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Discover what business visionaries on the frontiers of diverse and equitable hiring are doing to drive change in their organizations
In Innovating for Diversity: Lessons from Top Companies That are Disrupting Old Practices to Achieve Inclusivity, Equity and Business Success, renowned Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and tech specialists Bertina Ceccarelli and Susanne Tedrick reframe the DEI discussion and move it beyond a human resources issue. While it's well established that diverse teams help to advance innovation, the authors explain how principles of innovation can be applied to building highly effective and sustainable diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices embraced by executives across an organization.
You'll be inspired by leaders at top companies who identified root causes of limited DEI progress and created smart, bold solutions for increasing representation, developing future talent, and advancing the careers of people often overlooked.
In the book, you'll also find:
A critical resource for senior-level business professionals, managers, and executives, Innovating for Diversity will also prove to be invaluable for people seeking to build their careers from the ground up.
BERTINA CECCARELLI is on a mission to advance racial and gender equity in the tech industry and disrupt the status quo to build a more inclusive workplace. As the CEO of NPower, one of the most successful non-profits in North America, she is committed to helping young adults and military-connected individuals launch tech careers and remove barriers to economic mobility. As a leader, she works to model an inclusive workplace, providing opportunities for growth at all levels.
SUSANNE TEDRICK is the author of Women of Color in Tech and is a cloud computing trainer for a Fortune 500 technology company. Fiercely committed to increasing the participation of women and people of color in STEM professional opportunities, Susanne has performed community service work for a number of non-profits, including serving as the former chair of the Advancing Tech Talent and Diversity Executive Council for CompTIA and as a coalition member for NPower’s Command Shift initiative.
Foreword xxv
Introduction xxix
Chapter 1 Why Are We (Still) Here? 1
A Brief History of Diversity in the U.S. Labor Workforce 2
The Current United States Labor Workforce 2
Examining Labor Workforce Dimensions 3
The Murder of George Floyd, the Rise of the Black Lives Matter Movement, and the Corporate Response 7
Why Haven’t We Made More Progress? 9
Fixed Practices: Reluctance to Let Go of Entrenched Formulas 13
Fixed Attitudes: Continued Pervasiveness of Ingrained Personal Ideas and Beliefs 14
The COVID- 19 Pandemic: DEI Response to Long- term Structural Impacts 15
Why Diversity Matters 18
The Business Case for Diversity 19
The Moral and Ethical Imperative for Diversity 20
What Got Us Here Won’t Get Us There: The Diversity- Innovation Paradigm 21
Conclusion 22
Summary 22
Chapter 2 Defining Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 23
What Do Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Actually Mean? 23
What Is Diversity? 24
What Is Equity? 24
Equity ≠ Equality 24
Equity > Compensation 25
What Is Inclusion? 26
Inclusion, Explained Further 26
Diversity Can’t Thrive Without Equity and Inclusion 27
What Is a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiative? 27
How Leaders Shortchange DEI 28
Common DEI Pitfalls 28
No Overarching Strategy 28
No Commitment from Leadership 29
DEI Work as a Checklist 29
DEI Work as a Human Resources Function Only 29
Ignoring Intersectionality 30
Not Establishing (The Right) Metrics 30
DEI as a Marketing Campaign 30
Ineffective Recruiting Practices 31
Ineffective Diversity Training 31
Ineffective Talent Development Programs 32
No Accountability 32
No or Low Compensation and Recognition for DEI Work 33
Not Listening to Employees 33
No Transparency 34
“Copying and Pasting” DEI Initiatives from Other Organizations 34
Going Alone 34
The Consequences of Ineffective DEI Initiatives 35
Conclusion 35
Summary 36
Chapter 3 The Virtuous Cycle of Innovation and Diversity 37
The Power of Innovation 38
Why Companies Get Stuck 39
Innovation Is Simply Not Prioritized 39
Inertia Is the Mortal Enemy of Original Thinking 40
The Power of Humility Is Overlooked and Undervalued 40
Diversity Drives Innovation 42
Innovation Principles 45
Chapter 4 Courage 46
Risk- Taking 48
Trust 49
Collaboration 52
Leadership 53
Conclusion 58
Summary 58
Innovating the Apprenticeship Model to Advance Diversity in Tech 59
The problem: Recruiting and retaining more tech talent from diverse and military backgrounds 60
“It’s time to get creative!” 60
“We can do better” 62
What Needed to Change? 64
The Solution 66
Adding Structure 66
Engaging Partners 68
Improving the Apprenticeship Selection Process 69
First Pilot Outcomes 70
The Importance of Consistency to a Good Start 70
The Role of Battle Buddies 71
The Citi Salutes Impact 71
Glitches Along the Way 73
Unsuccessful Recruitment Choices 73
Supervisor Limitations 74
Skill Mismatches 74
Two- Year Outcomes at Citi 78
From Pilot to Operationalizing: Expanding Irving Success across Citi 78
Conclusion 82
Summary 83
Chapter 5 Creating High-Impact Mentoring Programs 85
Coca- Cola’s Journey to DEI Success 86
The Costs of Inaction and Not Listening to Employees 87
Positivity from Turmoil 88
Measurable Results 89
Moving on from the Past 91
Mentoring Innovation at Zendesk 93
Zendesk’s Women Mentorship Program: Initial Pilot Program 95
Application and Matching Process 95
Support 96
Measurements for Success and Feedback 96
Pilot Observations: What Worked and What Didn’t 96
Chapter 6 Improving on Success 97
Measurable Results 97
Conclusion 99
Summary 99
Looking Beyond Traditional Talent Sources for “Hard to Find” Roles 101
Northrop Grumman and Tessco: Shifting Long- Standing Perceptions of Who Can Succeed 102
Northrop Grumman: Focus on Novel Thinking and New Talent 103
Roadblocks and Pathways 105
Shared Values Shaped by Common Experiences— and a “Secret Mission” 106
Selecting the Right Talent 107
Onboarding and Upskilling: “Building Software Engineers” 108
“Relentless Focus on Culture” 110
Week 12: The Beginning of a New Employment Pathway 113
How Success Ultimately Looked 114
Tessco: Reinstalling the First Rung of a Career Ladder 115
The IT Helpdesk Solution 116
A Career with Upward Mobility 117
Building a Successful Talent Incubator 118
Conclusion 123
Summary 124
Chapter 7 Innovations for DEI in Small Business 125
The Challenge for Small Businesses Implementing DEI Programs 126
DEI - Not Impossible for Small Businesses 128
Setbacks and Progress: Online Optimism’s DEI Journey 129
Turning Point: Developing a Deeper Appreciation for DEI 130
Blackout Tuesday: Paving the Road for Meaningful DEI Innovation 131
Today’s Outcomes, Leading to Future Impact 133
From Concept to Realization: Creating DEI for Small Businesses 136
Conclusion 139
Summary 140
Chapter 8 Rethinking Retention Through the Lens of DEI 141
Understanding Employee Retention and Turnover 142
Contributing Factors for Recent Turnover Trends 143
Compensation 144
Limited Career Development or Advancement 145
Inflexible Workplaces 145
Retention, Turnover, and DEI 146
Promoting Diverse, Mid- Career Talent 147
Promoting from Within: Target Engineering Manager Immersion Program 150
Retaining and Promoting Women in Engineering 151
Outcomes: Increased Representation of Women and Focus on Other Groups 152
The Positive Impact of Remote Work for DEI 153
What’s Needed for Hybrid and Remote Work Success 156
Compensation: Innovate with Employee Benefits Programs 159
Conclusion 163
Summary 163
Chapter 9 The Inescapable, Undeniable Role of Executive Leaders 165
Words and Actions: Do Behaviors Match the Script? 166
A Focus on Systems Thinking 168
National Hockey League: DEI as a Movement, Not a Moment 169
Employment: Building an NHL Talent Strategy to Reflect Local Communities 170
Youth Participation: Diversity as a Growth Mindset 172
Systems as a Movement- Making Innovation 173
World Wide Technology: The Power of Successfully Scaling Culture 174
The Story of WWT’s Culture and Values Begins with its Founders 174
Codifying and Scaling Culture at WWT 176
Key Business Concepts 177
How the Principles of WWT’s Culture Supports Innovation for Diversity 178
Training as Innovation 179
Radical Listening as an Innovation Pathway 180
Creating Career Pathways for All Employees 181
Conclusion 185
Summary 186
Chapter 10 Final Thoughts and Next Steps 187
Lessons in Innovating for Diversity 188
Revisiting the Virtuous Cycle of Innovation and Diversity 192
Applying Innovation Principles in Your Organization 194
Index 197
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