop a greater understanding of who we are reaching effectively (and who we may be missing!).

Customers:

A thorough understanding of who our customers are through the lens of diversity demographics opens a whole new world of insight into our product.

For example:

• Are there any demographics that sign up for trials at a higher rate?
• Are there any demographics that retain longer?

Gaining deeper insight into customer demographics, buying habits, product usage, and retention will allow the team to make data-based decisions that impact our customer's best interest and the bottom line. With data in hand, we can optimize the product for the widest reach, potentially tapping into underserved markets. An understanding of those two questions alone would allow us to adjust the product to accommodate any demographics or customer segments that we haven't reached effectively. Without this data, we don't know the extent of the differences between different groups (age, races, ethnicities, genders), but having the information will allow us to make smarter decisions for the business and the community we serve.

Team:

Just like understanding customer demographics will help us widen our reach, it will do the same when applied to our team and future hires. A diverse workforce (a team that comes from different backgrounds, ages, skills, sexual orientation, etc) is important for several reasons.

• When you have a diverse team working together, bring a unique perspective to the table and are able to challenge the product offerings in different ways.
• Studies have shown that diverse and inclusive teams make better, faster business decisions.
• The demographics of our employees should be reflective of the demographics of our customers! If we want to reach people of all backgrounds, our team should comprise people of all backgrounds.

What is Equity?

Equity ensures fairness regardless of who you are.

Defining Equity:

Equity refers to fair and just practices and policies that ensure all people can thrive. Equity is different from equality in that equality implies treating everyone as if their experiences are exactly the same. Equity ensures everyone has access to the same treatment, opportunities, and advancement and aims to identify and eliminate barriers that prevent the full participation of people or groups.

Why Is Equity Important?

Equity creates a sense of safety that contributes to employee engagement. When a state of equity is achieved, employees know that regardless of background, their future opportunities are going to be awarded based on performance/what they earn. When people know that future compensation increases, recognition, and promotions will be awarded based on the work they do and how well they do it, they are more likely to work hard and give their best effort. It is absolutely critical to employee retention.

Can you think of something more likely to make you leave a role than knowing that you do not have equal opportunities? When a company ensures equity in access and opportunity, they help attract and retain talented team members.

What is Inclusion?

Defining Inclusion: 

Inclusion is all about acceptance and belonging. Inclusion is a company-wide effort and practice in which different groups or individuals with varying social and cultural backgrounds are socially accepted, welcomed, and treated equally. These differences could be self-evident, such as national origin, age, race and ethnicity, religion/belief, gender, marital status, and socioeconomic status, or they could be more inherent, such as educational background, training, work experience, tenure, even personality, such as introverts and extroverts.

Why is Inclusion Important?

Inclusive cultures foster an environment where people feel respected and valued for who they are as an individual or group. People feel a level of supportive energy and commitment from others so that they can do their best at work. Inclusion often means a shift in an organization’s mindset and culture that has visible effects, such as increased participation in meetings, positive changes to how offices are physically organized, or increased access to particular facilities or information.

The process of inclusion engages each individual and makes people feel valued and essential to the success of the organization. Evidence shows that when people feel valued, they function at full capacity and feel deeply connected to the organization’s mission. This culture shift creates higher-performing organizations where motivation and morale can soar.

Inclusion in the Workplace:

So what does this look like?

• Acknowledging differences and empowering our team to engage in respectful discussion about the things that make us different.
• Training the team to understand their unconscious biases, and how they affect their workplace decisions and relationships, and how to utilize that understanding to remove bias from decision making wherever possible.
• Celebrating differences every day. This includes:

1. Employee Resource Groups / Affinity Groups.
2. Employee driven diversity celebrations (Pride Month, Black Heritage Month, etc.).
3. Transparency of company information.
4. Inclusive decision making (taking feedback from the team and actually using it for decision making).
5. Making sure that we use inclusive language in communications (especially in policies and job descriptions).

Source: Globaldiversitypractice.com

Defining Discrimination and Harassment

What is Discrimination?

We define discrimination as:

Behaviors on the basis of protected characteristics: age, gender, pregnancy, abilities, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, race, and ethnicity.

And including, but not limited to:

• Denial of benefits, appropriate compensation, or growth / promotion.
• Job refusal or exclusion from employment.
• Termination of employment.
• Denial of use of company facilities or property.
• Preferential treatment.
• Exclusion or isolation by co-workers.
• Hostile work environment.
• Failure to understand and provide necessary accommodations due to disability (physical or mental).

What is Harassment?

We define harassment as:

Treatment in a way that is offensive, humiliating, intimidating, or threatening because of protected characteristics: age, gender, pregnancy, abilities, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, race, and ethnicity.

And including, but not limited to:

• Jokes.
• Comments.
• Name-calling.
• Hate speech.
• Insults.
• Intolerance.
• Perpetuation of stereotypes.
• Physical assault or violence.

Our DEI Policy

Our Company’s DEI Policy

At [Company], we believe that we are only as strong as we are different. We celebrate everything that makes our employees unique, and we love how our varied backgrounds improve our team and our product.

This means that we:

• Celebrate what makes us different (we’d throw a party every day if we could).
• Speak with kindness and curiosity when we discuss our differences. (YES it’s okay — encouraged, even — to talk about it! We love a kind discussion about what makes us unique.)
• Discuss and respect boundaries.

1. If someone unintentionally says or does something that feels disrespectful, it’s your responsibility to speak up and let them know. 
2. It’s their responsibility to apologize and make sure they understand why it was disrespectful and avoid such language or behavior in the future. This should be an open discussion with both sides assuming good intent and a chance to educate and learn from each other.

If there is a clear, intentional disrespect, discrimination, or harassment based on protected characteristics, discuss (with specific references) what your teammate has done to make you uncomfortable with their direct manager. If you are uncomfortable talking directly with their manager you are welcome to speak with an HR representative.

Our goal is for everyone at [company] to be accepting and kind. We hold each employee to these standards.

We will take action against any employee found guilty of discrimination or harassment on the basis of protected characteristics (such as age, gender, pregnancy, abilities, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, race, and ethnicity), up to and including termination of employment.

Bottom Line:

We have zero-tolerance for discrimination and harassment at [company].