In our work to build cultural competence for individuals and organizations, we see recurring myths pop up about this skill. This article explores the five myths that explain why we don’t pay attention to cultural competence or don’t think that it applies to us.

Talent management and diversity practitioners are dedicating more of their energy to the challenges associated with a multigenerational workforce. Norms that define each generation result in communication problems, perceptions regarding work ethic, varying demands for feedback, and general culture clash. This article provides an overview of some generational norms and the associated challenges and how to best manage your workforce.

Building the business case for diversity and inclusion has been an ongoing struggle for diversity practitioners. Over the past decade, we have witnessed a dramatic and significant shift in the conversation.  In order to move from conversation to actions, organizations must dedicate significant intellectual capital and time to developing and executing diversity and inclusion strategic plans that are well aligned with overall business goals.

Once we shift to thinking about diversity from the perspective of leveraging different perspectives in improving decision-making and driving innovation, the business case becomes clear and our ability to draw benefits from diversity becomes more straightforward. The danger is in losing ground in the support of increasing demographic diversity at all levels in our organizations. The trick is to be able to make clear connections between demographic diversity and the diversity of thought.

We see more and more organizations linking the diversity strategy with the business strategy – primarily leveraging diversity as driver of innovation, a resource to gain customer intelligence and a connection to talent.  The real benefit is derived from harnessing the diversity of thought at that table. It is not enough just to have diversity – you need to create an environment where different perspectives are encouraged and valued.

Employee Resource Groups have become a key component of successful diversity and inclusion strategies. ERGs can serve as a tremendous support system to foster respect, drive awareness, and promote inclusion within the workplace. Over the past decade organizations have been able to successfully demonstrate ERG impact on talent sourcing and management, community relations and business impact.

An organization should never lose sight of the original purpose of the ERG – to serve its employees. Above all the ERGs should provide resources to the employees they represent including a rich and inclusive network, access to coaching and networking, and opportunities for career advancement. We share five tips for enhancing the effectiveness of your ERG member engagement strategy.

There is no denying that accepting the role to lead an ERG comes with an abundance of work outside your day-to-day responsibilities. Often times ERG chairs can feel as though they are drowning in the work to be done, and do not have a clear understanding of the benefit of taking on such a role.  In order to fully maximize your role as an ERG chair it is important to first understand the typical roles and responsibilities of the chair and co-chair positions.

Provides an overview of how to recognize bias in yourself and several steps to manage those biases for positive impact.

This article talks about the benefit to the organization in recognizing that everyone has biases and the positive impact that it can have on addressing those biases.

A focus on equity means addressing pay and career opportunity gaps and committing the right effort and resources to strategic priorities that purposely focus on providing opportunity to traditionally underrepresented employee groups. Here are some things you can do to foster equity in your own organizations.

This article offers some concrete tips that are designed to engage leaders and managers in diversity and inclusion work and serve as a resource to better enable their success.

The Managing the Challenges and Opportunities of a Multigenerational Workforce Training is designed to help organizations manage the challenges and make the most of the opportunities associated with a multigenerational workforce by leveraging the strengths each generation brings to the table.