World Economic Forum Releases Toolkit for Leaders to Improve Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in post-COVID-19 Workplace

Published

23 Jun 2020

2020

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New technologies can help create workplaces that are fair, equitable and diverse, according to the World Economic Forum’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 4.0 Toolkit, released today
As businesses emerge from the COVID-19 crisis, they have a unique opportunity to ensure that equity, inclusion and justice define the "new normal" and tackle exclusion, bias and discrimination related to race, gender, ability, sexual orientation and all other forms of human diversity
Technology alone cannot create fair, equitable and diverse workplaces; it requires an integrated strategy that blends new technological tools with human-centric approaches

Geneva, Switzerland, 23 June 2020 – As business leaders seek to take on more responsibility for addressing social justice, adopting an integrated approach to diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace can provide a key pathway. With technology no longer simply “neutral” about diversity, equity and inclusion, companies can leverage new technologies to create safe, open and inclusive work environments. These are some of the findings of the World Economic Forum’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 4.0 Toolkit, published today.

The toolkit outlines novel technologies with the potential to establish best practices that were previously out of reach. For example, new systems can review job applications at scale in far greater detail than a typically resourced people and culture department. These systems can identify and reduce bias, introduce greater transparency and visibility, and provide timely analytics.

New methods of analysing employee interactions, such as organizational network analysis and tools for immersive learning using augmented and virtual reality, can all play a role in improving outcomes, while cloud-based communication and visualization platforms will be fundamental to most tools.

However, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 4.0 Toolkit notes that technology alone cannot create fair, equitable and diverse workplaces. It requires an integrated strategy that blends new technological tools with human-centric approaches to workforce management that focus on employee experience, purpose and belonging. To succeed, businesses need to leverage diversity, equity and inclusion as core organizational strengths.

In examining the potential of these technologies, the toolkit cautions against adopting unproven solutions which can result in a range of unintended consequences and contain biases that deepen rather than counteract exclusion.

Aside from it simply being the right thing to do, research indicates that increasing diversity, equity and inclusion brings a host of benefits to businesses. The toolkit cites research that suggests well-managed diverse teams significantly outperform homogenous ones over time, across profitability, innovation, decision-making and employee engagement. Conversely, companies that fall behind their peers in diversity, equity and inclusion are less likely to achieve above-average profitability.

“Successful organizations are powered by the diverse opinions, skill sets and life experiences of their employees. Ensuring racial justice, gender parity, disability inclusion, LGBTI equality and inclusion of all forms of human diversity needs to be the ‘new normal’ in the workplace set to emerge from the COVID-19 crisis and it is clear that technology can be leveraged to help rapidly make this a reality,” said Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director, World Economic Forum.

As outlined in the toolkit’s sister publication, HR4.0: Shaping People Strategies in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, achieving diversity, equity and inclusion begins with senior management. Leaders need to focus their organizations’ efforts around three main areas of action, from talent sourcing and selection, to organizational analysis and monitoring, to employee experience, reward and development.

The toolkit was developed in collaboration with leading experts and practitioners from the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the New Equality and Inclusion Agenda.

The Forum has also recently established a unique high-level community of Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officers from top global companies to drive action in this space by exchanging best practices and exploring emerging trends, opportunities and risks.

The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 4.0 Toolkit can be accessed here.

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All opinions expressed are those of the author. The World Economic Forum Blog is an independent and neutral platform dedicated to generating debate around the key topics that shape global, regional and industry agendas.