Death to volunteerism (Issue #3)
Recognize the value generated by people leading equity work in your company. That means money. Give them money.
The Diversity Grinch is channeled by Bryan Nwafor and David Stoesz
Did you know Grinches feel love? Like, deep, abiding, soul-shaking love? Because they do. I do. And there’s one thing in particular that makes my heart grows a lot more than three sizes: the beautiful people leading equity work in professional spaces.
In 1970, Xerox launched the first official employee resource group. This created space for Black employees to discuss their experiences and advocate for change in the workplace. Many companies have since adopted some version of this model. There are now ERGs for Latinx people, women, the neurodiverse, the LGBTQIA+ community, veterans, and other groups traditionally shut out of a world made by white men, for white men
Your company may call them affinity groups, business resource groups, or networks—or maybe your company doesn’t even have enough minorities for specific groups, and you have some poorly patched together committee in charge of taking the pressure off leaders by hastily responding to the latest hate crimes in the news. The names vary but the model is the same: Some people in the company are expected to provide the labor for these efforts on top of their regular job duties.
If you go to an ERG meeting, it’s likely full of exhausted folks apologizing because they missed the last meeting. They perpetually feel the guilt that comes with choosing between competing priorities—serve on that sub-committee or do your job?—and the frustration of wondering if they’re adding any value at all.
Hey, EGR peeps! I see you. You’re doing an incredible job. That nagging feeling of inadequacy you might have? It’s not you, it’s the fact that many leaders haven’t figured out how to leverage the value you bring. Or maybe they’re too closed-minded to realize you bring any value at all.
So let’s set the record straight on the measurable value of ERGs:
They support the development of talent pipeline for underrepresented individuals.
ERG leaders are three times more likely to impact business results.
Recognize this value and recognize these people. Equity work should not be a volunteer effort undertaken out of the goodness of our hearts, even if it is deeply personal. Recognize that the work of ERGs can and does generate business and community value. There are many areas of mutual advantage—like community outreach. Incentivize this work like you would any other work that benefits your business.
This is not an original Grinch idea. Twitter announced last year that they would start formally incentivizing ERGs (which they call BRGs): “This work is essential to Twitter’s success—it is not a ‘side hustle’ or ‘volunteer activity.’ That’s why we recently introduced a new compensation program to formally recognize the global leadership team of all of our BRGs.” Justworks and other companies have also announced plans to compensate ERG leaders.
It’s now been a year since the murder of George Floyd, which caused an explosion of new committees and volunteer efforts in corporate America. As we check in a year of progress—or lack thereof—let’s keep those volunteers at the top of our minds.
Let’s cut the social justice theater and demonstrate some real commitment by inve$ting in the people running your ERGs—instead of engaging in the usual gestures that pay an immediate dividend in good feelings and positive PR. If you’re a business leader wondering where to start, here are some questions to ask yourself:
Do these groups and individuals have the resources they need to be successful?
If you don’t know, ask them.Find areas of mutual benefit between ERGs and business needs
Look at your ERGs as a business asset, not just a nice thing done by nice people. Consider things like external partnerships to build connections to the communities you live in.Is there an innovative and thoughtful way to evaluate the impact of the ERGs?
Take time to understand what these groups bring to the table.
But that’s just for starters. This Grinch calls for death to all volunteerism as a solution to your DEI challenges. Would you rely on volunteers to run your database?
And to all you ERG leaders out there, your friendly neighborhood Diversity Grinch knows how much of our heart you pour into this work, and how tired you are. Don’t forget to take care of yourself.
Grinch out.