Want to Boost Your Business? Tips for Building Successful ERGs
In part one of this two-part series, we’ve seen how employee resource groups confer amazing benefits not only on employees but also on businesses and communities. It’s no wonder, then, so many companies are investing time and resources into creating, growing and empowering ERGs. But a poorly-managed ERG can be worse for your organization and employees than not having a group at all. So what are the key factors to create success?
Empower Employee Ownership and Celebrate Those Involved
Successful ERGs “cannot be company led,” EY’s Mary Miranda said. “While HR is there to help support and ensure alignment to our core value system, [professional networks] are led by passionate employees who are truly empowered through their own budgets and supporting processes to meet their needs.”
Damian Gardley, from Signify, likewise called out the importance of employee ownership. “While we have HR champions and executive sponsors to nurture and help them, [connection point groups] are truly employee driven,” he explained. “Each group was inspired by employees that wanted to start it and the employees know they own it, feel they own it, and actually own it.”
Coupa’s Gina Tesla pointed out that, “Employees are investing their heart, soul and energy in the ERGs — so it is important to recognize them in performance reviews, with leadership development opportunities, and publicly in all company meetings.” However, she added, these opportunities need to be balanced, “as ERGs are often run by talented and oversubscribed employees. It is important to ensure that you aren’t expecting them to fill in gaps in important investment in HR or DEI efforts led by the company.”
Build Awareness Across the Organization
Your company also needs to make sure employees are aware these groups, and opportunities to join or lead them, exist. “Make sure newcomers, and those that have not been a part of the network before, have the chance to learn about the networks you offer,” Miranda advised. “For example, we have done Professional Network Fairs to help people learn about the various networks, their mission, what they are focused on, and then they can decide if they want to be a member.”
Signify maintains a calendar of its CPG events, “making it really simple for all employees to see the activities going on and choose what they want to be a part of,” Gardley said.
Creating opportunities to include allies is critical, Dr. Cenina Saxton, of Focus Brands, noted. “An allyship panel had various leaders across the organization talk about allyship, what it means, how to encourage others to be an ally and, importantly, how to stand up or speak out when situations occur that aren't creating an inclusive environment where everyone has a sense of belonging.”
Cross functional awareness and participation is also critical to the group's operations, Ferrara’s Jeanette Torres said. “When we first founded Hola Unidos, I tried to make sure we had people from different functions, such as sales or procurement, because they can bring vital skills and experiences that help support the group's activities.”
It’s useful to help ERGs access and leverage resources to generate awareness and interest, Saxton agreed, including “various internal teams, such as the Comms team for internal communication or the PR team for social media.”
Related Article: Is DEI Sustainable in the Workspace?
Create Accountability and Gain Executive Sponsorship and Commitment
Leadership commitment, presence and sponsorship were among the most cited factors for ERG success. “Leadership needs to be informed and engaged in what is going on, as well as made accountable for goals related to the company's DEI objectives,” Miranda said. “We ensure that we set goals and assess the success with these goals, to ensure there is a focus on them.
At the end of the day, “you will need to invest in the ERGs,” Tesla said, also urging leaders to remember, “the funding you provide will pay dividends through employee engagement, recruiting and retention.”
Gardley similarly called executive sponsorship “integral to success,” as executives can “clear roadblocks and give guidance.” He also noted, “it can be helpful if you have leaders that are reflective of the groups to be able to give insight and safety.”
Executive involvement can go well beyond simple leadership, Optimizely’s Pipes Meliome noted. For example, at one company Pride event, “multiple executives joined in, and we all had an open conversation about what your identity means at work,” they said. “It was honestly heart-warming and demonstrated that leadership is engaged and listening.”
“If you are a leader who doesn’t think you have time to get involved, it is more important than you think,” Meliome added. “The traditional evidence may not be seen straight away, but then someone will reach out to you and tell you how the ERG changed the course of their career or life, because of something they heard you say at an event or something they connected to.”
Learning Opportunities
Measure, Learn and Embrace the Journey
When measuring the success of an ERG, “there are intangibles such as seeing the groups grow and be active,” Gardley said. Then, as ERGs grow in their maturity, so do the measures and supporting structures. Signify has a specific question to track how employees feel about inclusion. “Don’t be afraid to do the surveys and pulse your employee base and then be open to the feedback that you get” he urged leaders. “It doesn't do any good if you get feedback and then you don't really listen to it.”
“It's not going to be great overnight,” Gardley added. “You have to go through the learning curve of it. We started with three people in one of the groups and now it's a very robust group that is really driving the corporate culture forward. You can't be afraid of the journey, it’s a part of the fun.”
“We ask employees how they are feeling about topics such as well-being, engagement, as well as if they feel they can bring their full self to work,” Miranda said. “We also track our efforts in a global tracker, from a DEI Center of Excellence, that takes into account many factors and allows the various programs that are put into place to see how they are doing and their opportunities to be more effective.” It’s also important to “measure the success of specific goals for the various initiatives,” Saxton added. “For example, if we kicked off a mentoring program, then we look at how that specific initiative is doing. For example, does the representation there match the representation of the organization?”
Building successful ERGs is a journey. And remember, said Torres, “You can always start small. Start with education and bringing people along for the journey. Then you can move into more as you grow, such as challenging a process or policy.”
Related Article: Avoiding Burnout and Boosting Engagement With Your Remote Employees
Provide Opportunities Outside of Formal ERG’s
Various groups inside your company may not always have a formal ERG, but that shouldn’t stop you from providing ways to educate, raise awareness of, and celebrate different communities. “At Ferrara,” Torres said, “we created a DEI Impact Team, and they can partner with different BRGs and employees when they want to celebrate something specific or where the core BRG may not translate locally.”
“If you are still growing your ERG’s, or do not have one yet for a specific group,” Saxton suggested, “then create ways in which employees can still participate in events to build awareness and drive a sense of community and belonging. At Focus Brands we have a Culture and Inclusion Council to look at Culture and Inclusion more broadly and support diverse needs outside of formal ERG’s.”
Blend Education and Fun
ERGs can delve into heavy topics and pave the way for much needed, sometimes uncomfortable, conversations. But another key theme in successful groups was that they incorporated fun. “At Optimizely we try to blend education with fun, using things like trivia, alongside the heavier topics and discussions,” said Meliome.
Gardley noted Signify tries to, “engage virtually across a broad spectrum of employees to not only have these deep, courageous corner meetings, but to also make it interactive and fun.” For example, “for Black History Month, we had a lot of activity, including employee written newsletters which we distributed around the company, and for many sites we gave really interesting facts about Black resilience in those areas.”
And everyone loves a party. For one event at Focus Brands, Saxton noted, they “made it a fun day with food, photos and music, supporting local Black businesses and bringing awareness and education alive.”
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About the Author
Sarah Deane is the CEO and founder of MEvolution. As an expert in human energy and capacity, and an innovator working at the intersection of behavioral and cognitive science and AI, Sarah is focused on helping people and organizations relinquish their blockers, restore their energy, reclaim their mental capacity, and redefine their potential.
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