Diversity and inclusion (D&I) have become necessary missions for most businesses. Research has long shown that diverse teams are more productive, more engaged, and the companies that create them are more profitable. And the murder of George Floyd — and the social unrest that followed — made it clear that taking a stand around social justice is necessary to recruitment, retention, and even the viability of your brand.
Despite the requisite commitment and knowledge, however, creating a truly diverse and inclusive workforce takes much more than locating and tapping a diverse hiring pipeline.
According to a recent study in the Harvard Business Review (HBR), organizations of all sizes have made unprecedented investments around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the past few years. That same report, though, found that those efforts are not finding the level of success companies had hoped for. Much of the disappointment is not with recruitment, however. It’s with employee retention.