How To Authentically Adopt Diversity & Inclusivity?

1 in 6 individuals living in the UK are from an ethnic minority background. Brands are realising that they need to do more to become more diverse and inclusive. GottaBe! Ethnic can help you do so with our diverse team that work right across the UK and Ireland. Regardless of the size of the business, there are many things to be done to be more diverse and inclusive.

Besides from it being the right thing to do, studies by McKinsey & Company show that adopting authentic diversity and inclusivity in the workplace for UK companies, provided a 3.5 percent increase in earnings before taxes.

There are many things an organisation can do to adopt ethnic diversity and inclusivity into their business which will benefit the company and its employees. It is proven that organisations who employ a multicultural team receive a better response from customers and therefore achieve better outcomes. Ethnic minorities in the UK have a spending power of £300 billion, yet only 1 in 5 companies are reaching out to these communities as consumers. We believe that this present a massive opportunity for brands to capitalise on and reach these markets effectively.

Our Top 5 Tips On How To Authentically Adopt Ethnic Diversity And Inclusivity Are:

Acknowledge nuances
Be aware of different cultures
Represent different ethnicities across the hierarchy
Communicate effectively with staff
Understand and be empathetic as a leader

We have gone into further detail for each of our tips in the following sections, if you are looking to adopt a more authentic approach to diversity and inclusivity get in touch with a member of the team today. We are happy to assist with training, learning and development and most of all, implementing an effective ED&I strategy.

Acknowledge Minorities In Your Workforce

Acknowledgement of minorities and creating a diverse workforce brings new life and perspectives into your company. Companies should embrace all cultures, holidays and beliefs that staff, and consumers may celebrate as it may introduce different approaches into the organisation. Here at GottaBe! we produce an Ethnic Events Calendar annually to help you keep up to date and informed.

As an employer, ensure your Team Leaders and Line Managers are respectful of the holidays staff will celebrate and consider this when planning the calendar year, booking meetings, and approving holiday requests. By acknowledging the differences within a workforce, a conscious effort can be made to adopt more authentic initiatives. We have over 500 Community Outreach Ambassadors that help give us valuable insight into ethnic communities and deliver insight into different nuances within a host of ethnic and cultural backgrounds.

Be Aware Of Nuances For Ethnic Minorities

Have a look at your organisation. What is the company message and who is it aimed at?

To create change, habits must be formed continuously over time. Change cannot just be implemented at the top of an organisation as each employee must feel welcome and included at every level. Is the company trying to sell to a multicultural audience, but the leadership team is all from one demographic?

Statistics show diversity within a workplace is more likely to create a realistic reflection of a variety of backgrounds and experiences. Review the management team of the company as this speaks volumes to the employees, consumers, and stakeholders. If you are struggling to hire Ethnic minority candidates for your management team why not hire an expert multicultural marketing agency like GottaBe! Or use our ethnic recruitment services. We have recently worked alongside Hampshire Constabulary supporting their BAME recruitment drive. We worked closely with the organisation to raise awareness in communities for the force and highlight that the opportunity was right for them. Many felt that the police wasn’t for them initially because of the stigma behind it, however, the recruitment drive was an excellent success in tackling this issue.

Hiring Inclusively Across Your Hierarchy

Hiring minorities is not enough, promotions across a workforce to give the employees a say benefits the company physically and financially, as diverse companies are at least 35% more likely to generate above average financial returns according to McKinsey Diversity.

Look at and adjust how you hire talent as an organisation. People of colour are underrepresented in top leadership roles. If your company relies on workplace referrals, you are unlikely to reach the minorities. On average staff of certain demographics will put forward referrals of a similar demographic. Advertise positions online to reach all communities, advertising positions online also allows the organisations to use software to avoid being unconsciously biased. By extending initiatives past the hiring process, change can be implemented to provide fair and equal opportunities.

Don’t forget to ensure staff are all paid fairly and equally for the job they do.

Communicate Effectively With Staff

Communicate with your staff to allow them to feel safe enough to express themselves and complete their job to the best of their ability. Invest in communication to enable the company to feel connected and included as this will help create a safe open culture for all staff where they are able to give anonymous feedback where necessary, understanding nuances of ethnic minorities.

Actively seek people’s ideas and act on feedback to aid the company’s growth and improve your inclusion and diversity policy. Workplace diversity leads to better decision making and therefore is an efficient way to achieve the best possible results.

Encourage Empathetic Leadership

Empathetic leadership is key when implementing ethnic diversity and inclusivity within a company. Provide opportunities to develop a sense of belonging, identifying areas across an organisation to ensure it is relevant to all. The conditions within a workplace must be inclusive throughout to enable everyone to contribute in their own unique way while feeling safe in doing so. Dedicating time to specific training related to ethnic diversity and inclusivity, at all levels not just at a management level on a frequent basis will support continued change in the right direction.

Improve Ethnic Diversity With Our Expert Guidance

Modern consumers like to feel connected and are more likely to spend money when they feel represented. Here at GottaBe! Ethnic we have a diverse and talented pool of Brand Ambassadors who can speak in over 45 languages including Polish, Punjabi, Romanian, Filipino and Urdu! This enables us to us to reach a wider and more diverse community to deliver your message, your way to everybody. If you are looking to develop an ethnic recruitment strategy and engage with ethnic audiences in your products or services get in touch with us today.

Our dedicated team of ethnic marketing experts are ready to help you, contact us to find out what we can do to help you become more diverse and inclusive, call us on 02380 634283 or complete our contact form.