What makes a successful Employee Resource Group?
Employee Resource Groups ran effectively have great potential to strengthen the professional development of your workforce. They foster engaged, community outreach initiatives and excel your Diversity, Equity and Inclusion goals.
A defined mission, a committed leadership team, and an ideal budget allows you to lead with tangible and sustainable actions. But, this is only the start. Here’s how we would run an Employee Resource Group step by step.
Step One: What are your needs and interests?
Any workforce can set-up an Employee Resource Group. Therefore, what makes a positive impact is knowing your employees need’s. How their interests and voice are considered and directly embedded in the incubation process. To do this effectively:
- Identify a Need: Evaluate your workplace to understand if a group is needed for specific communities or to foster a more inclusive culture.
- Data Validation: Does your workforce collect data relating to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives? How about data on your employees? What does this data say about the minortised groups in your workplace? How can your Employee Resource Group best support them?
- Gauge Interest: Use surveys or informal focus groups to determine if there is enough interest to sustain the group.
- Define Purpose: Establish if the group is for community building, career development, or providing feedback to the business.
Step Two: Create a Structure
An Employee Resource Group personalised to your organisation is a powerful act. It reaffirms the values of your company culture. In addition, piecing together the structure will help you to speak to potential members. Where they feel heard, seen and safe:
- Define the Mission: Create a clear mission statement that defines the group’s purpose and objectives.
- Develop By Laws: Draft a document outlining membership (e.g., if allies are allowed), meeting frequency, and leadership roles.
- Draft a Budget: Determine necessary funding for events, speakers, or initiatives.
Step Three: Budget & Sponsorship
What we have found from our Discovery Calls is that a lot of Employee Resource Groups are set up with passion, but lack a financial framework to ensure it has the legs to stand on. That’s why executive sponsorship, or a clear annual Diversity, Equity and Inclusion budget can be a game changer:
- Find a Leader: Identify a senior leader to act as an executive sponsor. This person provides visibility, acts as a bridge to the C-suite, and helps remove obstacles.
- Align with Strategy: Ensure the Employee Resource Group’s (ERG) purpose aligns with the company’s broader Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion goals.
Step Four: Leadership and Membership
This group is not merely a social club or affinity groups. They are strategic tools that can drive meaningful change within organisations. Leadership structures are crucial for the effective functioning of this group. Selecting individuals who exhibit a strong commitment to the group’s vision will inspire others and will recruit more members.
Establish a leadership committee to share responsibilities with a collaborative environment. By building the right team and leadership, you can foster measurable innovation, and improve overall business performance:
- Appoint Leaders: Identify passionate employee volunteers to lead the group.
- Define Roles: Clarify responsibilities for chairs, co-chairs, and committee members.
- Ensure Inclusivity: While focused on specific demographics, ensure the group is welcoming to all employees as allies. As a result, it fosters a broader culture of inclusion.
Step Five: Launch and Maintain
Launching an Employee Resource Group involves more than just assembling a group of like-minded individuals. These groups serve as catalysts for progress that transforms the workplace culture. By using a varied communication channels and strategies, you can attract a diverse membership that introduce events that spark interest.
To maximise your message, utilise various company platforms – digital displays, internal bulletins, and interactive workshops – to spotlight the group’s presence with curiosity, honesty and belonging at the heart of it.
Building a vibrant community will encourage ongoing participation and a deeper sense of connection among members:
- Host an Initial Meeting: Launch with an open meeting to communicate the mission, recruit members, and gather input.
- Plan Activities: Organise events that align with the mission, such as networking sessions, professional development, or cultural celebrations.
- Measure Success: Set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) to track impact, such as increased retention or improved engagement scores.
A Case Study of Success:
In 1970,Xerox CEO Joseph Wilson pioneered the first employee resource group (ERG), the National Black Employee Caucus, to advocate for inclusion and change within the company. Its primary purpose was to provide a space for Black employees to form social connections, share experiences, and work through challenges.
Over 50 years later, the importance of Employee Resource Groups remains, and there have been so many learnings, trials and errors to evaluate and embed.
We found a case study that demonstrates what Employee Resource Groups done well looks like:
In 2020, Hinge Health, then a company of roughly 400 employees following its Series D funding round, found itself (like every other US company) amid a period of heightened racial tensions in the United States. This social climate profoundly resonated with Dan Perez and Gabriel Mecklenburg, Hinge Health’s founders, prompting them to prioritise Diversity, Equity and Inclusion as a critical business initiative.
That’s when they hired Bob Garcia as Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, whose responsibilities include leading the company’s Employee Resource Group efforts.
As a consequence, 15% to 20% of new Hinge Health employees said that the organisation’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion webpage, which highlights the company’s Employee Resource Group as well as training and funding opportunities for underrepresented groups, influenced their decision to join the company.
Meanwhile, Hinge Health also allows candidates to meet with members from any of its 10 Employee Resource Group’s before accepting an offer to get insights on whether the company’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion values match up to reality.
Hinge Health leveraged Culture Amp’s engagement surveys to understand the impact of Employee Resource Group and other Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives in the workplace, collect feedback at scale, and make informed decisions. Survey results have been particularly beneficial in benchmarking against other startups and healthcare organisations to see how the company compares.
Hinge Health’s surveys feature approximately 50 questions to gauge employee sentiment and monitor changes. The result? The company found that 31% of all employees participated in at least one Employee Resource Group event per quarter, and approximately 40% signed up for an Employee Resource Group at a certain point.
At Hinge Health, individuals have the opportunity to participate in Employee Resource Group’s in a leadership capacity, and are also free to set their own group priorities, and two of them have chosen employee professional development as their main focus, complete with structured curricula centred on career growth.
Conclusion:
The impact of Employee Resource Group’s are undeniable. Contrary to belief, there is not one quick or easy path that ensures your company supports Employee Resource Group’s efforts are successful.
Not one organisation is the same. That’s why it’s important to track your progress, acknowledge the wins and mistakes as they come, and learn from every experience. And most importantly, hear this directly from your members and include them at every step of your building and scaling.
At Edge Of Difference, we help technology and gaming companies set up Employee Resource Groups that forecast to align with your Diversity, Equity and Inclusion goals. As well as speaking and host interactive workshops for your Employee Resource Group events and initiatives.
Turn your differences into action by booking a call with us today.
