Thompson: The name can change, but the work must not: why Canada still needs DEI

Useful long read given current debates. Trump administration’s executive order combined with his many unqualified cabinet and other appointments is perhaps one of the strongest arguments that DEI is compatible with merit considerations:

…At least some of the challenges to DEI at the organizational level can be attributed to leaders (and a fair number of consultants) not doing this work well in the first place. In their 2022 book, Getting to Diversity, sociologists Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev analyze decades of American data to demonstrate which kinds of DEI programs work, and which don’t, under which specific circumstances. For example, mandatory trainings about diversity and sexual harassment that focus on legal compliance can backfire, generating defensiveness on the part of those who need to do better. Cultural inclusion training that seeks to improve collaboration and communication across groups and harassment training that focuses on bystander intervention, however, can be very effective. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to pro-active diversity management, though in nearly all situations, we in Canada require better and more disaggregated and systematically collected data.

The current backlash against DEI is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Corporate commitments that were made because of changing public opinion were always going to be window dressing. For others, the work continues. “Organizations that have sincerely committed to advancing DEI are still committed,” said Nicole Piggott, the president and co-founder of Synclusiv, which guides its clients to create more inclusive workplaces. “The data are clear; the data have not changed. Diverse workplaces perform better in every metric.” However, effective DEI practices must be deliberate, strategic and embedded in the core values of an organization from top to bottom – not relegated to a neglected portfolio in an overworked human resources department….

Source: The name can change, but the work must not: why Canada still needs DEI