Systemic changes are needed to make diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives sustainable and effective.

In November 2022, amid the tech layoffs already disproportionately affecting Black and Latinx professionals, Elon Musk reportedly dissolved all of Twitter’s employee resource groups (ERGs), including Blackbird and Twitter Women.

These groups had been formed to look after the career development and safety of workers from marginalized groups. Founded by Shavone Charles, Blackbird was known as an impactful business resource for Black tech employees and allies. To many Black professionals, Musk’s axing of ERGs at Twitter is representative of how DEI initiatives have been dismissed in the professional world as a whole.

These groups had been formed to look after the career development and safety of workers from marginalized groups. Founded by Shavone Charles, Blackbird was known as an impactful business resource for Black tech employees and allies. To many Black professionals, Musk’s axing of ERGs at Twitter is representative of how DEI initiatives have been dismissed in the professional world as a whole.

To remedy the shortcomings of DEI initiatives, business leaders need to learn from past mistakes and take a more authentic, thought-out, and long-term approach to creating real change.

From 2019 to 2021, DEI initiatives jumped from 29% to 43%, according to statistics cited in Glassdoor’s November 29, 2022 post “Who Cares About Diversity, Equity and Inclusion?” Through the third quarter of 2022, this number dipped to 41%. In 2023, DEI initiatives are still lacking. The Monster 2023 Work Watch Report stated that only 5% of recruiters see DEI as one of their top three priorities for 2023. In the same report, 10% of respondents said diversity initiatives are among the “first to go” in the unstable economy.

These are the key reasons why DEI initiatives have not been effective in a sustainable way.

THE PROBLEM OF INAUTHENTICITY

If employees do not trust their employer to have their best interests at heart, they become disengaged and unsatisfied in their positions, which is costly for organizations. When there is a lack of trust regarding DEI efforts, employers lose trust not only among their employees but also their consumers, stakeholders, and the general public.

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